The City of Seattle's Office of Economic Development (OED) has decided to continue its support of the local film industry by transforming the M5 Creative space into a film-centric business hub. After a year of providing affordable office and production spaces to broadly support the creative economy since its launch last April, OED, in partnership with Seattle Center, will now focus solely on film production, with a lease extension from April through December 2025.

According to a release on the Seattle Office of Economic Development's blog, the M5 Creative space has hosted 16 creative economy businesses and has been used by 14 film productions, along with facilitating over 40 industry workshops. The initiative was aimed to swiftly activate the former Cascade Public Media building and did so by encouraging a mix of creative endeavors. However, to specifically enrich the film sector, OED has decided to quickly narrow down and extend leases for film productions only.

Film program manager Chris Swenson has seen beyond just the economic benefits of the M5 Creative initiative. "The tenants that participated in this program brought energy, enthusiasm, creativity, and formed a community network of support for each other," Swenson told the Seattle Office of Economic Development's blog. "Together, they’ve proved the case for creating a creative economy business and community ecosystem, and also contributed to invigorating the Seattle Center campus with energy, commerce, and vibrancy."

Washington Filmworks' Amy Lillard expressed the project's substantial impact, stressing M5 Creative as "one of the most impactful projects the City has ever launched to support the creative economy," she described in an interview with the Seattle Office of Economic Development's blog. The facility not only supports productions but also helps to magnetize larger projects to the city, such as a recent 'road movie' feature film choosing Seattle for its home base, partly because of the resources M5 Creative offers.

OED is shifting its priorities to focus on growth and job retention within the sector, aiming to bring in new capital and diversify the economic base. This targeted strategy aligns with the department's broader goals for Seattle's key industries, ultimately positioning the film industry as a cornerstone of the larger creative economy moving into the latter half of 2025.