\n<\/p>\n
\n\tOn May 13, as Netflix broke ground to redevelop 292 acres in Central New Jersey for a massive $848 million new film and TV production facility with 12 soundstages, Fort Monmouth County commissioner director Thomas Arnone made an offer to co-CEO Ted Sarandos, who was on hand. \u201cWe will make this easy for you,\u201d Arnone said.<\/p>\n
\n\tThat may well be the state\u2019s promise to Hollywood producers. Even as California Gov. Gavin Newsom managed to get his legislature to double its cap on incentives from $330 million to $750 million annually, he conceded on July 2 at a press conference that the state had taken its eye off the ball for years. \u201cWe put our feet up, we took things for granted,\u201d Newsom said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe Garden State has been a big beneficiary of infrastructure projects, which once may have defaulted to Burbank, heading far outside of Hollywood\u2019s 30-mile zone. \u201cNew Jersey offers the best of both worlds: proximity to New York without the complexity, and a state government that\u2019s deeply invested in growing the industry the right way,\u201d Gannon Murphy, co-founder and president of the state\u2019s film-industry advocacy group Screen Alliance New Jersey (SANJ), told The Hollywood Reporter<\/em>. \u201cProductions aren\u2019t just saving money here \u2014 they\u2019re finding purpose-built facilities, reliable crews, and a serious commitment to the work.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMurphy is also the operator of the Jersey City\u2019s Cinelease Studios, which for New Jersey was the first of those \u201cpurpose-built spaces\u201d that he mentioned. It certainly was not the state\u2019s first space used as a studio<\/em>, however. Cinelease has three soundstages (each with 40 feet of clearance height) totaling 67,600 sq. ft. It also has 8,100 sq. ft. of office space, plenty of power and more than 60 designated parking spots. It has hosted TV and film productions like Wild \u2018N\u2019 Out<\/em> season 17, Dumb Money<\/em>, A Murder at the End of the World<\/em> and American Horror Stories<\/em> season three. Its Caven Point location has made Jersey City one of the state\u2019s production hotspots.<\/p>\n \n\tEven where SANJ put on the NJ Film Expo \u2014 the mostly-shuttered Meadowlands\u00a0sports arena \u2014 in May has been used as a TV production space. Since 2018, NBCUniversal has leased the venue to film primetime dramas like Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector<\/em> and The Enemy Within<\/em>; Tales of the Walking Dead<\/em> and The Walking Dead: Dead City<\/em> have also filmed there.<\/p>\n \n\tAcross the Newark Bay lies another destination for Hollywood productions. Desire\u00e8 Hadley, who manages the Newark Office of Film and TV, told THR<\/em> it is Newark\u2019s \u201chistoric-looking buildings and architecture\u201d that make it \u201cdesirable for period pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe are always one of the locations where folks come if they want to do something that\u2019s filmed in the \u201880s or the \u201870s, especially if it\u2019s like New York City 1980s,\u201d Hadley said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\tNewark has undergone what Hadley called \u201can artistic explosion\u201d ever since Ras J. Baraka, a poet and a former educator, became mayor. \u201cNewark was made for the big screen, with every possible location and ambiance a director could ask for. Our sidewalks, alleys and park paths feature figures from central casting and our workforce is primed to cover every need from craft services, to camera crew, to feature length soundtracks,\u201d Baraka told THR<\/em>. \u201cMost of all, Newark has a can-do vibe that is fresh and contagious, and sure to add extra magic to any set.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIf you need an indoor location in Baraka\u2019s town, look no further than Newark Film Studios.<\/p>\n \n\tNewark Film Studios occupies the former National Newark & Essex Banking Company headquarters, first built in 1930. The timeless space centers on a mezzanine featuring iconic gold doors and accents. It can easily be dressed up or down for everything from a Roaring Twenties feel to a midcentury-modern aesthetic or even present day. There, movies like West Side Story<\/em> (2021) and A Complete Unknown<\/em> filmed scenes, as did TV series like The Plot Against America<\/em> (2020) and The Equalizer<\/em>, among others. (Queen Latifah\u2019s The Equalizer<\/em>, a spinoff of the Denzel Washington movies that aired on CBS from 2021-2025, is credited at basically every production space in New Jersey.)