A few weeks ago, a Ukrop's grocery store stood in Quincy, Mass., just south of Boston.

Technically, it was just a Ukrop's facade. But why it was erected there -- along with a replica of the clock tower at Main Street Station and parts of Monument Avenue -- is a story of politics and money.

Filmmaker Richard Kelly, who made the cult hit "Donnie Darko," grew up in Midlothian. When writing his new supernatural thriller, "The Box," he set it in and around Richmond.

He had scouted locations to shoot it here and was ready to go -- but Virginia did not offer him any money to film it.

Massachusetts did.

With the General Assembly in session, the annual debate over whether to offer incentives to filmmakers to shoot their movies in Virginia has been renewed. Proponents of the incentives argue that the once-thriving film industry in Virginia will disappear without them.

They say that more films will follow the lead of "The Box" and head for more lucrative locations.

. . .

The irony of the battle for filmmaker incentives is that it came about indirectly because of a coup for Virginia's film industry.

The HBO miniseries "John Adams" was shot around Williamsburg, which angered the Massachusetts legislature. Adams, the nation's second president, was born in what now is Quincy, Mass., and the Massachusetts legislature thought his story should be filmed in that state.

So the legislature passed one of the most generous incentives programs in the country. As a result of that, the Richmond story "The Box" was shot primarily in Massachusetts.

"It's a very competitive business," said state Sen. W. Roscoe Reynolds, D-Henry.

"If we're able to win films for Virginia, it does several things. First, it makes a lot of money for Virginia while the filming is taking place. And second, Virginia is such a beautiful place that I believe Virginia would benefit from the exposure from the movie."

Reynolds sponsored one bill in the Senate -- an identical bill was offered in the House -- proposing that filmmakers receive tax credits equaling 15 percent of the budget spent in Virginia. Additional credits would be available for hiring Virginia residents for the filming.

Both bills have been set aside for the year.

Still active, however, is a bill that originated in the House to extend breaks on state sales tax for filmmakers until 2019. The bill, which passed out of committee unanimously, would continue to eliminate the 4 percent state sales tax for filmmakers buying props, material for costumes, lumber for construction, and most items that appear onscreen.

Also, in his proposed budget, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine included $200,000 for each of the next two years to be awarded as filmmaker incentives. The assembly has the final say on the budget and is not bound by the governor's suggestions.

. . .

The Virginia Production Alliance is asking for $4 million to be put into the Governor's Motion Picture Opportunity Fund for each of the next two years. The alliance represents the 6,000 people in Virginia who make their living -- full time or part time -- in the film-production industry.

"You've got to keep the infrastructure working. You've got to keep the people here," said organization chairman Terry Stroud.

"What you're really looking at is jobs in Virginia. When the movies aren't here, then [the workers are] directly impacted," Stroud said.

But Pete Sepp, vice president for policy and communications at the Virginia-based National Taxpayers Union, disagrees.

"Our general position is that tax credits are hardly an ideal way of making policy. When it comes to attracting out-of-state activity like filmmaking, what matters as much as direct tax incentives is the overall climate of taxes and business regulations," Sepp said.

One proposal that would be a simple rebate of money to filmmakers and would not be tied to tax liability would be "welfare," Sepp said, "and Hollywood is not exactly hurting for money."

Rita McClenny, director of the Virginia Film Office, counters that "right now we have eight active projects [looking to film in Virginia], and all of those require incentives to film in Virginia. If we have them, they will come. If we don't have them, they will not come."

Among these is Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln," with a budget of $125 million.

Spielberg filmed parts of "War of the Worlds" and "Minority Report" in Virginia and would like to shoot "Lincoln" in the Shenandoah Valley. But other states might lure the Liam Neeson-starring project away if incentives are not offered here.

Virginia's history of offering incentives to movie-makers dates to the Governor's Motion Picture Opportunity Fund, established by the assembly in 1998. Over the course of its 10-year existence, it has had less than $2 million in funding.

Kelly, who was frustrated in his efforts to "The Box" in Virginia, said, "It's a tough situation, because Virginia has one of the best run state economies in the country, and when the idea of a tax rebate comes into play there seems to be a philosophy of 'Why is this necessary?'

"For me, it's about keeping art alive in the commonwealth, and making the numbers work as best they can."