Langholff is hopeful about the future of filmmaking in Wisconsin. A state tax incentive for productions kicked in this year, and RDI Stages now offers a state-of-the-art soundstage. "Now productions that shoot on location in Wisconsin don't have to go back to New York when it's time to shoot on a stage," Langholff says. "It's important for Wisconsin to have something like that here."
Langholff is a Fort Atkinson native who left college at 21 to open a video store in Cottage Grove. Six years later, he decided to head to New York City with his backpack to get a job in movies. He began as a production assistant and worked his way up to producer. He has credits on 40-plus films, shooting in locations around the world. In 2006 he moved back to Madison after his grandfather was diagnosed with dementia; he decided to bring projects here along with keeping up his contacts on the coasts. He shot the feature film Madison in town in 2007.
Last fall, Langholff partnered with the nonprofit
