The Film Industry is Booming in the Garden State; Here’s Why

Jersey, the Birthplace of Film

Between 1888 and 1892, Thomas Edison and his employee William Kennedy Laurie Dickson developed the kinetoscope and the kinetograph, two early motion picture devices. Thomas had a home in West Orange and had a laboratory in town. This is where he created the world’s first movie studio, Black Maria, in 1893. It fell into disuse by 1903 and was demolished. The Thomas Alva Edison Foundation created a replica, placing it at the original site in 1954. The rebuilt studio was not used for filming, but instead to show movies to the public until the 1980s. The National Park Service stewards Thomas Edison National Historical Park, which includes Thomas’s home and factory. In 2022, the NPS began a two-year rehabilitation of the structure, involving extensive repairs, a new exterior, and an accessible ramp. The replica Black Maria opened to the public in April 2024 with new exhibits, interpretive panels, a replica film backdrop, and a few other interactive features.

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Bergen County’s Fort Lee is home to America’s first motion picture industry. Many early films were shot at studios and on location in and around the town. With the first constructed in 1909, Fort Lee had almost a dozen major studios by 1918. Among them were Peerless Studios, Fox Studios, Victor Studios, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation, and Selznick Pictures, many of which eventually shut down or merged with larger film companies as the industry evolved.

A plethora of reasons led to the Garden State’s loss of control over the film industry. One notable reason was Thomas Edison’s ownership of patents relevant to motion picture production. East Coast producers acting independently of Edison’s Motion Picture Patents Company were often sued as the courts enforced patents. This was something producers on the West Coast, like in Hollywood, rarely had to worry about.

So Why Here?

Of course, New Jersey has beautiful beaches, dozens of unique towns, historic cities, an airport and rail connections, and a bustling port. Other East Coast states may have this, too, but their pizzas and bagels are not up to par. Some might joke that the real reason film studios are flocking to the Garden State is for access to a proper pepperoni pie or a solid Taylor ham, egg, and cheese before a long day on set. The truth is a bit more strategic.

Over a century ago, Thomas Edison’s control over his patents scared many studios out of the state. Current policies, many created by the Murphy Administration, welcome them back with open arms. In 2018, during Governor Phil Murphy’s first term, he enacted the Film + Digital Media Tax Credit, a bill that, per NJ.gov, ” provides a transferable credit against the corporation business tax and the gross income tax for certain expenses incurred for the production of certain films and digital media content in New Jersey.” The bill incentivizes media and film companies to work on products and open studios in New Jersey, bringing jobs and economic development. The project, funded through 2039, provides a tax credit of up to 35 percent of qualified film production expenses. It also includes a Diversity Tax Credit of up to four percent for productions that employ the services of women or people of color.

Lions, Tigers, + Bears, Oh My!

In 2022, Newark announced that Lionsgate would develop a studio in the city’s South Ward. The facility is expected to bring about 600 new jobs to the area. It will be located on the former site of the Seth Boyden housing projects. Construction began in 2024.

In September 2023, Atlantic City’s Playground Pier reopened as ACX1 Studios. Featuring entertainment, movies, and music, this spot will also be a production space for film and music. The studio will have up to 150 sets.

In February 2024, Netflix received key approval to move forward on a production complex in Fort Monmouth, a former army base. This Monmouth County studio looks to include 12 soundstages totaling nearly 500,000 square feet, production and office buildings, a cafeteria, retail shops, a helipad, a hotel, and studio trailer parks. Netflix promises that this location should provide 1,400 jobs once operational.

In April 2024, a studio in West Orange was approved. The Matrix Development Group will build the facility near the Black Maria replica, a nod to the area’s history. This studio could span between 150,000 and 350,000 square feet, featuring up to six production stages between 20,000 and 30,000 square feet. Additionally, there will be offices and parking for hundreds of cars and dozens of trucks. This location expects to create 300 to 600 new full-time jobs once in operation. “A film studio in downtown West Orange is the most appropriate historical location in the world and will bring prosperity to the town just as Thomas Edison did in the late 1880s,” said West Orange Mayor Susan McCartney to TapInto West Orange back in 2023. “This will provide our town and its stakeholders with financial stability that will positively impact our business owners, residents, and local economy.”

In May 2024, it was announced that 1888 Studios in Bayonne would be developed by Togus Urban Renewal, LLC. This space will cover roughly 60 acres of land in Bayonne, plus 20 acres in Newark Bay. In a press release from NJDEA, development plans include 23 mega-powered smart sound stages, over 350,000 square feet of production support space, office spaces, a parking garage, and other things. It’s slated to open betwee 2026 and 2028 as the largest studio in the Northeast.

Filming Over The Years

What Hit Screens in 2024

1. A Complete Unknown filmed in Hoboken + Jersey City
2. A Different Man filmed in Maplewood + Montclair 
3. Exhibiting Forgiveness filmed in Allendale, Bayonne, Paterson, West Orange, Montclair, + more 
4. I Saw The TV Glow filmed in Cedar Grove, Keansburg, + Verona
5. It Ends With Us filmed in Chatham, Hoboken, + Jersey City 
6. Joker: Folie à Deux filmed in Belleville
7. Mean Girls filmed in Middletown Township 
8. Mother’s Instinct filmed in Cranford
9. Música filmed in Hoboken + Newark
10. Ponyboi filmed in Palisades Park, Ocean Township, Kearny, + Asbury Park 
11. Presence filmed in Cranford 
12. Rob Peace filmed in Newark
13. The 4:30 Movie filmed in Atlantic Highlands
14. The Room Next Door filmed in Montclair

What Hit Screens in 2023

1. A Good Person filmed in Maplewood + South Orange 
2. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom filmed in Jersey City
3. Daughter of the Bride filmed in Cranford
4. Dogman filmed in Newark
5. Dumb Money filmed in Jersey City + Morristown
6. Eileen filmed in Metuchen and South Amboy
7. Ezra filmed in Jersey City + Westwood
8. Harlan Coben’s Shelter filmed in Bloomfield, Kearny, Livingston, Paterson, + more
9. Hustle filmed in Camden
10. Maybe I Do filmed in Montclair
11. Oppenheimer filmed in Princeton
12. The Perfect Find filmed in Jersey City + Newark

What Hit Screens in 2022

1. Armageddon Time filmed in Teaneck
2. Clerks III filmed in Red Bank
3. Goodnight Mommy filmed in Bedminster
4. Smile filmed in Hoboken, Morristown, + Newark
5. The Walking Dead: Dead City filmed in Franklin Lakes, Hoboken, + more

To find an even more complete list, click here for information from the state government website.

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