Last year saw a "significant" increase in production, Syrett said — $145 million, up from $109 million the year before. Nearly two-dozen projects were hosted by Utah in 2006.

And this summer the film commission is expecting a boost in positive publicity from the third "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie, subtitled "At World's End," as a few scenes were shot in southern Utah.

Disney's popular "High School Musical" TV movie and its sequel were filmed entirely in the state as well. And a big-screen follow-up, "Haunted High School Musical," is also scheduled to shoot here soon.

As a result, Syrett said he and other state officials are "cautiously optimistic" about the chances for a production glut. "This could be our biggest year for quite some time. That's certainly what we're hoping for."

That's welcome news for the state's film-and-television production crews, which are regarded as among the best in country.

Also, the creators of such LDS comedies as "The Singles Ward" and "Church Ball" are planning to open their new Stone Five studio facilities in Provo this spring. "They're going to be state-of-the-art facilities, and we're planning to have more productions than just ours working in there," said Stone Five founder Kurt Hale.

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