10 Best Cities for Aspiring Filmmakers


Finding the best place to establish yourself as a new filmmaker can be a daunting task. You might might want to live close to family and still be able to thrive as an artist or you might be willing to uproot and go wherever your career will prosper, either way, these cities are where it’s at in the film industry:

Top 10 Best Cities for Aspiring Filmmakers

Seattle, WA

Though it may not have the same epic feel that the New York city skyline has, Seattle has a very iconic evening look that people are drawn too. This city is an excellent place to live and film because of the diverse and gorgeous settings available. There are a number of great reasons, for filming your next movie in Seattle, like a 30% cash back incentive and discounts for indie producers. The art community in Seattle is active, thriving, and hospitable.

New York, New York

Though, this is a more expensive city to make movies in, there is something truly magical about New York. Many of the locations bring back memories for people all over the world. Filming in this city holds great appeal for may aspiring film-makers, but remember that competition is steep and the city never sleeps.

Paris, France

Aside from being an utterly gorgeous city, Paris holds history, romance, and intrigue like few other cities can compare. The Lavender fields just outside the city limits provide a lovely landscape for countryside scenes and the city of lights glows in the evening like no other place in the world.

Prague, Czech Republic

A hot-spot for many European and American film-makers, Prague is a fabulous place to film. It offers the old world feeling of major European cities without the big price tag.
This city is a gorgeous option for those looking for a rich cultural setting.

London, England

Similar to New York City and Paris, London can truly hold its own in film. There is something timeless about the bustle of this city. The art industry in not as easy to break into, like some of the other cities mentioned and being wildly popular, London is a much more expensive city to film in.

San Francisco, California

Nothing like being in California to film, where so many of the big name celebrities live, but San Francisco is fabulous for more that just its beautiful faces, the city is perfect for filming various different scenes in one place. Working here you will surrounded by Hollywood stars, incredible movie studios, but the cost is quite high.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

This city is gorgeous with a lovely city center and great places to film. Buenos Aires is rich in history and surrounded by vibrant colors. This location is a relatively lower costing foreign destination for the aspiring film-maker.

Albuquerque, New Mexico

This city offers some of the best filming incentives in the United States. There is no charge for filming in state buildings, the landscape offers suburbia, city, forest, modern homes, and more.

Vancouver, BC

Aside from being absolutely stunning, Vancouver is a wonderful place to film your next movie. The film industry really values its city by contributing over 1 billion to the economy each year. Parking can be a pain in Vancouver and you have to be aware of certain times that the city allows filming, for some these are only small hoops to jump, but for others it is not worth the hassle.

Honolulu, Hawaii

The tropical city of Honolulu is a fabulous location for the aspiring film-maker, because of the amazing diverse locations across Hawaii. The jungle is teeming with opportunity, the beach is stunning, and the talent is fresh. Honolulu, is definitely a hot and up and coming film destination.

Anthony Silver is a writer for a handful of entertainment blogs. He is most passionate about indie movies and indie trivia.



What do you think?

  • http://twitter.com/J2theNard J.Kwanzaa

    Philly is very underrated for this and is arguably the most artistic city in the country.

  • jdizzle

    Uhh… San Francisco…? But no Los Angeles? Are you crazy? Also where is New Orleans… Atlanta… those are the other big 2 after NYC and LA.

  • http://www.raviharsh.com Ravi Harsh

    No Mumbai India…. ???? The city which produce 300 Films every year which are largely admire all over world is not in this list.

  • http://www.lbhammond.com lisa b. hammond

    (oops-type-os: I meant ‘shine’)

  • http://www.bhammond.com lisa b. hammond

    Wa. State Film Tax Incentive HAS NOT BEEN DISCONTINUED.
    It is up for renewal vote in 2012.

    Speaker Frank Chopp bundled a very popular HB5539 with an unpopular bill last June, and it got ‘tabled’ until the 2012 session (his hopes the popularity would die down. It has not)
    Pushing his personal political agenda, Chopp let his constituents down and created misinformation to spread, as shown above.

    With crews like the ones in Seattle, producers will continue to get such a Huge bang for there buck, they are Crazy to go anywhere else, Regardless! With regular multiple selections at Sundance, Toronto and other Festivals, Seattle Casts and Crews sign brighter than any other city.

  • Nicholas D

    Seattle is a great pick, especially considering it is home to the world’s largest Youth Film Festival: NFFTY (www.nffty.org)!
    Albuquerque is also a good one, with a very welcoming production support infrastructure.

  • http://ericgoetz.com/ Eric Goetz

    Uh, Seattle’s incentive program was discontinued. It’s true it’s a very vibrant arts community, rivaling much larger cities. And there’s a ton of films being made there, but they are all zero budget. There is virtually no steady work for cast and crew, so it’s mostly hobbyists. I have no idea why it’s on the top of that list.

  • Jerome B.

    Adrian, unfortunately LA does not host that much anymore compared to Georgia, NY, Louisiana, etc etc etc. Also SF doesn’t have any real great movie studios, although there are many warehouses available for shooting in.

  • adrian mcdonald

    Seattle???? No incentives in Washington. And why is L.A. not on the list?? It host more production than ALL of the other cities combined.