…for today’s Drop Dead Diva filming.

Scott sends in a couple somewhat mystical and dreamy iPhone shots from the street.

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Whoever thought filming tax credits could provide so much joy?

The Decatur Minute, with it’s close proximity to all Decatur permits, gives word of Past Life filming around the intersection of Ponce and North Candler today.

Also, Lifetime’s Drop Dead Diva is returning to film around the Square next Monday.

Make no mistake about it.  The AJC is stoked about movie and TV filming in Georgia.  While entire counties now go without local coverage, the amount of stuff written about Lifetime’s locally filmed “Drop Dead Diva is eye-popping.  Did you know that Paula Abdul and Liza Minnelli were guest-stars?  Of course you did!

So needless to say, it was in the AJC that I discovered that the Lifetime pilot will air this Sunday at 9pm.  Much of this episode was filmed in Decatur and Midtown, so make sure to set your Tivos/DVRs/VCRs/recordable laserdiscs, so you get all giddy about seeing all your favorite Decatur locations in HD.

Oh, and the other thing I learned from the AJC’s in-depth article: filming has now permanently moved away from Decatur/Midtown to Peachtree City because of “traffic”.  They’ve even built “a courtroom modeled after a vintage one in Decatur, save for the marble, which is not earthquake-code compliant” down in the golf-cart mecca.  ehm…Lame!…cough..cough…

From Scott's Infamous iPhone

My wife and I noticed the tell-tale signs while walking the dog up to the Square last night:

• Giant lights keeping the confederate monument company
• Mechanical dinosaurs reaching towards courthouse windows
• The long white trailer taking up those two coveted parking spots along Ponce
• The bored security guard

Sure enough, more filming at the Courthouse!

By the time I checked in this morning, Steve, Scott, GAK and the AJC(!) all filled me in on the details.  The Lifetime original “Drop Dead Diva” is back at the Courthouse and is sporting a California flag, opening up the opportunity for countless jokes involving left-leaning Decatur and the Left-Coast.

The AJC article doesn’t mention this, but this isn’t “Diva’s” first time in Decatur.  It was here last September filming at the same location and around town.

GA tax credits to film studios have inadvertantly turned Decatur into a film set.  And while we know the city and county make a tidy sum from permits and whatnot,  I wonder what kind of financial boost the DeKalb History Center gets from this activity…

FMFats has an eye-witness account…

…around 11:00 this morning a couple of motorcycle cops escorted a truck and trailer down Commerce to Ponce. On the trailer was a blond in a convertible Mini-Cooper and a film crew shooting the front of the car. Is this more “Drop Dead Diva” filming or is there something else going on in Decatur?

Anyone else see or know anything about this?

From all the reports of filming we’ve heard from around the area, it really seems like they’re utilizing the Decatur/Atlanta area for much of this show.  Such exposure speaks volumes for that elusive Decatur “character” we’re always so eager and willing to protect, regardless of the show’s quality.