Introduction

The word Texas comes from the word "teysha" meaning "hello friend" in the language of the Caddo Indian tribes and the state's motto is "Friendship." With four national forests, two national parks, 120 State Parks and a wealth of history, the State of Texas provides miles of entertainment. Sprinkled with a bit of old-fashioned Western Grit, there are craggy mountains, pine forests, canyons, and tall grass prairies. As you cross this second largest state in the nation, you can experience everything from cowboys to High Tech Urban Sprawls. Texas offers something for everyone!

Texas Culture and way of living

Texans are extremely proud of the history of their state and of being Texans in general. Most people think of themselves as being Texans first and Americans second. That being said they do tend to be very patriotic citizens of the US. The state has a rather unique history which you will hear about frequently while you are there. You will often hear about the six flags that have flown over Texas and the fact that it was once an independent country. This does tend to gloss over some of the negative parts of the history, however. The brief period when Texas was an independent country was amongst the worst in its history for example. If Texans are proud and boastful they are also very friendly people. They are well known for their hospitality and they will have no trouble starting a conversation with a stranger. Some visitors may find this to be a little bit worrying as Texans will often talk to you like you are an old friend even if they have just met you. This is just the way that things are done in Texas and you will get used to it pretty quickly. Over the years the culture of Texas has gone through a bit of a change mainly due to the massive numbers of Mexicans who have moved into the state. As a result a great deal of Mexican culture is now present. This is obviously most true amongst the immigrant community but even the people who have lived in Texas for generations are starting to pick up on some of this as well. One thing to keep in mind is that the way that people in Texas live will be affected by where they live. For example the people in Houston or Dallas live a lifestyle that is similar to the way that anybody else who lives in a large city would live. However there are also still people who live and work on ranches or out in oilfields who live a very different lifestyle. Therefore you really can't make any generalizations about the way that people in Texas live. One other thing to keep in mind is that Texas also has one of the most uneven distributions of income in the US. There are many people in the state who are very wealthy but also a lot of people who are very poor. Most of the people in the lower income bracket tend to be immigrants, often illegal ones.

Unfortunately in Texas there is little government assistance for people who are poor which makes the problem worse. Obviously the people with low incomes live a very different life from those who are very wealthy which again makes it hard to make any generalizations about the way that Texans live.

Texas clothing style A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of special significance and legend. Cattle ranching has been a major Texas industry for nearly three centuries. The clothing style of Texas is, therefore, inspired by the image of cowboys. The typical cowboy hat and boots are definitely the most well-known items. The hats especially are very easy to find, they can be bought at any shop in Texas and not only. They are widely sold around the world and once putting one on the head, there will not be long before someone mentions cowboys. Cowboy boots are varied and a true Texan will always lots of money at least a pair of genuine leather boots. Jeans are also very common among Texans. They are comfortable and casual, and easy to match. However, no Texan style is complete without either a shirt and vast or a leather jacket. A Western shirt is characterized by a stylized yoke on the front and on the back. It is generally constructed of denim or tartan fabric with long sleeves and in modern form is sometimes seen with snap pockets, patches made from bandana fabric, and fringe. Cowboy accessories include leather belts, Indian inspired ties and bandanas. Following the Civil War it became common practice among working class veterans to loosely tie a bandana around their necks to absorb sweat and keep the dust out of their faces. This practice originated in the Mexican War era regular army when troops threw away the hated leather stocks (a type of collar issued to soldiers) and replaced them with cheap paisley kerchiefs. Film & Television Production in Texas

Texas has a strong heritage of film and television production, and has maintained a reputation for being a great place to make any type of project. The more than 130 local production companies have created an artistic and hard-working community that attract filmmakers from all over the world. In 2007, Texas was the primary location for Director Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood, which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Cinematography. No Country for Old Men, The Tree of Life, True Grit, Spy Kids 4, Bernie and the television series Dallas, Friday Night Lights and The Lying Game recently filmed in Texas.

The film industry in Texas began when the New York-based Star Film Company moved to San Antonio in 1910, producing more than 80 films annually. In 1927 the World War I movie Wings filmed in Texas and went on to win the first Academy Award for best picture. Since then, Texas has hosted an impressive list of critically acclaimed films and television programs, including Giant (1956); The Last Picture Show (1971); The Sugarland Express (1974); Dallas (1978-1991 and 2012 - present; Terms of Endearment (1983); Barney and Friends (1992-2010); Dazed and Confused (1993); Apollo 13 (1995); Office Space (1999); Spy Kids (2001); and Secondhand Lions (2003). Visit our filmography for a more comprehensive list of projects filmed in Texas. Why Texas for Film & Television

Financial Incentives The Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program offers production incentives for qualifying feature film and television projects. Filmmakers are also eligible to receive sales tax exemptions on many of the goods and services used during production. Hotel stays of more than 30 consecutive days may be expempt from a portion of the occupancy tax. Please visit the Production Incentives Overview page for detailed information.

