That's the vision of Salt Lake County Council candidate Paul Pugmire, who rolled out plans this week to make Magna a hot spot for movie and television production.

"Let's dream big," the South Jordan Democrat said, "and make big things happen."

Filmmakers aren't strangers to the former mining town. Magna served as a backdrop for the TV series "Touched by an Angel" and the miniseries "The Stand." And it recently played host to film crews for Disney's "Dadnapped" and the independent production of "S. Darko."

Trouble is, the community doesn't have the infrastructure to keep those productions in town to shoot film, or record audio, in a studio setting.

That's where Pugmire pledges change. The Democrat - who headed up the Arts for Idaho coalition and recently pushed for a South Jordan community-theater complex - has promised to make film and TV development in Magna a focal point of his first term.

But is it practical?

Marshall Moore, director of the Utah Film Commission, says yes - especially if the commission can push through legislation next year to sweeten the incentives for high-dollar productions in the Beehive State.

Magna has attracted smaller-scale productions for years. Why? Because, explains Moore, of Main Street's small-town-America atmosphere, the ease of regulating traffic and the availability of empty storefronts to shape settings.

"You have the ability to create there," he said. "It is almost the quality of a back lot in Los Angeles."

But Magna needs the attention of county leaders to keep those filmmakers around, Pugmire said - the same type of focus he said he gave as Arizona's sports-development boss to keep Major League Baseball's Cactus League in the state.

It's a great idea, agreed Pugmire's Republican rival, County Councilman Michael Jensen, who offered this backhanded compliment: "I'm glad that Paul sees the benefit of what we have been trying to accomplish over the last eight years."

Jensen said the county already is pursuing plans to bring a film-related warehouse to the township.

The Magna resident said his platform also calls for a broader arts district with theaters, craft shops and galleries.

The push may be years old, Pugmire said, but the film industry still hasn't become an anchor in Magna. That needs to change.

"If you want to continue to get the same results," Pugmire countered, "then continue to do it the same way."

jstettler@sltrib.com