Diane Rever has long been a legendary figure in the New Jersey film industry. But she
did not come to the 2026 N.J. Film Expo at the Meadowlands Arena last week to talk
about all she’s done in the past — but about what she’s working on now.
Rever, who founded the Garden State Film Festival 25 years ago, now spends much of
her time on two initiatives aimed squarely at the future: the New Jersey Film Academy
and the NJProductionGuide.org website. Together, they form a pipeline she believes
New Jersey has needed for years.
The Film Academy, she said, is designed to help community college students get the
training, exposure and confidence they need to enter the industry.
She has 13 of the state’s 18 community colleges on board. And for good reason. Once
the students are ready, they’re added to her production guide — a statewide directory
that connects filmmakers with New Jersey talent.
“It’s all about giving students a real pathway,” she said. “They get the skills, they get the
experience, and then they get seen. That’s how you build a workforce.”
It’s the same philosophy that drove her to create the Garden State Film Festival a
quarter-century ago — long before New Jersey had tax credits, soundstages or a
booming production economy.
Back then, she said, the idea of a statewide film festival felt bold. Now, it feels prophetic.
“When we started the festival, we just wanted to give filmmakers a home,” she said.
“We wanted to show that New Jersey had stories worth telling and talent worth
celebrating.”
The festival grew into one of the state’s signature arts events, drawing filmmakers from
around the world and helping put New Jersey back on the industry’s radar. But Rever
said the real satisfaction comes from seeing how the state has finally caught up to the
vision she and others had decades ago.
Seeing the more than 5,000 attendees walk the expo floor, taking in booths featuring
production, lighting and audio skills as well as those offering locations, props, catering
and tax, banking and legal services, was a sign of what’s to come, Rever said.
“This industry is ready to explode,” she said. “I’m stunned, honestly. I never thought I’d
see New Jersey get to this point.”
For Rever, the moment is deeply gratifying. So, see the infrastructure, the workforce
development, the incentives — and the energy around it, is incredible.
“The fact that I am at this moment, in this state, is absolutely divine intervention,” she
said. “When I started the film festival, everybody thought I was nuts. To see where we
are now is just incredible.”
For all she has done, Rever credits the tax credits pushed by the Murphy administration
as the driver of all of this.
“The indie world was always here,” she said. “But it wasn’t until the incentives came that
the big boys took notice. They finally saw what I saw all along: New Jersey is a film
state.
“New Jersey is the birthplace of film; it deserves to be known as the future of film.”
