In late January MovieMaker Magazine, the resource for moviemaking dedicated to the art and business of making films for over a decade, posted its annual “Best Places to Live and Work as a Moviemaker in 2025” list. It takes into account everything from tax incentives to industry presence to cost of living to proximity to other film scenes. It’s no surprise that both Cincinnati and Cleveland made the list, as they have in past years. This is what they said:
#11 – CINCINNATI, OHIO
Cincinnati got a boost in its cinematic reputation last year when Sundance named it as one of three finalists to be the prestigious festival’s new home. (The other options are moving to Boulder, Colorado, or staying put in Park City, Utah.) But people in the know have recognized Cincinnati as a film hub in good standing for many years. Film Cincinnati notes that the number of crews has nearly tripled in the last five years, and that members of the local film and TV industry have pulled together through trying times for the industry at large to share opportunities. The city can crew two major features simultaneously and even has a deep nonunion crew for commercial and TV work. Recent productions have included the new David Gordon Green holiday comedy “The Nutcrackers,” starring Ben Stiller, as well as Barry Levinson’s upcoming gangster movie, “Alto Knights,” starring Robert DeNiro. It’s also just across the river from Kentucky, where film production is very much on the rise. Filmmakers can straddle Ohio and Kentucky to capture both Midwestern and Southern flavors. Ohio has the added benefit of a 30% refundable tax credit, for above or below the line, and the city’s cost of living is lower than the U.S. average. Local festivals include the Over-the-Rhine Film Festival, led by people from the local disabled community. And soon Sundance may join the local festival list.
#16 – CLEVELAND, OHIO
The Man of Steel himself recently touched down in Cleveland, where James Gunn partially filmed his upcoming “Superman” movie from DC Studios. Ohio is going strong, too, offering $75 million in tax incentives per year, including a 30% rebate with no minimum number of shoot days to qualify. Cleveland’s crew base is large, hardworking and experienced, and Cleveland’s unique natural and historical filming locations include Lake Erie, the Victorian-era landmark the Cleveland Arcade, Cedar Point amusement park, and Squire’s Castle, an 1890s gatehouse inspired by English and German baronial castles. The city’s crowd-pleasing Cleveland International Film Festival turns up regularly on our list of 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee, and Ohio’s second-largest city is also home to distribution company Gravitas Ventures, which recently acquired locally made production “Escaping Ohio,” directed by Jessica Michael Davis, who is from nearby Akron. We’re very proud to support the film through MovieMaker Production Services.
Celebrating Made in Ohio
To celebrate the honor, we asked the leaders of the Cincinnati and Cleveland film commissions to share their views of the regions they represent and their most memorable films made in Ohio. Look for more stories from Ohio’s film commissions around the state in future issues.
Reflections on Cincinnati’s Film Industry; And Choosing a Favorite Film
By Kristen Schlotman, President/CEO, Film Cincinnati
Selecting one film that has had the most significant impact on my career over the past 27 years is a challenge. While there are obvious choices, there are also those that may not be as well known but have had a profound influence on my journey. Growing up in Cincinnati, I had the rare opportunity to witness major films being shot here. As a child, I would spend hours sitting at the end of my driveway, observing the film crews at work. This early exposure ignited my passion for the film industry and ultimately led me to pursue a career in this field.
Since joining the Cincinnati Film Commission in 1997, I’ve frequently been asked about my involvement with “Rain Man.” My answer is always the same: Yes, I was in Cincinnati, but I had not yet joined the Film Commission. “Rain Man” remains an iconic film, marking a significant milestone for Cincinnati’s film industry. It set us on a path of growth and recognition, leaving a lasting legacy and fostering strong relationships with Hollywood.
However, it was the acclaimed director John Sayles who first recognized Cincinnati’s potential as a location for period films. Our city is home to one of the highest concentrations of Italianate architecture in the country, a unique feature that continues to attract filmmakers looking to capture a sense of history. John’s early support has made him a key figure in Cincinnati’s film industry, and his impact is still felt today.
The introduction of Ohio’s Motion Picture Tax Credit credit in 2013 was another pivotal moment for the film industry in Cincinnati. One of the first major projects to benefit from this incentive was George Clooney’s “The Ides of March.” Initially intended to be filmed entirely in Detroit, the production was brought to Cincinnati after we made a compelling case for its authenticity. The tax credit allowed us to secure 50% of the film’s budget, marking a new era for contemporary film production in our region.
Although some assumed “The Ides of March” came to Cincinnati because of Clooney’s ties to the area, (he grew up in Northern Kentucky), the real driving force was the state’s tax credit. This opportunity not only attracted a world-renowned filmmaker to our city but also provided valuable training and development for local talent. It helped establish a union workforce capable of supporting future productions, raising industry standards in
the process.
Another key figure in Cincinnati’s growing film industry is Christine Vachon of Killer Films. Christine, along with her partner Pam Koffler, discovered Cincinnati’s unique appeal for independent filmmakers. Killer Films has shot six films in Cincinnati, including two directed by Todd Haynes, and continues to advocate for the city’s vibrant film community within the industry. Killer Films have long been titans in the independent film genre. Bringing audiences inside movie theaters for a collective storytelling experience has been a mission for Killer Films, which has produced more than 80 feature films. Cincinnati is grateful to Christine and the team, not only for their commitment to storytelling, but also to places they feel supported in return.
