The Inland Empire Film Commission didn't attach a dollar figure to their first quarter update, but the group that assists film crews looking for backdrop locations to find what they need in the two county region reported that the first three months were filled with filming.

Here are the movies and shows that might feature a recognizable scene or backdrop, according to the Inland Empire Film Commission.

Feature Films:
"Behind Your Eyes" - Vesuvio Entertainment (shot in Lake Arrowhead, Cedar Glen and Twin Peaks for nine days with a crew of 15)
"Manhattan" -- Triple A Productions (shot in Cougar Buttes in Barstow for three days)
"Plant World" -- Modern Imbecile LLC (shot in Cougar Buttes in Barstow)

Television:
"CSI" (shot at the Morongo Casino for two days with a cast and crew of 300)
"Sole Survivor" (shot at Lake Gregory in Crestline for two days with a cast and crew of 20)
"House" (shot in Corona for one day)

Reality Shows:
"Elle & Tito" (shot in Big Bear Lake for three days)
"Teen Cribs" (shot in Temecula with a crew of nine)
"Some Assembly Required" (shot in North Palm Springs)
"Clean House" (shot in Corona for seven days with a crew of 40)

Commercials:
"Hine Temecula Mazda" (shot in Temecula with a cast and crew of 70)
"Next Directory" (shot in Desert Hot Springs for two days)
"T-Mobile" (shot at Ontario International Airport and near Fontana)
"NASCAR" (shot at the Auto Club Speedway for three days with a crew of 75)
"Hertz" (shot in Winchester with a crew of 65)
"Walmart" (shot in Apple Valley)
"Cadillac" (shot on the 10 freeway)
"Comcast" (shot at the Frontier Project in Rancho Cucamonga)
"Monster First" (shot in Corona)
"Victory Motorcycles" (shot in Palm Desert on Hwy 74 near Hwy 111)
"Rolls-Royce Ghost news" (shot on Hwy 74)
"Dodge Ram" (shot at Cougar Buttes in Barstow for two days)
"Subaru" (shot at Cougar Buttes in Barstow for two days)

There was also quite a bit of still photography shot in the region.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

Businesses and the public are invited to a free Energy Retrofit Summit on Thursday in Chino to learn how to take advantage of new federal homeowner rebates to break into the field of retrofitting houses for energy efficiency..

Those attending the summit, hosted by the San Bernardino County Workforce Investment Board, will hear experts explain pending federal rebates for using energy efficient products such as doors, windows, skylights and window film. They will also learn about local training programs that will be available to help businesses train workers in how to become proficient in installing energy saving technology.

The summit will be from 9 am to 4 pm at the Chaffey College Chino Community Center, 5890 College Park Avenue. Those who plan to attend are encouraged to RSVP online at http://sbcjobfair.com/bers or call Jenny De La Mora at 909-383-9938. However, those who do not RSVP also will be welcome.
--Leslie Berkman
lberkman@PE.com

We here on The Press-Enterprise business team know you're busy, that's why in seven minutes or less (we're aiming for five minutes, promise) we give you a heads up on the news appearing in tomorrow's business section. Every afternoon, check out Mind Your Business on pe.com/business for your daily fix of Inland business news, giving you the news that will appear on our business section cover before it's even printed.

Want to know more about a new retail store opening at Ontario Mills? What the developer of March LifeCare hopes to get for his medical campus now that he has the state's support? Or what bank is offering services to small businesses?

Watch our latest installment of "Mind Your Business".

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

The grocery chain's conference call may not be until 8:30 a.m. Wednesday but, as it usually does, Stater Bros. sent out a statement with a peek at its second quarter results late Tuesday.

In the grocery chain's second quarter ending March 28, it earned net income (essentially revenue minus expenses) of $6 million.
How much did it earn in the second quarter last year (ending March 29, 2009)? $11.1 million.

That's a 46 percent drop.

Overall, the company had $885.5 million worth of sales in the second quarter, down $45.5 million. Of that amount, $24.5 million was attributed to the company's sale of its Santee Dairies assets. The rest was because of a drop in sales at the company's 167 supermarkets.

In a statement, the company's chairman, president and CEO Jack H. Brown, said "Our financial results in the quarter and 26-weeks of fiscal 2010 have been impacted by the current economic situation. The family budgets of our customers have been adversely affected by the tough economic environment within Southern California. Unemployment within much of our marketing area is near 15%."

