Is Atlanta still the Hollywood of the South? 

Superhero movies, like the recent "Superman," bring big business to Georgia. But these days, movie production across the state is down—much of it moving overseas. 

On Thursday, Trilith Studios held a summit on the state of the film industry.

The massive movie studio, located in Fayetteville, was packed with creatives discussing how to bring a new golden age of production back to the Peach State.

"What's going on in Georgia is, of course, indicative of what's happening across the United States," Trilith Studios President Frank Patterson said.

The Georgia Film Office reports production spending has dropped from over $4 billion in 2022 to around $2.6 billion in 2024. Film permits in Atlanta dropped roughly by half in the last year.

During the summit, a large part of the conversation was about harnessing artificial intelligence to create jobs and help content creators break into the film and TV industry.

Despite the production drop, Patterson sees opportunity. 

"These are the moments where the innovation is happening and the next upswing really promises to be something amazing because of all the emerging technologies, because of the expansion and the acceleration of all these creators that are now emerging," he said.

Jeremy Garelick, the founder and CEO of the production company American High, agreed with Patterson's assessment so much so that he's opening a hub for his company at Trilith.

"I fell in love with Georgia. I fell in love with the crews and the facilities, and I just got really excited about what it had to offer," Garelick said. "We started a digital network about three years ago that now has, you know, over 10 billion views, and we've got four channels. And now it's just, we have a tremendous opportunity to do the same thing down here. And, really start from a simple idea: that's ideas and people."

Both men say it's time to harness AI to create jobs.

"It's not about using AI to say, 'Oh, this can replace 10 humans. Let's do it.' It's, 'How does this create jobs for 20 humans?' So let's use the AI, but let's double the output," Garelick said.

Patterson and Garelick predict the next big wave of film and TV production in Georgia will come from online content creators.

"We feel like if we can partner in that process and be a home to those creators, we're actually taking care of the current generation of storytellers while growing the next generation of storytellers simultaneously," Garelick said.

As important as growing talent here in Georgia is making sure tax incentives evolve with the industry.

"The next wave of tax incentives and tax laws will have to be geared towards creators and towards YouTube, and that's an opportunity to draw, you know, just it's a huge market. And that's where the filmmakers are right now," Garelick said.

Meeting creators where they're at is the best way to ensure Georgia sets the scene for the next era of American filmmaking, Patterson argues.

"Storytelling is a great American export, and we have every reason to believe that we're going to continue to be a leader in this export," he said.

One good sign for the Atlanta film industry? The leaders who spoke to CBS News Atlanta say more pilots were shot in the area in 2024 than in any other state, meaning that there could be an uptick in TV production next year.