Memphis & Shelby County Film and Television Commission Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
621287896
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Memphis, TN, USA
Phone
9015278300
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$467,375
Expenses
$514,071
Assets
$126,516
Liabilities
$29,323

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Linn Sitler (Film Commissioner): $144,605 total reported compensation
  • Sharon Fox O'Guinn (Deputy Film Commissioner): $119,706 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Commission is the official city/county economic development agency for film and television. The Commission is not an arts agency, nor is it a trade association. The Commission office works primarily to assist and/or recruit funded projects that will economically impact multiple sectors of the local community: local hires, local vendors, etc.

What it reported doing in 2024

During the 2024-2025 fiscal year, the Foundation's clients spent $6,031,381 in production dollars in the community on the following types of projects: feature films $3,958,043; episodic television series $416,593; documentaries $29,700; music videos $158,500; corporate/promotional/educational $285,799; commercials $839,000; short films $258,766; and still photography shoots $85,000.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 100% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 19
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 91%; rating input score 91
  • Program expense ratio: 82.8%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -10%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.25; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.3%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.3% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.8% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 91% of revenue deployed · 82.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 22 of 22 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $426K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $145K · 24 people listed
  • Consistency: 21 of 21 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 22/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.