Like store sales took a 3.1% drop, or $28.3 million, in the second quarter compared to the same period a year prior.

Check back here Wednesday morning for an update from the conference call.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

Think your office is a little too fluorescent? Does the sight of piles of paper make you want to quit your job and fly to a rainforest to chain yourself to a tree before it gets bulldozed?

Entrepreneur.com and Staples might have a contest for you then.

The two have partnered to award a winning small business a $10,000 "green" makeover. Runner ups get $2,000 or $1,000 worth of eco-friendly office products from Staples.

In 100 words or less, small business owners must describe how they want to "green" their offices.

To enter, visit the site for the Green Your Small Business Challenge.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

Is this a positive economic indicator? Or are we reaching here?

Challenger, Gray and Christmas, the Chicago-based executive search firm, tracks how many chief executive officers are leaving their respective firms, and they said that the turnover count was down in April for the second month in a row.There were 101 CEO departures at major firms last month, down from 119 in March and 132 in February.

Why a CEO decides to leave is a question that can be looked at from different angles. With the economy apparently on the cusp of a recovery, some top executives believe that he or she might have done all that's possible. A new era means it's time for new blood.

Or, maybe the CEO has decided this recovery is not working out, that he or she has run out of ideas, and that it's a good time to run for the hills.

About 40 percent of the CEOs who left resigned or otherwise stepped down, and another 30 percent retired. The average age was just over 62. Only five were either fired or left under pressure from their boards.

John Challenger, a CEO himself, said in a statement it's natural for some top execs to decide that this is the time to give up the leadership role. The economy has created just that type of crossroads for a lot of people.

--Jack Katzanek
jkatzanek@PE.com

Hope Now, an alliance of mortgage industry and nonprofit counseling organizations, is holding another foreclosure prevention workshop. It will be Friday, from 1 pm to 7:30 pm and Saturday, from 9 am to 3 pm, at the National Orange Show Events Center, 690 S. Arrowhead Avenue, Gate #9, in San Bernardino.

Arrangers of the event say if you are trying to figure out if you qualify for a mortgage modification, this is your opportunity to talk to a counselor approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Also there is a good chance that your loan servicer will have representatives there to meet with you.

Among the mortgage servicers that will be in attendance: American Home Mortgage Servicing, Inc., Aurora Loan Services, Bank of America, Chase, Citi, GMAC, LBPS, Ocwen, OneWest Bank (IndyMac), Saxon Mortgage, Select Portfolio Servicing, Wells Fargo/Wachovia.

Good Luck!
--Leslie Berkman
lberkman@PE.com

Inland Southern California has received some decent economic news from forecasters in the last three or four months.

The one being presented later today is not one of them.

Economists at Cal State Long Beach say the job market for Riverside and San Bernardino counties will remain poor not only for the rest of this year but all of 2011 as well. They are calling for payroll employment to decline by 3.4 percent in 2010 and another 0.5 percent in next year. The Inland region won't see job growth until 2012 and it will be a weak 2 percent.

Not enough jobs will translate to not a lot of money will be spent. Cal State economists predict taxable sales, the expenditures that cities and counties depend on for revenue, will decline by about $3.5 billion in 2010 after an $11 billion drop in 2009, and decline slightly in 2011 as well.

The only encouraging prediction CSULB economists have made is for an increase in building permits in 2010. Builders had practically given up on the area a few years ago. In 2005 more than 45,000 permits were taken out in the two Inland counties. That was down to 4,875 in 2009, and that number is expected to climb this year.

Theoretically that means more construction workers will be hired, but this forecast doesn't suggest anyone will be in a rush to do that.

The forecast calls for stability (and some growth) in the Inland financial sector this year and a turnaround in manufacturing next year.

The latest reports from the state seem to contradict these forecasts. The Inland area saw a little job growth in February and March and other economic forecasts, including those from Chapman University and regional economist John Husing, predict some net growth this year.

--Jack Katzanek
jkatzanek@PE.com

Good luck trying to find a Keller Williams real estate agent in the office today. You are more likely to find him or her at a church or homeless shelter because across the nation Keller Williams associates have been given the go-ahead to spend the day in community service.

