Rural New Mexico film spending hits record $55.7M under state incentive
New Mexico film productions spent a record $55.74 million in rural Uplift Zone communities during fiscal year 2026, according to the New Mexico Film Office.
The New Mexico Film Office says productions spent $55.74 million in Uplift Zone communities during fiscal year 2026.
Organ Mountain News report
SANTA FE - Film production spending in rural New Mexico reached an all-time high during fiscal year 2026, according to the New Mexico Film Office.
The office said the state’s Uplift Zone incentive generated a record $55.74 million in direct spending during the fiscal year, topping the previous record of $50.2 million set in fiscal year 2022.
The Uplift Zone incentive is part of New Mexico’s film tax credit program and is designed to encourage productions to film in smaller communities, support rural economic development and create jobs outside the state’s traditional production hubs.
Productions filming in New Mexico can qualify for a base refundable tax credit of 25% on qualified New Mexico expenditures. Productions that shoot in the Uplift Zone can receive an additional 10% credit for qualified expenditures in areas at least 60 miles outside the city halls of Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Additional incentives can bring the total credit to 40%.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation in 2023 that increased the Uplift Zone incentive from 5% to 10%.
“New Mexico continues to set the standard for film incentives, with states across the country following our lead,” Lujan Grisham said. “The Uplift incentive helps keep us competitive, bringing jobs, production spending and continued economic opportunities to communities throughout the state. Productions may come for the incentives, but they return for our talented crews and strong industry infrastructure.”
Steve Graham, director of the New Mexico Film Office, said the incentive is intended to push film work beyond Albuquerque and Santa Fe.
“It’s about creating film opportunities far beyond New Mexico’s traditional production hubs to keep New Mexicans working,” Graham said. “For small towns, there is an immediate and significant impact. This record-setting year shows the value of investing in our communities and expanding the reach of New Mexico’s film industry.”
The Film Office said the state has hosted 63 productions generating $320 million in spending during the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. Of those, 26 productions filmed at least partly in the Uplift Zone.
Since 2020, the film industry has generated more than $6.4 billion in economic impact in New Mexico, according to the Film Office.
Uplift Zone spending has fluctuated in recent years. The incentive generated $4.5 million in spending in fiscal year 2020, $6.5 million in fiscal year 2021, $50.2 million in fiscal year 2022 and $21.2 million in fiscal year 2023, when the industry was affected by strikes. Spending reached $42.15 million in fiscal year 2024 and $32 million in fiscal year 2025 before climbing to the new record in fiscal year 2026.
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