On March 26, 2026, the Kentucky Film Leadership Council held its regular public meeting to review applications from production companies seeking to use Kentucky’s film tax incentive program. The Council is the official state body that determines which productions qualify for the Kentucky Entertainment Incentive (KEI) — a refundable tax credit between 30 and 35 percent of qualifying production expenses spent in Kentucky.

Seven productions came before the Council that day, ranging from feature films to documentaries to television programs. All seven were approved. Together, these productions project a combined $13.9 million in projected Kentucky qualified spending, which means that money will go toward Kentucky crew wages, vendor contracts, location fees, equipment rentals, and other in-state expenses.

The largest approval was for Black Reins, a documentary with $7.7 million in projected Kentucky qualified spend and 115 Kentucky-resident crew members out of 149. On the smaller end, Detention Secrets was approved with $174,675 in projected Kentucky qualified spend — showing that the KEI program is accessible to productions of varying scale, not just major studio releases.

In exchange for spending that money in Kentucky, the state will return an estimated $4.5 million in tax incentives to the qualifying productions. This is not a grant — it’s a refundable credit, meaning productions receive cash back on their Kentucky spend. The incentive is designed to attract film, television, and documentary work that would otherwise go to other states with competing programs.

For Kentucky crew members, these approvals represent real work. The seven productions are projected to employ 313 Kentucky-resident crew members across counties including Fayette, Jefferson, Franklin, Daviess, and Hopkins. Shoot schedules run from late March through August and September 2026, creating several months of concentrated production employment across the state.