Producer brings Hollywood to Idaho

Eastern Idaho is famous for its potatoes and great outdoor attractions, but not so much for its status in Hollywood.

But that’s about to change.

Michael-Ryan Fletchall is the CEO and Producer for Experience Media Studios, and his home base is Idaho Falls. But he travels the globe making movies, and he’s got one coming out this summer with an all-star cast.

In behind-the-scenes footage, actor Josh Hutcherson runs through the rain on the set of “The Forger.”

Off set, the “Hunger Games” star can relax, but in the film, he plays a troubled young man who gets caught up in the world of art forgery.

“At the end of the story, he finds good outlets to become more of a young man,” Hutcherson said.

And while the characters have it rough, the same isn’t true for the film’s producer. Fletchall hasn’t always been a Gem State native. He came here with his wife and three kids to get out of Los Angeles.

“What I like is coming home and being around real people and having a sense of community and just kind of having a normal life,” Fletchall said.

Fletchall got his start at KKTV in Colorado Springs, editing for TV news. He worked his way up to Seattle, and said, when he wanted to put too many flames in the news broadcast, he knew he needed to get into the movies.

“I’ve gotten to be involved with pretty fantastic filmmakers and actors and from that standpoint, it’s been an amazing experience and it continues to be more amazing and (I’m just) happy to show up every day and just do my job,” he said.

Over the last 15 years, Fletchall’s worked on a lot of movies, and one of them went to the Middle Eastern Film Festival in 2008. He was approached by some investors, and in 2009, they started experience media studios in Abu Dhabi.

The company operates out of Las Vegas in the states, and Fletchall gets to experience all three cities.

“You get this ability to put people that are really creative and smart together and tell a story for you, and that’s just something that is really fun and unique and you can’t really go wrong doing something like that,” Fletchall said.

“The Forger” also stars Alfred Molina, Lauren Bacall and Hayden Panettiere. It will be available on DVD and Netflix on July 3.

Fletchall’s next film “Jasper Milliken” will be out next year. He hopes to one day make a film in Idaho Falls.