Wyoming filmmaker and actor Sean Patrick Higgins recently welcomed the world to his new basecamp in Missoula, Montana. 

The University of Wyoming graduate and Sheridan native hosted a ribbon cutting May 16, unveiling The Studios @ Story House Montana — a 47-acre film production facility coming to life on the campus of the former Roseburg Forest Products plant and lumber mill. 

In search of tax incentives unavailable in Wyoming, Higgins moved his film production operations to Montana.

“There’s no incentives in Wyoming right now,” Higgins said during a recent phone interview from California, where he was meeting with investors for three film projects planned for production this fall. “There’s a better runway in other places.”

The site, formerly owned by what Story House described as “a company in a nonrenewable, pollutive industry,” has been reimagined as a clean-energy media manufacturing hub.

“Missoula has given us the opportunity to show what the next era of entertainment infrastructure can look like — green, local and values-driven,” Higgins said.

Those values include a commitment to training a local workforce and creating opportunities for Montanans transitioning out of jobs in the timber and other extractive industries, according to company materials. 

The facility features five premium sound stages totaling 181,100 square feet, 33,800 square feet of production offices, and 61,075 square feet of workshops for set design, props, and storage.

The site will include an Americana backlot and a unique rail line running through part of the building where Higgins envisions rail cars as part of the standing set.

“Something that very few, if no other sound stages can offer in the U.S.,” said Higgins.

Green Energy 

Higgins’ vision is to become “the first operational, green sustainable film studio” by integrating solar and other renewable energy sources.

Leading the green development efforts is Roger Gaudette, the studio’s director of land management, who previously managed Ford’s Dearborn facilities in Michigan and created what was once the world’s largest green roof — a 16-acre facility with stormwater recapture and innovative water recycling systems.

“Roger’s leading our development, and he’s weaving in a lot of these certified principles and green energy technologies to look at a more sustainable path,” Higgins said, adding the studio is exploring partnership opportunities with a large green energy project currently in development in Missoula.

St. George

Story House Montana will locally produce its first major film, “St. George,” this fall. 

The drama is written and directed by Andrew Pastides (known for work on “Blue Bloods” and “Law & Order”) and executive produced by “Friday Night Lights” alum Matt Lauria. Its production is partially supported by the state’s Big Sky Film Grant.

The film tells the story of two brothers — one brother has Down syndrome, and the other serves as caretaker and mentor.

“It deals with two brothers who are navigating grief through very different life experiences,” Higgins explained. 

Most of “St. George” will be shot on location in and around Missoula, and the production will have offices on the Story House Montana campus. 

The site aspires to accommodate lighting companies, camera providers, and other film service vendors as anchor tenants.

“We’re creating a film village, essentially,” Higgins explained. “Just like if you were to walk out onto Warner Brothers backlot, you’d have your little streetscapes where you look like you’re in Europe.

“You can walk over to a different area and you’d be in, you know, a block of Manhattan.”

The facility offers unique features, including covered parking for star trailers, allowing talent to move from trailer to sound stage without going outside during harsh weather. 

“Walk out, walk down the hallway, walk on to their stage in their set, shoot their project, and then come back from their scene and pop back into their trailer, all without ever going outside,” Higgins said.

“Someone can come in there and sign a lease with us, and they could be in there next week, working and shooting,” Higgins noted.

Local Jobs

One key goal of Story House Montana, said Higgins, is to generate enough production work in Missoula to support more than 400 local jobs. 

“Too often, Montana’s artists and filmmakers feel like they have to leave home to make it,” said James Brown III, Higgins’ partner in Story House Montana. “We’re building a place where they can launch careers, tell stories, and create lives, right here.”

Higgins echoed this sentiment: “We’re not just building studios. We’re creating an ecosystem.”

David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.

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Dear Casper,

I just watched the 1942 movie “Flying Tigers,” starring John Wayne. An early scene shows Chinese children receiving and eating U.S. food aid. Without warning, Japanese planes swoop down and bomb them. The final image of this scene is of a soot-covered child crying amid destruction. The message is clear: an immoral enemy that deliberately attacks children deserves merciless resistance.

My mind leapt to Gaza today. Instead of fighting like John Wayne against such horrific acts, we Americans are providing the means to the Israelis to commit even worse atrocities, specifically the targeting of children and healthcare workers. Without American military and economic aid, and our carte blanche diplomatic support, the Israelis would not be able to perpetrate what they are doing. This makes all of us Americans equally culpable for their atrocities.

Israel is working hard to control the narrative of their actions in Gaza, notably denying media access. Unfortunately, the label of antisemite is now often attached to those who are critical of Israel. But being outraged at intentional mass killings of civilians, especially children and healthcare workers, doesn’t make someone an antisemite. It means they are a person with some semblance of a moral compass.

We live in a world saturated with extreme media bias. Some may discount my views as regurgitated propaganda. But even staunch allies of Israel are publicly recognizing that Israeli actions in Gaza go far beyond any degree moral acceptability.

Yes, there is so much going on in the world that may anger and shock us. How do we decide which causes are worth fighting for? See if you can find some reputable information on Israeli drones deliberating shooting young children. If you can, then were does this particular cause fall on your priority list now?

We are currently taking hard looks at how the U.S. government spends its money. This involves asking some very hard questions. I would ask, are we OK with cutting healthcare funding for the most vulnerable Americans, while at the same time continuing to bankroll the morally indefensible, systemic actions of Israel? Which side of the moral compass do we want to be on? And how do we square ourselves to the legacy of the Greatest Generation who sacrificed so much to stop the strong from exterminating the weak?