Daniel Gomez, team leader of the Keller Williams office in Moreno Valley, said more than 700 Keller Williams offices in the U.S. and Canada, including 32 in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, will close today for the second annual RED Day. RED, he explained, stands for renew, energize and donate.

Charitable efforts to which Inland agents will donate their time and energy this year, Gomez said, include serving food at homeless shelters in Riverside, doing yard work for elderly residents in Rancho Cucamonga and landscaping and painting a new youth facility at a church in Perris.

Come to think of it, real estate agents nowadays probably know more than most about the needs of people struggling through tough economic times. Pitching in is a way for them to show they care.
--Leslie Berkman
lberkman@PE.com

The folks who will be running Pharaoh's Adventure Park when it set to open in early June will be looking for a few good lifeguards, ride operators, parking attendants, ticket sellers, admission hosts, cooks, cashiers and supervisors on Saturday (May 15) at a job fair.

The job fair will be taking place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the park at 1101 N. California St. in Redlands north of the 10 freeway. Applications can be picked up and then dropped off, when filled out, to the park's main administrative office.

For more information call: 909-335-7275.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

We've been hearing the phrase "slow and gradual recovery" for a while now, but this may seem a little extreme.

A new study done for the American Trucking Associations suggests that freight shipments, which were sharply down in 2009, will be making a recovery. But the big growth everyone wants to see won't happen until 2021, which means it will be spread out over 11 years.

The study was done by IHS Global Insight and Martin Labbe Associates, and it also estimates that the revenues paid to truckers and trucking companies, railroads and others that ship freight will grow 69 percent by 2021.

Truckers will increase their market share, mostly at the expense of railroads, in the next 10 years, according to this study, which was paid for by truckers.

The shipment of all goods slid 12.5 percent last year, when producers decided there was no point shipping out goods when consumers were not going to buy them. Researchers see a modest expansion of consumer spending this year, leading to the conclusion that goods movement will increase very slowly.

--Jack Katzanek
jkatzanek@PE.com

Greece's debt problems, while at least temporarily alarming for the stock market, was a gift to homebuyers because it has been pushing down interest rates on mortgages.

Bankrate.com's weekly national survey of interest rates that was taken yesterday showed that the average rate for 30-year-fixed-rate conforming mortgages over the last two weeks dropped from 5.2 percent to 5.07 percent.

The reason, said Bankrate.com senior analyst Greg McBride, is the purchase of U.S. Treasury bonds by investors who fear debt problems could spread to other European nations and create a credit crunch that could further harm the global economy. In the flight to safety, U.S Treasuries look good, said McBride, because they are backed by the U.S. government that unlike Greece has the ability to "print money" to cover its debt.

Greater demand for U.S. Treasury bonds pushes down longterm interest rates and thus mortgage rates, McBride explained, and mortgage borrowers are the beneficiaries. Especially fortunate, he said, are those who rushed to sign home purchase contracts in recent weeks to make the April 30 deadline to qualify for the federal income tax rebate program. "If you signed a contract in late April you are looking for a mortgage now," McBride noted.

McBride said he would advise anyone with an adjustable rate mortage scheduled to reset over the next two years to take this opportunity to refinance. "The opportunity you can't afford to pass up is trading away the uncertainty of an adjustable rate for the predictability of these low fixed mortgage rates," McBride said.

With concerns persisting that European debt could derail the U.S. economic recovery, McBride said he expects that the Federal Reserve will be disinclined to do anything soon to raise interest rates. He predicted that mortgage rates "will stay in the low 5 percent neighborhood at least through mid summer."
--Leslie Berkman
lberkman@PE.com

Airline workers will find it much easier to form a union after the laws outlining how organizing elections are run were modified earlier this week.

The National Mediation Board Monday voted to amend the law by deciding the vote based on a simple majority of all the votes cast. Before, under provisions of the 1926 Railway Labor Act, union activists who wanted to organize the workplace needed 50 percent of all the people in that job classification that were eligible to vote.

That means that, under the existing system, if 40 percent of the Delta Airlines flight attendants voted in favor of joining the union, and 35 percent voted no, and 25 percent stayed home that day or didn't bother to vote, the union would be voted down. Management, including a trade group that represents many of the country's largest airlines, is opposed to changing the law and is filing a lawsuit against the federal board.

