Montana-made true crime thriller premieres at international film festival
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News from the Montana Department of Commerce
MONTANA — Filmed on-location in Montana, the true-life crime thriller “Ted K” recently premiered at Berlinale, one of the top film festivals in the world.
The film was largely shot in and around Lincoln, Montana, where producers held a local casting call when filming began in 2018. Film production infused more than $150,000 in wages and another $63,000 in local lodging revenue to the community.
“Filming movies, television shows and commercials in Montana elevates awareness about our state and brings outside dollars into our local businesses, hotels and communities,” Montana Film Commissioner Allison Whitmer said. “Montana has been growing as a home for independent cinema thanks to our spectacular, unspoiled nature, charming and vibrant towns and rural areas of our state, which allow us to facilitate authenticity in productions with all that Montana has to offer as the ultimate filming location.”
The film received funding from the Big Sky Film Grant through the Montana Film Office, which is part of the Montana Department of Commerce. The Big Sky Film Grant builds partnerships with filmmakers and production companies by providing seed funding to enable the creation of jobs and economic impact related to filmmaking production, enhance the marketing of Montana’s tourism regions, people, history, overall quality of life and support Montana’s filmmaking industry.
“Ted K” tells the story of the infamous Ted Kaczynski, known to the world as “The Unabomber,” who built and sent bombs through the mail and evaded police for almost two decades until his arrest at his small cabin near Lincoln in 1996. In addition to being invited to premiere on the international stage, “Ted K” is also receiving positive reviews from Hollywood critics.
“We were committed to making this film as authentic as possible, so we knew there was no other place to shoot it other than in Lincoln, Montana,” said “Ted K” producer Matt Flanders. “We simply could not have succeeded without the breathtaking landscape, the unique locations, and the warmth and openness of the people of Lincoln. Having grown up in Helena, I was always aware of the helpful nature of Montanans, but we were completely overwhelmed by the support we received in the making of this film.”
The film will be distributed by NEON and Super LTD, the team behind last year’s Academy Award winning film “Parasite.” A release date for “Ted K” has not yet been selected.
Learn more about the Montana Film Office at Montanafilm.com.
