Location directory

New Jersey film locations by category

This directory currently covers real, publicly documented locations, public parks, landmark buildings, and operating studio facilities, verified through news coverage, official sources or the property’s own public listing. It does not yet include privately submitted properties; see list your property if you want yours considered for a future, privacy-appropriate version of this directory.

How to read this page. Everything below is a publicly documented example, drawn from official property, government or production sources and last checked July 2026. Each entry is labelled with what it actually is, because the difference matters: a documented filming history is not an offer of access, a private property needs the owner’s written permission, a State park needs an NJDEP permit, and only an operating studio is bookable as such. We do not publish private addresses and we do not claim availability for any location.

Industrial

Warehouses, factories, loading docks, workshops and large production-friendly interiors.

Paterson, Great Falls & historic mill district

Documented filming history · municipal and federal jurisdiction

Industrial warehouses alongside Beaux-Arts downtown architecture. Has hosted The Sopranos, The Godfather, The Irishman and The Trial of the Chicago 7. Public falls and park area; mill buildings are privately owned.

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Bayonne, industrial waterfront

Documented filming history · working port and private facilities

Working port facilities and close-knit industrial neighborhoods with unobstructed Manhattan skyline views. Appeared in War of the Worlds.

Homes & Estates

Suburban homes, historic properties, modern residences and luxury estates.

Crocker Mansion, Mahwah

Private property · historical filming site

A real historic mansion featured as the central house in Garden State (2004).

Hartley Farms, New Vernon

Private property

A privately owned 250-acre historic estate and horse farm roughly 24 miles west of New York City, with 19th- and early 20th-century landscape design, dense forest and open fields. Listed as an available production location library.

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Several recent productions (including a 2025 Lionsgate thriller and a Netflix romantic comedy) used private historic homes in Madison and Montclair. We’ve deliberately left specific street addresses off this page, these are private residences, not public listings.

Cities & Streets

Downtowns, commercial corridors, brownstones, skylines and urban texture.

**Exchange Place, Jersey City**: doubles for Manhattan in frame after framePhoto credit & license

Exchange Place & Paulus Hook, Jersey City

Documented filming history · municipal streets and waterfront

Waterfront towers and brownstone streets that regularly double for Manhattan. Used in Joker, A Beautiful Mind, Men in Black and Army of the Dead.

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Journal Square, Jersey City

Documented filming history · municipal

Dense urban core identified by the city’s own film office as a current filming hotspot.

Offices & Corporate

Executive offices, conference rooms, campuses, laboratories and working environments.

**Nassau Hall, Princeton**, Multi-era institutional architecture in one campusPhoto credit & license

Exchange Place towers, Jersey City

Private commercial property

Financial-district high-rises used for corporate interiors and skyline establishing shots in multiple productions.

Multi-era institutional campuses

Institutional property · university approval required

Campuses spanning several architectural periods in one location (a quality New Jersey City University has specifically highlighted to productions) reduce the need to company-move between eras or styles.

Coast & Nature

Beaches, marinas, forests, parks, farms and open landscapes.

**CRRNJ Terminal, Liberty State Park**, 1889 rail-terminal grandeur on the harborPhoto credit & license

Liberty State Park, Jersey City

State park · NJDEP permit required

A 1,212-acre public state park with open space and skyline views, used in Men in Black, The Godfather and The Royal Tenenbaums. Operated by the NJ Division of Parks and Forestry.

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Jersey Shore

Documented filming history · multiple jurisdictions

Boardwalks, beaches and shoreline communities that have hosted dozens of productions, including Annie at Monmouth University’s Wilson Hall.

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Studios & Controlled Spaces

Soundstages, cyc walls, standing sets and flexible production spaces.

10 Basin Studios, Kearny

Operating studio · bookable facility

An operating 36,000-square-foot soundproofed stage, built out in 2021 by Eastern Effects.

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Lionsgate Newark, Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth and 1888 Studios in Bayonne are large campuses currently under construction, not yet open for bookings. See the full studios & soundstages guide.

Town production guides

Location looks are only half the problem, the other half is who approves the shoot. These municipal guides cover permit routes, contacts, lead times and local logistics, each verified against official sources.

Newark, Jersey City, East Brunswick and Oceanport are Film Ready certified. Bayonne and Paterson are municipal production guides, they are not listed in the NJMPTVC Film Ready cohorts as of July 2026.

Sources

Last checked July 2026. Location examples describe past production use only, not current availability or willingness to host a shoot. Spot something outdated? Send a correction.

Reviewed by Sam Moskowitz, producer & director of photography at BLL Films

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