Delta is mentioned as an example because it has the lightest union penetration of any major airline, and the aviation unions have targeted Delta in an effort to change that. Jet Blue is another with few union members.

President Barack Obama appointed a Democrat and a former activist with the flight attendants union to the National Mediation Board last year. This effectively changed the political outlook of the board and made this change possible. The new law will go into effect June 10.

--Jack Katzanek
jkatzanek@PE.com

UPDATE: Scott Baker, the founder of INAFJ.com, called me back today to talk about his effort and dispell some conspiracies and myths.

There's apparently a new movement afoot aimed at highlighting the nation's unemployment plight -- INAFJ.org -- or "I Need a Freakin' Job" and one of the group's billboards greeted President Obama when he arrived in Buffalo, NY

The message?

"Dear Mr. President, I need a freakin job. Period. Sincerely, INAFJ.com"

Who exactly is INAFJ.org? Not entirely sure.

The domain looks to have been registered through GoDaddy.com to a company in Scottsdale, Ariz., but when I look up INAFJ.com LLC on Arizona's Secretary of State's Web site the name didn't show up.

Baker says his brothers where were in business for more than a decade running the Adirondack Blanket Works which made blankets, pillows, etc.

About 15 months ago, the small business closed and they laid off all 25 employees.

"It was a horrible experience for everybody," Baker said.

Then, when his brother was sitting at a dining room table, he turned to his wife and said "I need a freakin job." Jeff came up with the grass-roots movement aimed at creating awareness the impact small business closures have on employement levels began to grow in October.

With his brother Jeff Baker running the creative side of things, he had planned to buy a billboard in downtown Buffalo, NY with the message to the president long before the president decided to visit. Obama announced on May 6th that he would be visiting the city. On May 7th, Scott's billboard went up.

"It made us look a whole lot smarter than we are," he said.

He said he has the billboard for 28 days but hopes to squeak away with a little more time considering the billboard company hasn't gotten a bit of publicity now too.

As for who's funding the project, Scott said it's all him and any support he gets by selling t-shirts on the site.

The home page feels like something out of Adbusters with plenty of recognizable graphic icons as well as a mish-mash of randomness reaching out to the young and unemployed who aren't going to take it anymore (ex: the collection of Andre the Giant pictures and the short "Fat Bat Man: Unemployment Adventures" videoes -- watch Bat Man do his laundry, watch Bat Man sweep floors, watch Bat Man grab food from a food pantry).

"I'm quite in the red putting this whole thing together," he said. "I have extremely modest means."

The vice president of operations at a water treatment company also has a job.

"I'm fortunate enough to work," he said.

Despite the billboard's direct message to President Obama, Scott says the campaign has no political ties and he avoids even mentioning his own political leanings.

"We've gone out of our way to make this as apolitical as possible," he said. "This is not a personal shot at the presidency, not at the office or the man."

Simply put, "I want the government to get out of the way," he said. Out of the way of small businesses, specifically, and the taxes and regulations that impede them, he said.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

J.P. MorganChase says the community centers it opened last year nationwide to help mortgage customers avert foreclosure have been so successful that it decided to add more offices, including two more in Inland Southern California.

About two weeks ago the bank quietly opened a so-called Homeownership Center at 324 West Hospitality Lane, Suite 112 in San Bernardino and another at 3400 Central Avenue, Suite 205 in Riverside. They join an office that Chase opened last spring at 8599 Haven Avenue, Suite 303, in Rancho Cucamonga.

Now that the two new offices have some experience under their belt they are planning a grand opening at the San Bernardino office Thursday, May 30, to which they will invite representatives from local nonprofit housing agencies, according to Chase spokesman Gary Kishner. The idea is for Chase officials to introduce themselves to the agencies who will send them clients needing help, Kishner said.

Homeowners who could benefit from visiting the centers include those who have mortgages serviced by Chase, Washington Mutual or EMC--all of which are now part of JP Morgan Chase.

Chase is in the process of more than doubling its foreclosure prevention centers nationwide to 51 by the end of the month, said Kishner. He said the centers are effective because the customers are able to meet face to face with a Chase advisor who from then on follows their progress.

Hours of operation for the Inland centers are Monday through Thursday from 10 am to 7 pm, Friday from 9 am to 6 pm and Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm.

