As the 'Hollywood of the South,' Atlanta has boomed. Its actors and crew are now at a crossroads

abcnews.go.com:

For more than a decade, work had been nonstop in Atlanta’s booming film industry thanks to Georgia’s extremely generous tax break

ATLANTA — A lighting technician is mowing lawns. A camera assistant is teaching guitar again. An actor has thought about shifting careers.

For more than a decade, work had been nonstop in Atlanta’s booming film industry thanks to Georgia’s extremely generous tax break. Dubbed the “Hollywood of the South,” metro Atlanta became a ubiquitous backdrop for huge projects, including Marvel films and Netflix's “Stranger Things.”

As soundstages sprouted up, the insatiable need for crews turned the city into a prime destination for both behind-the-scenes workers seeking to break into the entertainment industry and «journeymen» actors wanting a reprieve from the hustle of Los Angeles or New York. But work dried up last winter and has been at a near-standstill ever since the industry's writers went on strike in May and actors joined them in July.

Writers reached a deal late last month, but with the actors strike still ongoing, countless Atlanta-based performers, as well as members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, are grappling for financial survival and with whether they’ll even return to the industry.

“I wake up every morning and I’m like, s—-, I wish I could be on set right now,” said Ed O'Hare, a 29-year-old set lighting technician who broke into the industry shortly after college by doing janitorial work at a local studio.

O'Hare said he rose through the ranks thanks to his eagerness to learn the crafts, eventually discovering a passion for lighting. Fellow technicians quickly took him under their wing and helped him get hired on productions, including the Benicio Del