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Top 10 Cities to be a Moviemaker: 2012
Indie moviemakers are discovering New Orleans
It’s been more than 10 years since MovieMaker began citing the best cities to be an independent moviemaker—those places that go the extra mile in welcoming lower-budget productions just as much as they do the “big guns.” Whether through production support and assistance, tax incentives and waivers, local and experienced crew bases or all of the above, certain cities are becoming go-to locales for indie film production, offering moviemakers the biggest bang for their limited bucks. With more and more moviemakers opting to shoot in their own backyards, a city’s ability to offer a sustainable, creative community has never been more important to the indie industry. Read on to discover which cities topped our list for 2012.
1. New Orleans, LA
According to Pollina Corporate Real Estate’s annual ranking of the top pro-business states, Louisiana has risen to 18th place—which is no surprise to the moviemakers who are flocking there for its film-friendly milieu. Incentives-wise, Louisiana offers a generous 30 percent investor tax credit based on the total in-state expenditures of productions of least $300,000, as well as an additional five percent labor tax credit for hiring Louisiana residents, and both credits are fully transferable. In New Orleans in particular, where a substantial crew base complements the easy availability of camera, grip and electrical equipment, moviemaking is experiencing a heat wave that matches the area’s warm-weather temperatures.
Film New Orleans:
www.filmneworleans.org
2. Austin, TX
With its strong incentives, substantial crew base and infrastructure and overall warm embrace of film production—not to mention its diverse topography and year-round mild and sunny climate—Austin has attracted countless moviemakers over the years, many of whom have made the city their permanent home, including Robert Rodriguez, whose Troublemaker Studios is based here. “Independent filmmakers have a wealth of resources in Austin,” says Gary Bond, director of film marketing for the Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Aside from our office, the Texas Film Commission and a film-friendly government, Austin is home to the Austin Film Society [founded by Richard Linklater], which has awarded more than $100,000 to new filmmakers, local film support organizations, filmmaker newsgroups, networking communities and film festivals, notably the Austin Film Festival and SXSW.”
Austin Film Commission:
www.austintexas.org/filmmakers
3. Albuquerque, NM
Albuquerque has played host to such acclaimed films as No Country for Old Men and Little Miss Sunshine as well as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s soon-to-be-released comeback The Last Stand, with The Lone Ranger saddling up there this spring. With nearly year-round sunshine, an aggressive slate of incentives and a diverse landscape of urban, suburban, prairie and forest settings, it’s easy to understand why Albuquerque continues to attract movie productions, small- and big-budget alike. “New Mexico is a fantastic state to shoot in,” says Craig Butler, who made the micro-budgeted The Righteous and the Wicked in New Mexico. “It has great incentives and numerous production resources, such as a prop/costume warehouse filled with things left behind by past productions, and entire Old West towns that have been preserved as film locations. The Albuquerque Film Office is amazing and local businesses are film-friendly. The independent filmmaker couldn’t ask for a better place to work.”
Albuquerque Film Office: www.cabq.gov/film/
4. Seattle, WA
For writer-director Lynn Shelton (Humpday), shooting in her hometown of Seattle is a given. “The Seattle filmmaking community is a nurturing, inclusive and vibrant one, filled with folks who have a genuine passion for making movies,” she says. “Whether it’s a local director or an out-of-town company, our local crews bring so much talent, good spirit and artistry to everything shot here.” The Emerald City offers a 30 percent cash-back film incentive to productions that shoot there in addition to sales tax exemptions on rental equipment, vehicles used in production and 30 consecutive days of lodging, as well as discounts on below-the-line costs from participating vendors. The one-stop Seattle Film Office provides permits for use of all city-owned property and the former naval airbase at Sand Point by “low-impact feature and short indie films” for just $25 per project for up to 14 days (with some restrictions).
Seattle Film Office: www.seattle.gov/filmoffice/
5. New York, NY
“I don’t think there’s anything quite like New York City, in terms of creative energy and production value, that inspires great filmmaking,” says writer-director-producer David Spaltro, who shot his second indie, Things I Don’t Understand, in New York. “Hollywood may be the film capital of the world, but independent cinema and the arts have always thrived here in the Big Apple.” Judging by 2010 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Spaltro is far from alone in his sentiments. The motion picture and television industry turned to New York that year for a variety of projects that ultimately created more than 141,000 jobs, both directly and indirectly related to production. Production incentives have played a major role in the momentum. New York State offers a 30 percent refundable tax credit applied against qualified expenditures, and $420 million has been allocated through 2014 for tax credits, with no per-project caps.
New York City Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting
: www.nyc.gov/html/film
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COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT 
- Comment by Ryan Williams on 2/21/12 at 10:17 am
Hello my names Ryan and i’m a freelance Boom Operator and Sound Mixer from Chicago. I’ve been in the entertainment industry for 3 years, and while the city is great and their is a fair amount of work during the spring and summer, i’m looking to relocate to another city where their’s more constant work. I’m curious if Seattle or Albuquerque are better options than LA or NY.
- Comment by Otman on 3/04/12 at 7:01 pm
RohoMech,Yeah, we would go out and talk about the film. In Austin we didn’t have any particular venue that we would go to. In the old days, when I was at LucasArts, it would be the local IHOP (since most our group srecenings were in the morning). Those were great, because it was a die hard group willing to wake up early on a Saturday to catch the latest film; good or bad. Most of the time I’d take the long drive to a questionable film just for the discussion afterwords. How can you pass up an IHOP experience?
- Comment by Tommy G Warren on 3/19/12 at 2:25 pm
Congratulations to #2 Austin… Ashamed Spiderwood wasn’t mentioned since the Studios are a major part of the motion picture infrastructure in Texas, with 200 ac. of Back-Lot on the river, largest Texas pre-lite “CYC” wall and 4 sound stages. Over 50 Productions has been made, commercials, music videos, including 6 feature films with several in development or pre-production.
This story was published in the Winter 2012 MovieMaker Magazine. The headline was:
Movie Cities: 2012 / MM's annual countdown of the best places to be a moviemaker
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