After many fans thought they had said their final goodbyes, Ted Lasso is back for its fourth season in the place where the beloved character got his start. Returning to Kansas City was a no-brainer for the team, thanks in part to the Kansas City Film Incentive Program. Offered in partnership with the City of Kansas City, the local film incentive provides a 12% cash rebate on qualified expenditures. When combined with the Missouri Film Tax Credit, projects can receive up to 52% back, the highest incentive available in the country.
This is just one of the many reasons productions continue to choose Kansas City. These incentive programs, our impressive local crews, our deep connection to sports storytelling and our Midwestern spirit, make the region a natural fit for projects like Ted Lasso.
Projects taking part in the local incentive program can achieve a 12% rebate so long as they provide at least two one day shadow opportunities with department heads to local students enrolled in film and media studies programs. The requirement is designed to strengthen Kansas City’s crew base by giving young people meaningful on set experience that helps them build their skills. The more opportunities we can create to build up the next generation of local crew people, the more attractive our market becomes to large-scale productions.
The Kansas City Film Office works with professors from local universities to connect incoming productions with students who are ready to take advantage of opportunities like these. When UMKC film student Jordan Taylor heard about the chance to shadow on set, he knew he could not pass it up.
For Jordan, Ted Lasso represented the largest production he’d ever been a part of. To his credit, the hit Apple TV+ series is one of the biggest projects to come through Kansas City in the last few decades. Kansas City held it’s own – with well over half of the crew being local KC talent giving Jordan the opportunity to not only connect with professionals from all over the world, but build connections with those who’ve built their careers in Kansas City.
Jordan’s day on set came with its fair share of challenges. Rain delays when filming on the Country Club Plaza often meant waiting in camera trucks, and huddling under awnings, but those moments became valuable learning experiences as he watched seasoned professionals navigate obstacles outside of their control. During the downtime, he also connected with fellow production assistants he knew from school along with experienced crew members who shared advice about what a career in the industry is really like.
When filming resumed, Jordan stepped into the role of a traditional camera production assistant, supporting the department wherever he was needed. Watching the camera team work together left a lasting impression. He credits local Camera Assistants Megan Commons and Tom Funk with showing him “the importance of staying composed and having a positive attitude in a high stress set environment with delays.”
“I like how scripted is more structured, but you still get to find a story to tell.“
Since working on Ted Lasso, Jordan has had the opportunity to work with Commons again on a commercial production, this time moving up the camera department ladder into the role of Second Assistant Camera. Taylor recognizes this opportunity as “a big step up in responsibility.”
In that role, he was able to support the camera department even more. Swapping lenses, running slate and overseeing monitors were just a few of tasks he was responsible for. Programs like the Workforce Development Bonus are extremely valuable for students like Taylor hoping to build careers in the same place they first discovered their passion.
“The workforce development bonus allowed me to get on the biggest set I had ever been on and see people work at the highest level.”
Taylor’s experience on Ted Lasso, along with the productions he has worked on since, is one of many examples that aspiring filmmakers can build successful careers without leaving Kansas City.
Like many local film students, he once considered moving to other markets to kickstart his career. “Everyone goes through the phase of wanting to move away, but the state of everything in Kansas City makes it easy to want to stay.” It didn’t take long for him to realize he didn’t have to travel far to find professional on set experience.
As more productions choose Kansas City, local filmmakers are finding new opportunities to gain experience in the city they call home.
See Jordan’s, and all of Kansas City’s local crew’s, hard work on display when Ted Lasso Season 4, Episode 1 premieres on Apple TV+ on August 5.