A list of all Homeownership Centers in the nation can be found at www.chase.com.
--Leslie Berkman
lberkman@PE.com

To paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the death of new vehicle sales in San Bernardino are greatly exaggerated.

But it's taken a few body blows.

Cliff Cummings, president and chief executive officer of Toyota and Scion of San Bernardino late last week announced a project to rejuventate that city's auto mall. The area along Interstate 215 might have a little sinus trouble but it's not dead, and its proponents plan to launch a revitalization rally Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Government leaders have been invited, and Cummings said the city is considering an $850,000 loan to get the electronic sign about the freeway restored.

There is some reason for optimism. For one thing, Cummings said in a statement his own sales are gwetting better, which is something considering the international black eye Toyota is nursing. For another, David Choi, who expanded his Pomona-based Kia operation to San Bernardino a few months ago, is selling more cars than he had projected.

San Bernardino started 2008 with 13 new-car dealerships. By the fall of last year that number was down to six, which is why the addition of Choi's Kia store was welcomed.

--Jack Katzanek
jkatzanek@PE.com

Riverside County has fast-tracked development projects before, but now the fast track has been sped up.

Late last month, the county's board of supervisors approved a plan to expedite the process for how commercial and industrial projects can attain a quicker go-ahead to move forward.

Now:

• All applications will be reviewed by the county's board of supervisors instead of going through a planning director or planning commission first.
• As long as the unemployment rate is higher than 7.5 percent, and eligible Fast Track project would need to create 40 permanent full-time jobs, involve a $5 million investment and create $12.5 million in taxable sales. (Before: The project would need to create 75 permanent full-time jobs, $10 million in investment or taxable sales of $25 million)
• Proposed commercial buildings that are greater than 150,000 square feet and LEED certified with a ranking of "silver" or higher will have greater eligibility.

Tom Freeman, spokesman for the county's economic development agency, said it will involve a more intense review of a proposed project before the application is submitted to the board and shortly after which could save a developer time and money.

No one has taken advantage of the new Fast Track changes yet, but some are considering it, Freeman said.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

Get your quick update of Inland business news every afternoon, before the news hits the newspaper.

In today's edition:
NEW EDA: From Ontario to San Bernardino County, Mary Jane Olhasso starts leading the EDA today

SIGNS OF TIMES: Home builders optimistic, and home owners buying more from building supply stores

BIZ PRESS: A sneak peak inside

FACEBOOK FAUX PAS: Waitress vents about a lousy tipper online and is subsequently fired

Watch the full episode of Mind Your Business.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

Courtesy of Sans Soucie Art Glass Studios Inc.

Customers at the new Bob's Big Boy restaurant in Moreno Valley will notice the art of another Inland business on the food establishment's glass doors.

Sans Soucie Art Glass Studios Inc. based in Cathedral City etched the image of the pudgy overall-wearing mascot on the business' doors.

Sans Soucie's work has also appeared on the George HW Bush aircraft carrier (a presidential seal) as well as the Spa Hotel and Casino and Spotlight 29 Casino, among others.

-- Kimberly Pierceall
kpierceall@PE.com

Internships are more important than ever in the world of job hunting these.

When employers are not hiring in great numbers, it's worth the time of a young worker or a would-be employee who is still in school to offer himself or herself up as an intern. It's a learning experience, and it also looks great on a resume. A potential employer likes to see that a 20 year old is willing to do go-for work for little or no pay if it means getting practical experience. This is opposed to working in the mall for no practical reason at all, just for the spending money

The problem sometimes can be finding that internship. The major companies are a little easier to pin down. They have connections on campuses. They hire recruiters. If the corporate office of a Fortune 1000 company is in your city, there's a good chance a college junior can find it, even if we're not talking about a Deans List kid here.

That leaves a niche a new Web site called YouTern.com is hoping to fill. It expects to launch this week and wants to be the site of choice that links smaller entrepreneurs who might be willing to take on a college kid or a recent graduate as an intern. Essentially it's a matchmaking Web site, but it seems to be in the right place at the right time.

YouTern points out that, recession notwithstanding, there are about 100,000 startup businesses created in the United States every year. Internships could be the hidden opportunity. And, since California gets more entrepreneurs than any other state, it may come as no surprise that YouTern is a California company. It's based in Irvine.

--Jack Katzanek
jkatzanek@PE.com