New Jersey continues to be in the thick of the film and TV production game, and there is much more than fame and prestige at stake when the cameras roll.

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Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno says movie production companies love the state because it's cheaper to film here than in New York and labor costs are lower.

"We also have a lower labor costs, believe it or not. And I don't need to tell anybody who is listening right now that we are the most diverse state in the country. And I don't just mean people. I mean geography," Guadagno said.

She said most people don't think about New Jersey in terms of TV and movies and commercials, but a lot of filming takes place here. She cited several examples of films that were filmed, at least in part, in the Garden State.

"If you go see "Hunger Games 2," you are going to see the town of Oaklyn. If you go to see "Spiderman" we are filming right now the next "Spiderman." If you go to see "Jersey Boys" the movie you are going to see some sights from New Jersey. If you see "Batman" you are going to see some sights from New Jersey," she said. "Woody Allen is doing a show here now, "Fast and Furious," and of course, who could film "Sully: the Miracle on the Hudson" without filming from Jersey City?"

Those are just a couple of the things that you could see on TV or in movie theaters over the next couple of months.

In 2014, movie and TV production in New Jersey generated $66.4 million for the state's economy with 894 projects. And Guadagno says it's more than movies and TV.

"We do commercials, mini-series, TV documentaries," she said.

Guadagno also commenting on the recent success of "America's Got Talent," which used the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark and equals benefits to the local economy.

"Hotels were being filled, caterers were being called, restaurants were being filled," she said.

New Jersey was ranked fifth in the country for movie and TV production by Variety.
Guadagno says if anyone is interested in doing any type of film or TV production in New Jersey they can email njfilm@sos.nj.gov and speak to the NJ Motion Picture and TV Commission, "and we will show them places in New Jersey they never thought would be economical for them to do their TV, their film, their documentary, their mini-series, their production any way."

Joe Cutter is the afternoon news anchor on New Jersey 101.5.

 

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