oz or bust, photo by Jeff Westover.

My mother had every single Oz book in a shelf right outside my bedroom, and I spent a couple of years reading and re-reading my way through the adventures of Dorothy, the Wizard and company. The LA Times OnLocation blog says:

Michigan isn’t exactly Kansas, but anything is possible in the world of “Oz” — and film tax credits. Walt Disney Studios confirmed Friday that its upcoming film “Oz” — a prequel to the 1939 classic “The Wizard of Oz” — will be filmed in Michigan after all.

The movie, directed by Sam Raimi, has a production budget of more than $150 million and would be the largest feature film to ever shoot in Michigan.

The project’s fate had been uncertain after Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder recently proposed a big cut in the state’s film tax credit program to balance the budget. Snyder called for capping the program at $25 million a year.

…Burbank-based Disney decided to proceed with the film after receiving assurances from state officials that its previously approved $40-million tax credit would not be affected.

That was welcome news to Los Angeles-based Raleigh Studios, which has just opened a $76-million studio in Pontiac, Mich., where “Oz” will begin filming in August. The production will fill up most of the studio’s seven stages.

Casting is underway and information can be found right here.

Jeff took this at a few years ago at the Hot Air Jubilee. It happens July 15-17, 2011 at Ella Sharp Park in Jackson.

Check this out bigger and in his 2007 – various photos slideshow.