Tom Smyth
Casper

Dear Casper,

Nice to know the City Council is senseless. You obviously don’t care about human life at all. You make decisions like you are the only people that matter. You neglect your duties as a council when you risk the health and welfare of everyone that lives in Bar Nunn with nuclear waste.

Thank you for serving the public and ignoring the people that elected you. I hope come voting time you are all getting an eye opener. Every person on that council will be sued for what you do when the people in our town start getting sick we can hold you all responsible because you failed the people.

Just like with Coates Road, you don’t give two iotas about the people you’re supposed to be serving.

It is blatant disregard for the folks who bought and paid for their property and we pay taxes. Your overall conduct is abhorrent in these matters.

I think you all should quit disrespecting our rights as citizens to live a healthy life safely in our homes. I have lost all hope that you folks care for anything but lining your pockets and building needless tennis courts. Not in our town.

Not our children and grandchildren shouldn’t be at risk. Let’s put the nuclear plant next to your homes. Let’s see how you like it.

Amber Sparks
Bar Nunn

Dear Casper,

In 2016, when the City of Casper entered into an agreement with Spectra Venue Management to oversee operations at then the Casper Events Center, residents were promised more affordable and accessible entertainment — all while reducing the city’s subsidy to the facility.

Further revenue-generating deals followed: a partnership with Sinclair Oil in 2017 to modernize the ticket-buying process, and naming rights sold to Ford dealerships in 2021.

Today, the facility is called the Ford Wyoming Center and is managed by OVG360, which acquired Spectra in 2021. The City of Casper renewed its agreement with OVG360 for another 10 years in 2022, continuing to promise lower subsidies and accessible entertainment for families.

However, my wife and I took our youngest daughter to “Sesame Street Live” recently, and we spent $200 for three tickets and another $14 on stale popcorn and warm soda. This is a steep price for a children’s show.

This raises an important question: Is the original goal of affordability still being met? This wasn’t a Metallica concert — the glory days of cool concerts in Casper are dead and gone. This was Sesame Street — the kind of event that should be packed with toddlers, parents and grandparents. It is a family-oriented show built on characters designed to reach children — many of whom come from underprivileged backgrounds. And when families have to think twice or go into debt to attend something as basic as Sesame Street, something is broken.

I’m not writing this to complain for the sake of complaining. I’m writing as someone who remembers the promises made to this community. While I understand that national tours come with associated costs, $200 for three tickets feels out of reach for many working families in our area. And if pricing families out of a children’s show is the new normal, then those promises have fallen flat.

The clearest evidence that prices were too high wasn’t a statistic — it was the rows of empty seats in a venue less than half full. This should have been a sold-out show but the luxury price the management company had set for this show kept families away.

The city leaders and venue management need to do better. A half empty arena should be a wake-up call and they clearly need to rethink how accessibility is being defined. Casper families deserve access to community events without feeling like they have to take out a loan to enjoy them.

Alan Corey
Casper

Dear Casper,

When President Donald Trump unveiled his One Big Beautiful Bill earlier this year, the fanfare focused on slashing regulations and delivering tax cuts. What got buried, first by design, then by damage control, was who would be footing the bill: working-class Americans.

The original version didn’t include eliminating home heating aid, cutting food assistance or slashing Medicaid. Those were last-minute additions made to appease Republican deficit hawks in the House who were alarmed by the cost. And they had reason to worry. The bill would add nearly a trillion dollars a year to the national deficit, mostly to pay for massive tax breaks for corporations and high-income earners.

Nobody proposed smaller tax cuts. Instead, they demanded more spending cuts, all on the backs of seniors and working people, especially the working poor. Defense spending stayed intact. Subsidies for big oil and Wall Street giveaways stayed intact. But if you’re poor and trying to stay warm, feed your kids or afford basic healthcare, you were the first to be thrown overboard.

LIHEAP, the heating assistance program that helps more than 6 million low-income households — including thousands in Wyoming — was zeroed out. Not reduced. Eliminated. No more federal help heating your home in the middle of a Wyoming winter.

Medicaid, which covers more than 70 million Americans, including low-wage workers, children, seniors in nursing homes and people with disabilities, faces billions in cuts. Millions will lose care. Many will die. And the rest of us will still pay for it, only now through higher emergency room costs and local hospital bailouts.

Food assistance is also on the chopping block. Fewer groceries, more hunger.

And if all that weren’t enough, the bill quietly raises taxes on people making under $30,000 per year by phasing out deductions and tightening eligibility for refundable credits. The people with the least will pay more and get less, so the people with the most can pay less and get more.

This reverse-Robin Hood bill has been called by The Nation and The Atlantic the largest transfer of wealth in U.S. history.

These cuts weren’t in Trump’s original proposal. They were added to make the math appear to work, or at least to let House Republicans pretend it did. What passed the House is not just cruel. It is dishonest.

Now Senate Majority Leader John Thune says the only way this bill will pass is with even more cuts. More cuts?

Wyoming may be a red state, but we are also a working-class state. Many of us live paycheck to paycheck or survive on modest Social Security checks. These cuts are not abstract here. They are personal.

It’s time for Sens. Barrasso and Lummis to stop hiding behind slogans and stand with Wyoming families.

They must vote no. No to tax hikes on the working poor. No to gutting Medicaid and food aid. No to freezing out Wyoming just to pad the yachts of billionaires.

Senators, Wyoming is watching. Don’t betray us.

Gina Douglas
Casper

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