While the development of the film industry in New Mexico has only recently turned heads, it turns out the Land of Enchantment has played a major part in cinema and television history for a very long time, even before the beloved television series “Breaking Bad.”
In recognition of New Mexico’s long and unique cinematic history, the Albuquerque Museum is hosting an exhibit curated by UNM history professor Paul Hutton titled “Hollywood Southwest: New Mexico in Film and Television.” The exhibit runs until Aug. 27.
The exhibit aims to present the three elements of New Mexico’s film history — the state as a location, the state as a subject and the state’s people as subjects.
Hutton, who has taught the histories of western film and of war film at UNM, said he has been fascinated with film since he was young, especially westerns.
“At one time westerns made up a third of all the films that were made in Hollywood and because of that New Mexico was often featured as a location,” he said. “It was westerns that brought filmmakers to New Mexico to begin with.”
Hutton said that due to the state’s tax incentives and the success of “Breaking Bad,” New Mexico is attracting many projects, including the 2016 film “Hell or High Water,” which was nominated for Best Picture at this year’s Academy Awards. The exhibit’s opening converges this new film “renaissance” for the state.
“We wanted to deal with the modern boom in film making that’s been going on here and tie it into this 125-year history of filmmaking in New Mexico,” Hutton said.
Hutton was assisted in the exhibit’s production by Justin Strykowski, a writer as well as film enthusiast. Strykowski said Hollywood productions have always been present in New Mexico, but big studios are rarely interested in stories that are about the state.
“When major Hollywood productions come here they use New Mexico to transform it into another place,” Strykowski said. “New Mexico could be Afghanistan or it could be Africa, but they’re not always interested in telling New Mexican stories.”
Despite film’s constant but slow production in New Mexico, the advent of technology is now allowing a new generation of filmmakers and college students to finally create and define New Mexican stories.
“We are absolutely starting to tell stories that are more diverse in nature and more inclusive of different kinds of cultures,” Strykowski said. “There are so many people interested in film and the opportunities are wide spread so, it will definitely happen.
Manuel Chavez is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
