Grand Rapids has earned bragging rights to “the world’s largest sound stage” as Hangar42 Studios’ 450,000-sq. ft. full-service film production studio opens for business in that West Michigan city.
Purchased and renovated at a cost of $45 million by a local group of investors, “Hangar42 Studios is open now and ready to go,” says Rick Hert, West Michigan Film Office director.
“Fifty men have been working in three shifts to put the finishing touches on the building,” says Grand Rapids-based Hert, who is admittedly excited about the studio that he can see house “a feature film and two TV shows simultaneously, year-around.”
Not to mention attracting millions of dollars of new film business to West Michigan, an area covering half the state’s 97,000-square miles.
“Our vision is to establish Hangar42 Studios as the premiere full-service film studio and a go-to partner for film projects of all budgets and sizes,” notes Joe Peters, the local realtor who led development and purchase of the former aircraft plant.
Hangar42’s claim of being “the world’s largest sound stage” is based on configuring its 307,000 sq. ft. space (45-ft. to the grid) into a variety of sizes to suit a project’s needs.
The studio’s 50,000-sq. ft. of interior space features a state-of-the-art screening room, a 12,000-sq. ft. commissary, and a range of Concierge Services for location scouting, lodging, couriers, security — “and everything else needed while shooting in Michigan, which will truly make this a one-stop shop for film producers,” says Hert.
Renting the office production and vendor space is proving an easy sell, he notes, not only for the vast resources the studio will provide, but for unprecedented tax breaks tenants will receive.