<\/p>\n \n\tLike Cinealease, the old bank, which before this whole Hollywood East thing was occupied by Verizon, has generous ceiling heights throughout, on-site parking and office space used for film and post-production on various floors. It wasn\u2019t purpose-built, but it serves the purpose.<\/p>\n \n\tThe near-100-year-old building is \u201ca blank canvas to meet [the] needs\u201d of film productions, Newark Film Studios founder Joseph Dabbah told THR<\/em>. \u201cWhether that\u2019s a raw space for set construction or a period interior for a story setting, we try to make it work without overcomplicating things.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tCrucially, Newark, like Jersey City, Montclair, Bayonne and Hoboken, lies within a 35-mile circle of Manhattan\u2019s Columbus Circle. That\u2019s not just for convenience, it circumvents union upcharges.<\/p>\n \n\tThe rule (basically) works like this: IATSE demands higher wages and hotel stays for its members on productions outside of the 35-mile radius. Inside is considered to be home base, a contractually-acceptable daily commute. Netflix\u2019s under-construction Fort Monmouth campus lies outside of that bubble.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tThe mezzanine at Newark Film Studios, where West Side Story<\/em> (2021) and A Complete Unknown<\/em> filmed.<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tKevin Henderson<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cBeing 20 minutes from New York City by public transit and offering straightforward on-site parking makes a huge difference,\u201d Dabbah said of Newark. \u201cProductions avoid the logistical headaches and high costs of Manhattan while keeping access to talent and crew.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe train is great, sure \u2014 especially if you want to film some on this side of the NJ\/NY border and some on the other side \u2014 but what Newark also has going for it is a true international airport.<\/p>\n \n\tImporting New York talent to a place like Newark is simple. But you\u2019d be making a mistake not to look more locally as well, Diane Raver, the executive director of the New Jersey Film Academy, and Patricia Piroh, the director of production and technology for broadcast and media operations at Montclair State University, both told THR<\/em> (independently).<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe best crews live here,\u201d Raver said.<\/p>\n \n\tRaver began her career in TV commercial production, and has filmed \u201call over the world,\u201d she said, including 20 years in New York City \u2014 but she found that \u201cthe most diverse and easy place to shoot\u201d was New Jersey. OK, so maybe she\u2019s a bit of a homer. \u201cYou can cheat almost any location here, since we have it all,\u201d said Raver, who is from the beach town of Sea Girt, a pretty cool location itself.<\/p>\n \n\tThere\u2019s a ton of beach in New Jersey, something you can find in Los Angeles but not in Canada, another hotbed of Hollywood production flight. \u201cGood luck filming a beach scene in Toronto,\u201d Tim Sullivan, the CEO of New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA), quipped to THR<\/em>.<\/p>\n \n\tAnd it\u2019s not simply \u201curban\u201d or \u201cbeach.\u201d Go rewatch the Sopranos<\/em> \u201cPine Barrens\u201d episode, film in the dense woods of South Jersey. \u201cUnless you\u2019re filming a moon landing or the Sahara, you could pretty much do it in New Jersey,\u201d Sullivan said.<\/p>\n \n\tYou could probably pull those off too. New Jersey\u2019s \u201crich tapestry of locations\u2026can stand in for other parts of the U.S. \u2014 and even the world,\u201d Piroh told THR<\/em>.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tA rendering of Netflix\u2019s plans for a production hub in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. <\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNetflix<\/p>\n \n\tBut we\u2019ve put the cart before the horse here, because New Jersey\u2019s real carrot is its tax-incentive program. It\u2019s show-business<\/em>, right?<\/p>\n \n\tThe state\u2019s tax-credit program is among the most generous in the country. Qualifying productions can receive a credit for up to 35 percent of qualifying costs. The hoops to jump through aren\u2019t that huge either. They\u2019re: 1) the productions qualifying expenses must exceed $1 million in New Jersey spend, and 2) 60 percent of the total production expenses (exclusive of post-production costs) must be incurred for services and goods purchased through vendors authorized to do business in New Jersey.