Florida beach town writes Amazon TV series to lure tourists

Remember that longing you might have had after an episode of “Sex and The City” to shop at the characters' favorite New York spots and drink cosmopolitans at those chic bars

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Remember that longing you felt after an episode of “Sex and the City” to shop at the characters' favorite New York haunts and drink cosmopolitans at the same bars? Or that sense of wanderlust for the seaside cliffs of Ireland after watching “Game of Thrones?” Hollywood's flattering spotlight has put small towns on the map, like Wilmington, North Carolina, from “Dawson’s Creek” and the woods of Senoia, Georgia, from “The Walking Dead.” And that’s exactly what travel marketers in St. Petersburg and Clearwater, Florida, were hoping to capitalize on when they commissioned an original, scripted TV series, seeking to draw quarantine-weary tourists to the area's sugar sand beaches. “Life’s Rewards” aired on Amazon Prime last month. The eight-episode show is based on a charming yet cavalier wealth manager who loses his money and uses travel rewards points to stay at the posh, pink Don CeSar hotel while rebuilding his life. Each episode is only eight to 14 minutes long, and was filmed using a local production company, director and actors. The series cost roughly a million dollars to create, split between the city and the state's tourism arm.