Medient Studios Inc. plans to create 527 jobs at its movie studios in Effingham County, down from the 1,000 jobs planned when the company had different leaders.
At the Effingham County Industrial Development Authority meeting Thursday night, board members were provided with an update on efforts to forge a new agreement with the company.
They agreed to hold a workshop in three weeks and a board meeting a week after that to consider new documents that will outline each party’s responsibilities.
Information provided to board members Thursday calls for 527 jobs, with an average wage of $46,200. That breaks down into 335 crew jobs at an average salary of $55,700 and 192 studio jobs at an average salary of $40,300.
Jake Shapiro, CEO of Medient, told the board that the hiring process will begin in a couple of weeks, with jobs to be listed on effinghamjobs.com.
John Henry, CEO of the IDA, said the 527 jobs don’t include support positions that the 1,000 jobs included, such as jobs at restaurants or hotels.
“That’s 527 direct jobs related to the production of movies,” he said.
An updated development schedule calls for a survey to be finished Nov. 1, site plans to be submitted by Dec. 15 and a site work permit to be received about Jan. 9.
It calls for the first phase to be completed in December 2015, including an entry road, studio, offices, workshops and some recreation facilities.
The schedule calls for the final phase — phase four — to be completed in December 2020.
Henry said the plans are realistic and that the board and Medient are substantially in agreement about what it will take to get there.
He said the IDA and Medient essentially started over on the project this summer, after the hostile takeover in which Shapiro replaced founder Manu Kumaran.
Henry said bond attorney Dan McRae is working on a supplemental agreement with Medient. He said the goal is to work within the existing bonds without having to issue new ones, which would be expensive.
Shapiro said Medient will move into new offices in about a week, on the second floor of Goshen Commercial Park on Ga. 21, in the same building as Baibry’s Café. Previously, the company had an office on Chatham Parkway.
On Wednesday, Medient announced it has hired Choate Construction Co. as the construction manager for the project.
Medient previously announced it had hired Bill Foley Designs as architect and Hussey Gay Bell & DeYoung as engineers. Adding Choate completes the “dream team,” Shapiro said.
Medient’s “studioplex” project is planned on 1,600 acres owned by the IDA at Old River Road and Interstate 16.
The company recently announced it will change its name to Moon River Studios, but the change will not take effect until a letter reaches shareholders and a waiting period expires, which Shapiro said will take several more weeks.
Litigation over the change in leadership of Medient continues in Nevada, where the company is incorporated. A shareholder lawsuit started in Effingham County has been moved to District Court.
The Securities and Exchange Commission temporarily suspended trading of Medient stock earlier this year because of questions surrounding the accuracy of the company’s public disclosures.
Medient’s stock is traded on Pink Sheets as MDNT. The company’s new website is medientfilmstudios.com.