{"id":1575,"date":"2025-06-16T08:15:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T08:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/?p=1575"},"modified":"2025-06-16T17:52:51","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T17:52:51","slug":"the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For filmmakers, shoot location is one of the most important decisions of an entire production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tax incentives from individual states can make this choice easier while simultaneously generating huge revenue for state governments. According to ProdPro, via the Hollywood Reporter,<\/mark> the likes of Illinois, New Mexico, Georgia, New York, California, and New Jersey spend hundreds of millions\u2014and sometimes billions\u2014of dollars on incentives for film and TV productions. \u201cThere are approximately 30 states that offer tax credits now,\u201d says Jeff Deverett, a Canadian film producer<\/mark><\/a> and professor at San Diego State University. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of like free money. It\u2019d be crazy to leave that on the table.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what should filmmakers know about tax incentives before applying? Read on to learn more about these credits and how they should factor into your preproduction considerations.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which states offer the best tax incentives for filmmakers in 2025?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Deverett advises independent filmmakers to look for tax rebates that include \u201ca very low minimum threshold\u201d of spend in the state, which means the state welcomes films being made on smaller budgets.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

California<\/mark><\/a> and Georgia<\/mark><\/a> may have the country\u2019s most well-known incentive programs, but plenty of other states offer enticing credits. Michele Miller, vice president of production tax incentives at the production software company GreenSlate<\/mark><\/a>, says that North Carolina<\/mark><\/a>\u2019s 25% rebate on in-state expenses is a \u201cvery attractive program\u201d for filmmakers. She also highlights Massachusetts<\/mark><\/a>\u2019 25% tax credit on production expenses and labor in the state.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New Mexico<\/mark><\/a>\u2019s film tax credit is also 25%, with added incentives for television pilots and the use of certain production facilities that could make it go as high as 40%. New York<\/mark><\/a>\u2019s 30% tax credit has brought in more and more productions, especially as the state has increased<\/mark><\/a> its annual incentive cap from $700 million to $800 million per year\u2014$100 million of which is earmarked for indie projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

States like New York, California, and Georgia will increase the percentage they give back to projects if productions are shot in more remote parts of the state. The film commissions want productions to be more \u201cregional,\u201d bringing jobs and spending to locations outside New York City, Los Angeles, and Atlanta, says Deverett. \u201cThey give you extra money because they want to spread the wealth around.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Georgia, Miller says that projects shot in Savannah not only \u201cobtain the Georgia state tax incentive but can get an uplift up to $25,000\u201d by shooting in the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New Jersey also looks set to become a popular destination for filming, with an up to 40% tax credit depending on the type of production. \u201cNetflix recently signed a deal and broke ground<\/mark><\/a> on an almost billion dollar studio [in central New Jersey],\u201d says Miller. \u201cSo [the state] is in it for the long haul. They\u2019re putting a lot of infrastructure in place to ensure that productions choose New Jersey.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some states, like<\/mark><\/a> Arkansas, Maine, Oklahoma, Montana, and Oregon, \u201cprovide tax credits just on postproduction,\u201d adds Miller. \u201cSo you can shoot in one state, obtain the tax credit there, then go to another state that offers a postproduction-only option and obtain a tax credit there.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What filmmakers should know about tax incentives\u00a0<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Deverett is at pains to point out that filmmakers shouldn\u2019t just select a location because it has the biggest tax credit. \u201cYou have to let the movie determine where you shoot it. If you\u2019re shooting a movie and you need a certain setup that\u2019s only available in New Mexico, you should go to New Mexico,\u201d he says. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to compromise the integrity of the movie. The movie comes first.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are certain ways to trick audiences with locations. If your film needs an ocean, \u201clakes can double as oceans,\u201d says Deverett. \u201cYou can do an establishing shot and then use a smaller city to double for a bigger city. You can do an establishing shot in New York, then shoot the rest of the movie in Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But filmmakers who are tempted to shoot in states that don\u2019t have a large film industry or infrastructure need to ensure they\u2019ll be able to hire crew members there, or that they can transport people in without blowing their budgets. They also need to check that the state has the facilities and resources they require for their specific project, such as a large enough studio and up-to-date postproduction equipment.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because navigating incentives can be overwhelming, Deverett suggests \u201chiring an accountant or tax specialist, or even [going] to the local film commission that [is] offering the credit\u201d for guidance.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miller warns that some \u201cproductions get dinged because they don\u2019t have the particular receipt or agreement on file. Do the research. Reach out to resources. Talk to other producers or people who have filmed in those states. Make sure you have a strong accounting team, who knows what is at stake and can stay on top of things.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":1577,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"FilmFreeway\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-16T08:15:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-16T17:52:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/06\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1268\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"jalen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gregory Wakeman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"jalen\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/591baa98fd782d61dc5f30b220dba9c1\"},\"headline\":\"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-16T08:15:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-16T17:52:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":833,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Articles\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-16T08:15:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-16T17:52:51+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/591baa98fd782d61dc5f30b220dba9c1\"},\"description\":\"Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg\",\"width\":1900,\"height\":1268,\"caption\":\"Rawpixel.com\\\/Shutterstock\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/\",\"name\":\"FilmFreeway\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/filmfreeway.com\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/591baa98fd782d61dc5f30b220dba9c1\",\"name\":\"jalen\",\"url\":\"\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025","description":"Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025","og_description":"Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.","og_url":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/","og_site_name":"FilmFreeway","article_published_time":"2025-06-16T08:15:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-06-16T17:52:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1900,"height":1268,"url":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/06\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"jalen","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Gregory Wakeman","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/"},"author":{"name":"jalen","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/591baa98fd782d61dc5f30b220dba9c1"},"headline":"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025","datePublished":"2025-06-16T08:15:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-16T17:52:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/"},"wordCount":833,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/06\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg","articleSection":["Articles"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/","url":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/","name":"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/06\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg","datePublished":"2025-06-16T08:15:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-16T17:52:51+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/591baa98fd782d61dc5f30b220dba9c1"},"description":"Filmmakers who don\u2019t take advantage of these credits are leaving money on the table.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/06\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/06\/shutterstock_498131932.jpg","width":1900,"height":1268,"caption":"Rawpixel.com\/Shutterstock"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/the-best-state-tax-incentives-for-filmmakers-in-2025\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Best State Tax Incentives for Filmmakers in 2025"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/#website","url":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/","name":"FilmFreeway","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/591baa98fd782d61dc5f30b220dba9c1","name":"jalen","url":""}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1575"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1584,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1575\/revisions\/1584"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfreeway.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}