He decided to convert an old, abandoned whip-cream factory into several sound stages and hire unemployed auto and manufacturing workers as crew members.
That factory eventually became Tictock Studios which has developed a training program, targeted at below-the-line workers, to get new crew members ready for work.
DePree was able to recruit Jeffrey Stott, a veteran Hollywood movie producer (Executive Vice President of Castle Rock Entertainment between 1988 and 2002), to help teach the training classes.
[15][16] In September 2020, it was announced that DePree secured a global publishing deal with William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, and a six-figure advance for his memoir Finding Hopwood, which was developed from his comedy show.
[17] DePree's memoir, Downton Shabby: One American's Ultimate DIY Adventure Restoring His Family's English Castle, was published in hardcover in June 2022.
[19] In October 2024 Rochdale Council opted not to renew the agreement with Mr DePree on the basis that after seven years, a viable plan to bring the building back into use had not been produced.
Additionally, he co-founded and hosts the annual Waterfront Film Festival held in the beach resort area of West Michigan.
The festival is a non-profit organization whose goal is to provide a "middle coast" venue for independent filmmakers eager to show their work to sophisticated audiences.
[26] ArtPrize is a privately funded non-profit organization that gives away the world's largest cash prizes (over $500,000 annually) to competing artists.
[29] Beginning in 2006, DePree worked closely in Michigan with the House of Representatives and Senate to craft a tax-based incentive program that would help bring the film industry to his home state.