Major movie set to begin Broken Arrow production

The Broken Arrow film incentive is igniting interest in the city as an attractive movie set location.

City of Broken Arrow Tourism Manager Makala Barton announced at the Oct. 21 City Council meeting that a new film titled Live Like That, a Sony Affirm project, will begin shooting in the city in November.

Increased interest in the city as a film location began with a $100,000 pilot film incentive program launched in February 2025.

The initiative is successfully attracting film productions to Broken Arrow and boosting the local economy by offering financial incentives for filming in the city.

Key features of the initiative include:

• 10 percent rebate on local spending during the film project.
• $500 rebate for every 12 room nights spent in a Broken Arrow hotel.
• 10-20 percent rebate for the cost of production space used during filming.

Live Like That is the second project to take advantage of the program since its implementation. Horrified, with a $2.5 million budget, was also shot in Broken Arrow in July.

The Visit Broken Arrow board and the City Council approved up to $53,750 in total funding toward the Live Like That project, with $41,000 from the film incentive and $12,750 through the city's Hotel Rebate Program.

"It's estimated that they will use 500-800 hotel nights during the production," Barton said. "Our hotels will be happy and full."

The City of Broken Arrow has the second-largest municipal film incentive in the state.

Cassidy Lunnen, CEO/Founder of Red Clay Studios, whose team is producing the film, said Live Like That has a $6.7 million budget.

"We spend 60 percent of the film's budget in labor and 40 percent in goods and services," Lunnen said.

The film incentive is paid for by a small portion of the city's four percent hotel/motel tax. It is estimated to have an 8-to-1return on investment.

"Visit Broken Arrow funding is raised by people coming and staying in our hotels," Barton said. "There is a four percent charge for visitors who stay here. All of the work that we do is 100 percent paid from that fund."

With the film incentive, tax dollars are set aside and reinvested in Broken Arrow's growing film industry.

The State of Oklahoma's "Filmed in Oklahoma Act," a statewide incentive program, has encouraged film and television productions to spend over $620 million in the state economy over the last 10 years. In addition to pumping millions of dollars into the Oklahoma economy, the film incentive has created thousands of jobs for Oklahoma residents.

And as for the city's relatively small investment, Broken Arrow businesses will recover a substantial return. For example, the first movie filmed in Broken Arrow to receive a part of the incentive, "Horrified," was approved for $59,000 out of the $100,000 pilot program incentive. It's estimated to have added between $800,000 to $1 million in additional revenue to Broken Arrow's economy. Here's an example of the film's impact on Funktified, a local retailer located in the Rose District.

"We invest to get more sales tax money from visitors who come here," Barton said. "By using hotel tax money to generate more sales tax and more hotel tax, it's a cycle, and obviously, we want a net positive."

Live Like That will star Esai Morales and Roselyn Sanchez. Affirm Films is Sony Pictures' faith-based arm with credits including Heaven is For Real, Miracles From Heaven, War Room, and Soul Surfer.

"We will start shooting Nov. 10 and finish Dec. 17," Lunnen said.

The movie will be a theatrical release for 2,000 screens.

"I'm very excited to film in your lovely city," Lunnen said. "I'm happy that you guys have a film incentive. It always helps in film; even small amounts are very exciting."