Qualified Crew With a long history of production activity and several major-city production hubs, Texas has experienced and qualified crew bases throughout the state. On average, 80 percent of the crew for feature film and television projects made in Texas are hired locally. Visit the Production Directory for a list of these talented folks.

Great Locations Texas is all about locations. With more than 268,000 square miles, the perfect location for your project is out there. Texas has a dramatic variety of terrain, from beaches along the Gulf of Mexico to the tail end of the Rocky Mountains. Texas also leads all other states in the number of farms and ranches with primary crops of cotton, corn, grains rice and wheat. Contact our in-house location scouts for assistance in finding your ideal location.

Support Services

Texas is your filmmaking one-stop-shop. From prop rentals to housing, Texas has the infrastructure in place to accommodate productions of every size. Our Production Directory also has information on production support companies available in Texas.

Climate With mild winters, long stretches of clear skies and warm temperatures during the summer, our weather is another great reason to come to Texas. Our rainy seasons in the Spring and early Fall are brief and usually have minimal impact on production schedules.

History of Country Western Dancing

Dance, along with music, has always dynamically expressed the spirit and personality of every culture. Modern western dance is part of this global language and its roots run wide and deep. They can be traced to the taverns of Ireland and to the ballrooms of Europe, to the Czarist palaces of Russia and further back still to the fluid tribal rituals of Africa. Representatives from all of these cultures brought their native dances when they landed in America. Widely differing peoples who had little or no exposure to one another gathered and danced on common ground.

The cowboy was not the most limber of creatures. The long hours in the saddle and strenuous work produced dancers of questionable finesse. He was not of a temperament to master intricate dance steps or to gracefully lead a fair maiden across the floor to the strains of a fiddler's reel. Rather he would join a dance with a wild whoop and a goat cry. Joseph McCoy, the first great cattle baron, wrote in 1874 that the cowboy "usually enters the dance with a peculiar zest, his eyes lit up with excitement, liquor and lust. He stomps in without stopping to divest himself of his sombrero, spurs or pistols." This dance style was not so much original as it was a spontaneous adaptation of traditional moves brought west by various immigrant cultures.

Puritanical thought, religious prohibitions and traditional customs firmly established the in East began to move West with the pioneers. Worldly pleasures such as dancing were often frowned upon, and when not altogether banned, were designed to keep contact and spontaneity at a minimum. Consequently, it was the minuet, cotillion, pattern dances, courtly processions, and "safe" folk dances that were favored by the early settlers.

The open unexplored spaces of the West both shaped the character and determined the interaction of its settlers. People organized barn dances, husking and quilting bees, cowboy balls and get-togethers. Invitation was by word of mouth and those who heard usually came to dance. To prevent chaos from dominating the dance floor (few people knew the same steps), a figure who soon became legendary emerged. This hero was the caller and it was his job to orchestrate the heterogeneous crowd into harmonious movement.

Working with the steps of formal quadrilles and folk dances, he added a "cowboy waltz" position and helped promote the square dance. This new hybrid was considerably more casual that the traditions from which it derived, but it still inhibited the young who were ready for a dance that would add a more intimate hold on their partner.

A new dance called the Polka started moving West. Having "the intimacy of the Waltz and the vivacity of the Irish jig", the Polka was embraced with enthusiasm.

The western population included such groups as Poles, Germans, French, Irish, Jews, Scandinavians, Czechs and Russians and each still enjoyed their own folk dances, but many found common refuge in the polka. New hybrids were also developed, creating offspring such as the Varsouvianna and the Two Step.

German settlers in El Paso, Texas developed the Schottische and line dances which were important precursors of modern western dances such as the Cotton-Eyed Joe.

Folks gathered just about anywhere to dance -- on ranches, in barns, in the wide open spaces under the stars. Slowly a dance that was specifically "western" began to evolve. Novelty moves and styles popular in Appalachia and the South came west and were absorbed by the new settlers. The freed Black Americans in particular exerted a stylistic influence that can still be seen in today's country swing dance. However, the most important influence came from the cowboy!

The cowboy paid little attention to traditional dance forms. One observer commented in 1873, that "some punchers danced like a bear 'round a beehive that was afraid of getting stung. Others didn't seem to know how to handle a calico, and got as rough as they do handlin' cattle in brandin' pens."