GREENSBORO, N.C. — Hollywood may traditionally be thought of as the center of the entertainment world, but you don't have to go to the West Coast to find the bright lights, stars, and film sets.
North Carolina has a long history of movie and TV shows filming all across the state.
Here's just a handful of projects filmed in North Carolina:
- Bull Durham was filmed in a few different spots including Durham, Burlington, and Greensboro.
- Dirty Dancing was filmed at Lake Lure
- TV shows on the WB like Dawson's Creek and One Tree Hill filmed in Wilmington
- The first Hunger Games movie was filmed all over the state in abandoned towns, DuPont State Recreational Forest, and Uptown Charlotte.
- Talladega Nights did most of its filming in Charlotte including scenes at Charlotte Motor Speedway
- Forrest Gump filmed a scene at Grandfather Mountain as he's running across the U.S.
A big reason why so many projects film in our state is incentives aimed at attracting filmmakers.
Projects get a 25% rebate as long as they spend a certain amount in our state.
The rebate has been successful at attracting projects which bring money, jobs, and the spotlight to North Carolina.
In 2022, filmmakers and TV creators spent more than $258 million on productions. In 2021, $416 million was spent, as many projects delayed by COVID-19 picked back up.
The North Carolina Film Office works to promote the state and all it has to offer to filmmakers.
"We work hand in hand with the Department of Commerce in attracting and serving film productions in North Carolina and the goal is to create economic development opportunities in those communities in which filming is taking place and providing job opportunities for North Carolinians in those projects," said Guy Gaster, director of the North Carolina Film Office.
It's not just movie-making happening in our state, the RiverRun International Film Festival brings movie watchers to the Triad every year.
"We look forward every year to presenting some of the best films that are out there literally from across the globe," said Rob Davis, executive director of the RiverRun international film festival.
Around 1,800 films were either submitted, sent in by distributors, or invited by festival organizers as they then whittled the list down to 174 movies that will be highlighted.
There are ticketed events, as well as free panels and family-friendly screenings during the 25th annual festival from April 13 to April 22.
Tickets for the general public go on sale on April 6. You can find more information including scheduled events by clicking here.