The 916HollywoodInitiative(916HI) is a collaboration of industry experts, regional businesses and community leaders who see both a need and opportunity to promote the entertainment business within the Greater Sacramento Area. Celebrities are the missing link to increase the visibility of Sacramento as a major player in the TV and Film industry. The 916 Hollywood Initiative co-founder and Sacrament
o native Craig J. Jackson, (host of FOX Networks “30 Seconds to fame”, VH1’s “I Love Money” to name a few) will use his celebrity inner circle to highlight the Sacramento brand. Mayor Kevin Johnson, who established the “For Arts Sake” initiative in 2009 to increase Sacramento’s presence in the arts, expressed his support for bringing in nationally known entertainers as a means to raise the city’s profile. Forming alliances with individuals and organizations like the Sacramento Film Commission (SFC) via their director Lucy Steffens, to tap into a larger reservoir of local talent that is qualified in the television and film business. Historically, individuals interested in the TV and film industry had to trek to Southern California to find employment in this vocation. Our intent is to provide an alternative venue for talent to shine. We are developing TV productions and strategic alliances that create local and national interest. They include:
• Raising the profile of Sacramento using celebrity endorsements
• Creating strategic alliances between regional and national networks
• The ability to create local and national celebrities through regionalized reality programming
• Creating a local and potentially national platform to highlight the Sacramento Region
• Utilizing regional advertising dollars to facilitate job creation and employment opportunities
One of our projects designed to raise the profile of Sacramento, will feature Craig J. Jackson hosting national celebrities on a regional talk show. He will utilize a format similar to what Jay Leno, David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel use for their highly successful late night TV shows. This will be a coup for Sacramento as we brand our region with film, television and recording stars coming to our city on a regular basis. By cross-branding with celebrities, managers, agents, producers and network executives, we bring a whole new level of economic viability and exposure to the greater sacramento area. This will increase the self-esteem of the region as a whole. We will utilize the celebrity power to align with important issues like our Mayor’s goal to be recognized as the “greenest city in America”.