<\/p>\n \n\tNew Jersey Governor Phil Murphy told\u00a0THR<\/em>\u00a0that the best thing about New Jersey\u2019s film tax incentive program isn\u2019t even about how much money they\u2019re willing to allocate, but rather for how long they\u2019re willing to allocate it. The New Jersey Film and Digital Media Tax Credit Program has already been extended through June 30, 2039. It\u2019s an \u201cexplicit statement that this is not about us,\u201d Murphy said, \u201cthis is about generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThough Murphy is on his way out as governor, the program has bipartisan support, Sullivan said. Thus far, it has helped make New Jersey the sixth-largest state for film and TV productions, according to an April 8, 2025 study by\u00a0ProdPro.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe state is clearly invested in building a real production ecosystem here,\u201d Dabbah said. \u201cThey\u2019re not just talking about tax credits \u2014 they\u2019re actively helping productions find sites, navigate permitting, and plan out stages that are still under construction.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMinimizing red tape has been a major sales pitch beyond the boundaries of Los Angeles County. Elsewhere, places that want to attract film and TV production act like they actually want the business. Crazy we know. Look no further than the fact that it took until 2025 for \u201cStay in L.A.\u201d to become a real rallying cry for California production insiders. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\tNew Jersey is clearly thrilled to have Netflix, but officials are not yet satisfied. It wants others to set up shop here as well \u2014 and to never pack up and leave.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOne of the knocks on some tax credit programs around the country is that [they are set up to] have a production blow through town. It\u2019s exciting for three or four weeks. Everyone\u2019s excited, and then they leave. That\u2019s fun to have that three or four weeks and it has real economic impact, but are you in the longterm, permanent-job creation [business]?\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cIf you have a good film tax credit program, you should have production coming through town regularly. Three three-to-four-month assignments is a year\u2019s worth of work for a hair and makeup person, or a cater or whatever. What we\u2019re really trying to do is encourage brick-and-mortar construction for longterm job creation.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tWell, the mortar is being applied to the bricks beyond Netflix\u2019s central-New Jersey former Army base location. For example, Lionsgate is in the process of building a 350,000 square foot studio in Newark. That sounds huge \u2014 and it is \u2014 until you consider what\u2019s going on in Bayonne.<\/p>\n \n\tWith up to $400 million of Sullivan\u2019s (organization\u2019s) money, 1888 Studios, a 23-soundstage, 58-acre production hub in Bayonne is in the works. It will be \u201cthe largest and first campus-style film and television studio facility in the Northeast,\u201d per the NJEDA.<\/p>\n \n\tHeaded way down the New Jersey Turnpike to Atlantic City, which 15 years ago famously lost out on HBO\u2019s Boardwalk Empire<\/em> (about Prohibition-era A.C.) to Brooklyn and Staten Island, ACX1 Films has proposed building over a massive pier on the Atlantic Ocean. The plan is for the facility to host \u201cmore ready-to-shoot films sets than any other studio on the east coast.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tNew Jersey, the 47th largest state in the United States by area, is thinking big. California, consider this your notice.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\tA version of this story appeared in the July 9 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine.\u00a0Click here to subscribe<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" On May 13, as Netflix broke ground to redevelop 292 acres in Central New Jersey for a massive $848 million new film and TV production facility with 12 soundstages, Fort Monmouth County commissioner director Thomas Arnone made an offer to co-CEO Ted Sarandos, who was on hand. \u201cWe will make this easy for you,\u201d Arnone<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10517,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[898,830,3514],"class_list":{"0":"post-10516","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-east","9":"tag-hollywood","10":"tag-jersey"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10516"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10516\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}