A major film production company has placed a hold on the Atlanta Film Studios Paulding County, which a county official likened to a reservation.

The announcement was made during the Paulding County Industrial Building Authority meeting last week by Nick Smerigan of Roadtown Enterprises, which is the marketing and operation management firm for the studio.

Authority Executive Director Blake Swafford said in the movie industry, a production company will place a hold on a studio, which reserves it for the time period the film will be produced.

“In the next couple of weeks, we expect them to notify us to place the lease,” Swafford said.

However, no money has been exchanged at this point, he said. The possibility remains the production company will choose not to film in Hiram.

Roadtown Enterprises officials were in town this week, Smerigan was also the guest speaker during this month’s Cobb EMC Power Breakfast hosted by the Paulding County Chamber of Commerce.

He said the film studio project is 99 percent complete and the marketing campaign is in full swing, getting the film studio’s name out through email blasts and features in various industry magazines.

“The feedback has been very, very good,” he said.

Paulding County Chamber of Commerce board chairman Caric Martin asked whether television or film features brought in the most money to the county.

“I am a feature film person,” Smerigan said. “My experience has been that feature films come in and spend a boatload of money over a five- or six-month period and hire an incredible amount of people and make an incredible amount of mistakes that they fix by throwing money at it.”

But, not to discount television production, he said if a pilot for a television show is picked up, that’s a guaranteed client that could be in the county for several years.

“Although the money comes out a lot slower, and they are a lot cheaper in terms of spending, it does go over a longer period of time,” Smerigan said. “I think feature [filming] spends more money because the goal is loftier, but television gives you a nice secure occupancy base and the money is good.”

He said the film studio is 99 percent complete in its construction at 110 Thompson Road.

Several movies have filmed in Paulding County in recent years, including “A Joyful Noise,” “Get Low” and “Footloose.”