ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – James McKenzie has been in the production industry for two decades and opened his camera rental business, Horizon, in Benton Park West in 2022.
He mostly focused on working with commercial shoots.
“We provide cameras, monitors, lenses, that sort of thing,” he said. “One of the things I specialize in is having some unique and rare cinema lenses.”
He said he expanded his services after providing equipment for a romantic comedy, “Chasing Summer” set to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival later this month.
“I ended up supplying all the cameras, lenses monitors and all that kind of good stuff for them to film the feature,” McKenzie said.
The movie was filmed in St. Louis City and the surrounding area late last summer. The St. Louis Film Office says filmmakers have benefited from the “Show MO” Act, which provides tax credits for filmmakers shooting in Missouri.
“Soul on Fire,” a film about St. Louis native John O’Leary, who recovered from a near-fatal fire as a child, was also shot in St. Louis. It premiered at the Powell Theatre in October.
The St. Louis Film Office says every dollar that people involved with the “Chasing Summer” production spend is going into the community.
“Every single dollar they spend here in St. Louis is going directly to our community, our crew is being paid, our vendors are being paid, they’re buying gas, they’re staying in hotels, so the City of St. Louis has a huge economic impact just by having production,” said Kelli Hiatt, with the St. Louis Film Office.
McKenzie said “Chasing Summer” has transformed his business. He’s now offering equipment tailored to film productions.
“Just the buzz around that is going to, I think, boost a lot of stuff and boost visibility for St. Louis and Missouri to make large-scale, successful movies,” McKenzie said.
Other production projects set to be filmed in the area in 2026 include an episodic show. The project’s name has not been released.
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