It’s clear that choosing just one favorite film is difficult. Ohio offers a combination of valuable tax incentives, diverse locations, talented professionals and a rich creative culture. I’m proud to be part of this exciting momentum and work alongside the state to elevate Ohio’s film industry, ensuring it remains a world-class destination for filmmakers for many years to come. This is just the beginning of our story.
Cleveland Is a Chameleon
By Bill Garvey, President, The Greater Cleveland Film Commission
Cleveland is a chameleon. It can be whatever filming location it needs to be. It transforms into different architectural styles and topographies depending on the story – from 19th century to modern, from flat as Kansas to the foothills of the Appalachians, from rural sparsity to urban density. Cleveland has played as New York City and Germany (“The Avengers,” “Spider Man 3,” “The Fate of the Furious”), a small Pennsylvania steel town (“The Deer Hunter”), Russia and Kazakhstan (“Air Force One”), and Chicago in 1970 (“Judas and the Black Messiah”).
But the incredible architecture and topography of the region does not drive production business to choose Ohio by itself. The regional film commissions of Ohio proactively pursue as many of the 4,000 to 7,000 projects in development at any one time, pitching their region as a destination to tell compelling stories and, as a result, drive millions of dollars of production investment and thousands of jobs to Ohio. Motion picture industry production spending has more than doubled in the past decade, from $128 billion in 2013 to $247 billion in 2024, so there is more opportunity than ever for Ohio to benefit from an industry that is growing faster than any other. The industry has expanded into 38 states around the country and 106 countries around the world.
The Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit program that regional film commissions use to attract film production investment and jobs to Ohio has generated over $1.5 billion in economic output in Ohio over the last 16 years.
The benefits of film tourism
How can the motion picture industry shine a spotlight on the region as a destination? The answer is film tourism.
Film tourism has the unique ability to shine a big spotlight on Ohio unlike other industries, showcasing to the world the wonderful cultural, technological and natural resources this region has to offer to a captive and engaged audience.
Mansfield has built a $3.5 million-a-year tourism industry around “The Shawshank Redemption,” and it’s still thriving 30 years after the movie was released. “A Christmas Story” has done the same for Cleveland. When a movie or television show transcends and enters a level beyond greatness, to a level at which it is woven into our shared national (and sometime international) culture, it also becomes a beacon that attracts visitors from far and wide. Northeast Ohio is fortunate that multiple films have accomplished this moon shot.
Here’s a bit of history to illustrate the benefits of film tourism.
By 1908, the center of the motion picture universe was New Jersey. That’s where the cameras were built back then. Thomas Edison, a born and raised Ohioan, held most of the patents on the motion picture camera. And because Edison had moved from Cleveland to New Jersey by 1908, so did the movie business.
In fact, the plot device of the “cliffhanger,” as overused as it was, became a cliché due to the proximity of the studios in Fort Lee, New Jersey, to the Palisades cliffs over the Hudson River where many dangling actors met their demise or were saved at the last moment on screen.
Along with that cliché came the first exploitation of the popularity of film tourism, as fans made their pilgrimage to the place where some of the first movie stars, Lillian and Dorothy Gish (both from Ohio), were saved from a perilous fall to their death in their favorite nickelodeon adventures.
Diverse architecture and topography
Our diversity of architecture and topography is every bit as much an invaluable asset as any of the traditional film industry hubs against which Ohio competes for this business. Here are a few examples from the Cleveland area.
NASA Plumbrook–Sandusky: Located one hour west of Cleveland, this is among the most unique locations on the planet. NASA Plumbrook was built in 1961 as a nuclear “test” reactor (the eighth largest ever built). From 1963 to 1973, NASA Plumbrook played a leading role in experimentation in the pursuit of nuclear airplane and nuclear rocket technology.
The Space Power Facility, the world’s largest rocket fuselage test chamber, was constructed large enough to accommodate the international space station. It has a 100-foot diameter and stands 122 feet high. It is in this chamber that we filmed the opening sequence to “The Avengers.”
The Westinghouse Factory (“The Avengers” [2012]) Russian warehouse scenes): This vast, gritty factory hasn’t roared with machinery in decades but now plays a central role in movies. It was built as a generator plant to power the Cleveland Railway Company’s trolley system in 1890. It later served various incarnations as an aircraft, auto parts and Titan ICBM guided missile system factory. When business eroded in the 1970s, the factory endured wave after wave of layoffs before completely shutting down in 1979. It has stood silent ever since.
The Zverina Building: When we were searching for an option to match the real Black Panthers Headquarters location in “Judas and the Black Messiah,” Sam Lisenco, production designer, invested a great deal of time researching as many photos of the actual location as he could find. It was a difficult assignment to tackle, especially since this location demanded weeks of prep and filming that would incorporate the interior tied to the exterior, and the exterior had to include blocks of period-correct architecture. After weeks of searching, we came across the Zverina Building, built in the 1860s and one of the last functioning single resident occupancy hotels in Cleveland, complete with original wallpaper. The street outside was frozen at the same moment in time. It was one of those rare moments in the creative development process in which filmmakers came upon the perfect location, which led to “Judas and the Black Messiah” winning the Location Managers Guild International Best Period Locations Award against all period feature films released internationally in 2021.
Ohio played a leading role in this industry 120 years ago, before Hollywood ever existed, with roots in camera technology and production that led to its modern status as the signature American cultural export to the rest of the world. Ohio can benefit (both economically and culturally) from telling that story in the form of film tourism. In turn, that shines a spotlight on our region to the world as a destination, not only for the film business, but also as a destination for business in general.