By Sara Atencio-Gonzales, The Paper. – A historic piece of Albuquerque’s industrial past has a new purpose after state and local leaders celebrated the grand opening of a film and digital media training center at the Rail Yards Tuesday.
Central New Mexico Community College (CNM), the City of Albuquerque and the New Mexico Economic Development Department gathered for the opening of the Media Arts Collective and CNM Film and Digital Media Training Center inside the Rail Yards’ historic boiler shop.
The facility will serve as the Rail Yards’ first permanent tenant in 70 years and includes three sound stages, production spaces, classrooms, recording studios and a 100-seat screening room.
CNM President Tracy Hartzler explains that the center will give students opportunities to develop skills for an industry that continues to evolve.
“This is an incredible opportunity to bring so many people across the state, in the region, higher education and the industry, to really just provide opportunities for so many young people and those who want to come back and learn new skills,” says Hartzler.
Programs at the facility will include areas such as skilled trades for set design, post-production, audio and digital media development. Hartzler emphasizes that CNM will also be able to adjust its programs as technology and the needs of the film and media industries change.
The project also required preserving the history of the boiler shop while transforming it into a modern educational facility.
Marvin Martinez, executive director of CNM’s Physical Plant Department, says conversations about using the building began in 2019, while construction started two years ago.
“The building is on the New Mexico Historic registry, so we had to make sure that we followed that New Mexico registry. To honor the building. To honor the place,” says Martinez.
Martinez explains that crews essentially constructed a new building within the historic structure. More than 70,000 square feet of interior space was built, while thousands of windows were removed, cleaned and reinstalled. Original features, including overhead cranes once used to maneuver locomotives, were also preserved.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham explains that $73 million has been invested in infrastructure at the site so far and emphasized that the investment in the film industry is ultimately an investment in New Mexicans.
“This is a state that, when it makes a bet and when it decides that an industry is good for the state, it leans in all the way,” says Lujan-Grisham.
The governor also honored the late Eric Witt, who played a major role in building New Mexico’s film industry, and spoke about the facility’s potential to prepare future generations as media and filmmaking change.
Mayor Tim Keller connected that future to the Rail Yards’ past. He emphasized the site once attracted workers from across New Mexico seeking jobs and opportunities and can now fill a similar role for a new generation.
“This is truly the rebirth of the Railyards in Albuquerque for the next generation, and for that I am so grateful,” says Keller.