HELENA, Mont. – Governor Steve Bullock today announced $490,000 in grant awards for productions filming in Montana, including a grant responsible for bringing the Ed Harris-backed feature film “The Ploughman” to Fort Benton and Great Falls.

“Yellowstone,” the new TV series drama starring Kevin Costner and filmed partially in Montana, will premiere in Missoula this Thursday at a special screening approximately one week before it hits television.

Major film and digital media projects being released this year prove there’s nothing like the real thing for bringing Big Sky Country to the screen.

In support of the 40^th annual International Wildlife Film Festival in Missoula, the Montana Department of Commerce and Montana Film Office have granted the festival funding to bring filmmakers to the state to participate in a variety of events.

A television ad filmed in Montana took home the top prize Saturday for outstanding location at the Location Managers Guild International awards. It’s the first time Montana has been recognized as an outstanding location.

Filming movies, television shows and commercials in Montana elevates the awareness about our state and pumps outside dollars in to our stores, hotels, and to industry professionals. In fact, visitors who come to Montana because they saw or heard of Big Sky Country in films or TV spent $25 million in our communities last year.

Governor Steve Bullock today joined community leaders at the Roxy Theater in Missoula to award $167,605 in tourism infrastructure and community development block grant funding for the restoration of Missoula’s historic movie theater.

Two made-in-Montana films will be shown this weekend at the annual South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas.

A television ad filmed in Montana is among five nominees for the Location Managers Guild International’s outstanding locations in a commercial award.