New Orleans mansion becoming film studio

NEW ORLEANS, April 26 (UPI) -- A gothic mansion in New Orleans will soon be transformed into a post-production studio for films, an individual involved in the project says.

Michael Arata, a principal in the Voodoo Productions group invested in the renovation project, said the effort could result in film studios filming in Louisiana keeping their lucrative post-production works in the state, The New Orleans Times-Picayune said Sunday.

"We want to essentially trap the business and double the amount of time they spend here," Arata said. "Post-production can amount to 25 to 30 percent of a film's cost, and that has left Louisiana."

The Bourbon Street mansion was purchased for the renovation effort in 2007 and has undergoing construction to add in editing rooms, sound studios and screening locations.

Jerry Daigle, one of Arata's fellow Voodoo principals, told the Times-Picayune the size of the new studio space should also offer filmmakers a place to stay while completing their work.

"The way the project was envisioned was as a unique opportunity for people to live and work in the same place," he said.