Movie Maker Magazine recently publishes their list of Where to Live and Shoot in 2010.  As usual, iconic cities such as Los Angeles (No. 2) and New York (No. 4) sit prominently on the list. However, the No. 1 position might be a surprise—especially to those outside the industry. Have we peaked your interest yet?

Here’s the 10 Best Cities to Live, Work and Make Movies in 2010, according to Movie Maker Magazine:

1. Albuquerque, New Mexico

2. Los Angeles, California

3. Shreveport, Louisiana

4. New York, New York

5. Austin, Texas

6. Stamford, Connecticut

7. Boston, Massachusetts

8. Detroit, Michigan

9. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

10. Seattle, Washington

What makes Albuquerque such a hot spot to the film industry? New Mexico’s production tax credit is a generous one, “up to 25% tax rebate with a fully refundable tax credit on all eligible direct production costs against the filmmaker’s New Mexico income tax.” In addition, the 54-acreAlbuquerque Studios are now open for business, fully equipped with eight state-of-the-art sound stages, production office space, mill and set-construction space, production support, post-production suites including a 25,000-square-foot prop/costume/wardrobe shop (courtesy of NBC/Universal), and a huge backlot.

Great facilities and tax incentive aside, there are still many other draws for making movies in Albuquerque. Producer Ryil Adamson (Adventures of a Teenage Dragonslayer) sums it up nicely for us:

“I don’t think we could’ve made our movie in any other city in the world. We were able to find people who had worked on the biggest movies in the world. We also needed extra help from the city, and the whole community pitched in. The local SAG office even assisted us with casting.”

For more details, check out the Movie Maker Magazine article here.  And, oh yes, of the 10 individual states that are home to the above-mentioned cities, seven of the ten are Reel-Scout clients.

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Banner image via Google.

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