I am a big fan of the movie Field of Dreams. Partly for enjoying a good old-fashioned yarn about life… but mostly because I played on baseball teams as a kid and loved the game. Then I became a Location Scout for movies, and since visiting this iconic location, I have become a super fan…
Behind the movie’s positive life lessons and how a baseball field can be a multi-layered metaphor, this field is an outstanding example of how ONE filming LOCATION from one movie CAN IMPACT a local ECONOMY!
A movie location is chosen for many reasons—and often from many choices. There is a Director’s vision but that look still has to be imagined within any existing landscape. In this case, the task was to find a farm with a classic farmhouse, and enough land where they could build a baseball field—out of a cornfield.
Once a strong candidate is found, and before anybody gets excited about a movie being shot there, a State has to be ready to engage with the project’s task(s) — and location owners of a desired property have to be interested.
After the location is “locked” by written agreements—and the production is committed to filming there, many logistics are to be worked out—and a movie budget pays for all of it, including a location fee to the owners of the location. Support materials, equipment, lodging for crew and actors, rental vehicles, restaurants and bars, retail shops, laundry, hardware stores, and local workers are all economically impacted by the filming—of one movie.
When a movie is a moderate to big hit, and that one location plays a key part of the film – movie (film) tourism happens… Visiting filming locations is more popular than you’d think. People travel from around the world to see where a movie was made and with social media, movie tourism has increased in the past ten years.
When people visit, many of the same vendors who collaborated with the production will benefit from the movie tourism. 
For the baseball field location from Field of Dreams, a group of people had a vision. It was kind of right out of the movie. Yes, there is the classic line “If you build it…,” but that speech. “Ray, people will come, Ray. They’ll come to Iowa for reasons they can’t even fathom. They’ll turn up your driveway, not knowing for sure why they’re doing it. They’ll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past…” Thirty years later, they are still coming…
Unlike most movie locations, visiting this one is unique… At the Field of Dreams Movie Site you can sit where the actors sat…
Walk out of the corn…
Play on the field…
And remarkably, go inside the House (which is technically a separate movie location). The house “set” remains almost identical. You can even stay over – in the house!! *
There is an awesome official Souvenir Program, and yeah – that is well done too. Researched, thought-through, and filled with excellent homages to those behind the scenes.
In the nearby town of Dyersville, Iowa…
there is the If You Build It Exhibit. It is small museum but a fabulous exhibit dedicated to behind the scenes stories and much about the CREW (from the crew, thank you ).
Back at the Field of Dreams movie site, there are still extra economic innings. Beyond the tourism dollars, local non-movie vendors benefit from the work of maintaining the field.
In 2021, they added a major league scale field next door —and hosted a Major league game! C’mon!
Thirty plus years, still going. And in the near future, the field(s) will grow larger with a “…state of the art youth baseball complex. This new complex will be a home to year round baseball, softball, and youth tournaments.” The circle is the movie field.
Again, this is one location from one movie. From the very beginning of attracting filmmakers to Iowa, to the hard work put in over the years, to the vision of keeping the location alive – it is utterly astounding how this one movie has benefitted a State. Bravo, to all connected.
Does your State try to attract economic-impactful filmmaking?
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* Staying in the house comes with certain check in/out parameters. Check the website.
Field of Dreams movie screenshots via Universal Pictures. Photos by Jamie Vesay, photographs and exhibits via The Field of Dreams Movie Site, their Program, and If You Build It Exhibit. Screenshot of the Major League Baseball game via Fox Sports. 
Jamie Vesay is a working Location Scout and Manager for commercial filmmaking based in Nebraska. He has worked on movies, commercials, and many other creative projects which affected a local economy. He is an advocate for filmworker JOBS, making communities film-friendly, and supporting filmmaking as a creative class which impacts economic development. He has watched the movie Field of Dreams at least twenty times.
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