Lights, camera, action.

A technological digital studio could be calling Rio Rancho home.

City of Vision Studios, headed by Hollywood movie producer Elliott Lewitt and Debra Rosen, is interested in creating a multifaceted digital media center that would bring more than 1,000 high-paying jobs to the city. It won’t just be a place to work, Rosen explained, but also a place to live and have fun.

“This is not just going to be a studio,” Rosen said. “This will be a campus with lofts and retail. People can live, work and play 24 hours. This is what it takes to attract that creative class.”

While Rosen said several employees will come from Rio Rancho, she also mentioned that CoVS will tap into the existing labor supply, meaning getting people to move to Rio Rancho from San Francisco or Los Angeles.

“To get that creative class and those young people to come here, we have to make it appealing and attractive,” Rosen said. “They admire aesthetics and that is what we will do.”

Rosen likes the film incentives offered by New Mexico and the atmosphere of Rio Rancho.

“We chose Rio Rancho because it is a clean slate,” Rosen said. “The land and scenery are beautiful. People seem positive here. Who would not want to be in this location?”

Joe Cordova, the group’s agent and a former Rio Rancho city councilor, agrees with Rosen and said that the complex will spur the economy.

“You’re talking about $60,000 a year jobs so we will have a lot of people with disposable income in Rio Rancho, spending a lot of that money locally,” Cordova said. “This campus fits into the live, work, play area of downtown.”

The film studio will be a big boon to the local economy. City of Vision Studios is expected to generate 600 to 1,000 jobs and generate more than $80 million in gross receipts taxes over 10 years.

But, the group has not signed on the bottom line yet.

Cordova and Rosen explained that investors are willing to put the money into the campus if the city approves a resolution signifying its support for the project.

The city council voted on the resolution, which was authored by District 1 councilor and Deputy Mayor Mike Williams, Wednesday that will allow the city to negotiate with City of Vision Studios to entice them to come to the city.

The vote was taken after press time, but can be seen on the Web site at observer-online.com

Just because City of Vision Studios says it is coming, really does not mean anything. The city approved an incentive package to help Lionsgate build a $15 million film studio downtown in 2006, but Lionsgate has yet to break ground.

The main difference, however, is that if CoVS reneges on the contract, it will give back any incentives received from the city.

“This will definitely be a better program than Lionsgate,” Williams said. “This is a digital media company. They are willing to put clawbacks with the city so if they don’t perform, they are gone.”

According to Wikipedia, clawbacks in economic development have been used primarily in securing tax incentives, abatements, refunds and grants. Clawbacks are distinguished from repayments or refunds as they involve a penalty in addition to a repayment.

In this case, if CoVS does not perform and meet benchmarks, then it will give incentives back to the city.

“This is completely different than Mesa del Sol and there is no comparison between this and Lionsgate,” Williams said. “City of Vision is willing to step up to the plate and they are willing to put everything in.”

Williams said that CoVS is looking at 43 acres north of the city center that the state owns. He said Sandoval County will be the conduit for the land.

Part of the incentive package includes the city making seven acres available for the first phase of the project. An additional seven acres will be made available for the second phase.

The city will provide 14 acres at the beginning of the project if City of Vision Studios proves financial capacity to complete the entire two phases.

Rosen and Cordova said they have investors lined up and ready to move forward.

Cordova said that the city should not give them anything until everything is in place.

Williams said the talks with City of Vision Studios started last year when he was mayor.

The studio will be in the central business district, north of City Hall. Williams said the studio will have a training program.

“From my understanding, both CNM and UNM would be glad to have courses like that,” Williams said. “They can have on the job training. This is digital media. This is not a big box studio.”

Price Hall is ready to start the training, according to Rosen. She said that he is committed to hosting an educational academy for employees.

Cordova likes the idea of keeping talented students from Rio Rancho and New Mexico in the Land of Enchantment.

“We have a lot of talented students, let’s keep them here,” Cordova said. “Let’s create a work environment for them to stay. I know some of the Rio Rancho graduates are phenomenal in animation, but many of them have had to leave.”

Williams explained that CoVS will be different than Lionsgate because they offer so much more than just films.

City of Vision Studios will host medical imaging, data disaster recovery, film restoration, special effects lab, digital music, digital television and industry support.

Rosen explained some of the medical imaging projects. She said that the human body can be scanned and doctors can see much better than with CAT scans and MRIs.

“Doctors can see the whole human art and find where the clogged arteries are,” Rosen said.

Digital media is a growing industry, particularly video games. Cordova said CoVS is also considering creating video games with a Rio Rancho flare.

He explained that shooting the actors takes place in the studio. But scenes are shot anywhere and digitized. For example, if you wanted to have three characters fighting in a bar, they would shoot the actors in the studio in front of a green or blue screen. Then, shoot digital frames in a bar and embed the actors digitally in the bar.

“All of this is done in real time,” Rosen said. “You can shoot in Rio Rancho, score in London and do the casting in Paris.”

The downtown area continues to grow on paper. The area is getting University of New Mexico and Central Community College branches. Hewlett Packard recently announced they are coming to the area. The area already has the Santa Ana Star Center and City Hall.