Albuquerque – The sign inside the airport terminal here proclaims a dusty mesa a few miles away to be “Hollywood’s Newest Home,” a reference to a plot of land where four vanilla- colored soundstages recently sprouted.
There, in the shadow of the snowcapped Sandia Mountains, the aircraft-hangar-like buildings at Albuquerque Studios house part of a budding film industry that one local newspaper dubbed Tamalewood.
This year, four more soundstages will be added to anchor a bustling movie production center equal in size to 10 large supermarkets.
“This facility is second to none in the U.S.,” said chief operating officer Nick Smerigan. “Eventually, we’ll be a first call for people who are leaving L.A.”
Thanks to generous financial sweeteners, a fairly mild climate and an aggressive state Film Office, New Mexico can back up that kind of swagger.
Unlike scores of states seeking film shoots that pack up and leave when they are finished, New Mexico is zeroing in on the nuts and bolts of Hollywood. By luring the support companies that form the bedrock of the Los Angeles entertainment economy, New Mexico aims to lay the foundation for a top-tier movie and TV production business.
Sony Pictures Imageworks plans to move a major chunk of its visual effects business – and more than 100 jobs – from Southern California to Albuquerque Studios.
Star Waggons, which leases the trailers that are a signature of film shoots around L.A., is opening an office in Albuquerque. So are equipment supplier Clairmont Camera and payroll servicer Axium International.
In nearby Rio Rancho, Lions Gate Entertainment is gearing up to build a $15 million production center on 20 acres provided by the city, and with the help of a pending $10 million loan from the state.
A decade ago, New Mexico couldn’t rustle up a film crew. Now it has about 1,300 workers, enough for five feature films.
Since 2004, production has jumped nearly tenfold, generating a financial effect of $428 million last fiscal year, according to the New Mexico Film Office.
“We had a very simple strategy,” Gov. Bill Richardson said. “Get ahead of every other state in terms of incentives, throw the kitchen sink at accommodating film companies – tax rebates, loans from the state, free state land, write-offs. … It’s created hundreds of jobs.”
New Mexico’s film and TV business remains a small fraction of California’s, which has an annual estimated value of more than $30 billion statewide.
Nonetheless, New Mexico’s aggressive courtship is worrisome to Hollywood, because it comes at a time when the industry is frustrated with California’s efforts to keep the state competitive in landing films and TV shows.
Studios, producers and unions have lobbied for years for incentives to keep productions from going elsewhere. Even having a former movie star in Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger hasn’t helped – California officials have been unable to agree on how many, if any, sweeteners the entertainment industry deserves.
