Why future film students choose UNM’s Film and Digital Arts department

For the eighth consecutive year, Moviemaker Magazine has ranked Albuquerque among the top five large cities as the best places to live for filmmakers.

"Albuquerque's consistent high ranking has bolstered the city's reputation as a key hub for moviemaking and, in turn, attracted movies and shows that our students and alumni work on as crew members," said James Stone, the department chair of UNM's Film and Digital Arts department.

Moviemaker Magazine, established in 1993, is a leading industry publication that provides news and insights about the art, craft and business of independent filmmaking. Not only does it rank cities, but it also annually ranks film schools and festivals. All of which are used by future film students as factors when deciding where to study.

Along with Moviemaker Magazine, the Film and Digital Arts department consistently stands out from other national film degrees because of its faculty and their rigorous, innovative teaching methods.

"Our faculty's expertise and commitment to the students are second to none and regularly lead to major successes for the students turned alumni," said Stone.

The magazine also recognizes filmmakers and projects that have received industry top awards. Recently, Moviemaker Magazine writer Tim Molloy interviewed Ben Arndt, a Film and Digital Arts alumnus, about his student capstone project, Breakups Suck.

Arndt grew up in Albuquerque and graduated from UNM in the spring of 2025. He worked on Breakups Suck with friends and classmates he met along the way to graduation.

"I knew from the beginning I wanted to approach my capstone project as a way to build my filmmaking confidence and develop my voice as an artist," said Arndt. "The moment I realized that this film could be more than a school project was when I shared the script with my class and the writers' circle. There was a palpable excitement and genuine curiosity about shooting."

Breakups Suck is a horror/comedy short film that follows a young man, Luca, who fears for his life while preparing to dump his girlfriend, Ruby, who may or may not be a vampire. He quickly realizes that leaving her may not be as easy as he thought.

The film was screened throughout the fall of 2025 at the Santa Fe International Film Festival, Austin Film Festival/writer Conference and the Chicago Horror Film Festival, where it won Best Student Film and Dark Comedy. Arndt was also nominated for the Best Director Award.

It also received honorable mentions for Best Male Student Director, Sound Design, and Practical VFX at IndieX and Indie Short Film Festival.

New Mexicans have another chance to see the movie April 8-12, as it was recently accepted into the Las Cruces International Film Festival.

"I believe part of the movie's success is its short film concept," said Arndt. "It was not a feature I had to trim down or a proof of concept; it had a script that complemented its shorter run time."

One of Arndt's faculty advisers was Jacob Kader, an assistant professor, who shared that "It was really great to see Ben grow in the program. He was vocal, brightened the classroom and showed filmmaking talent from the start. It was great to see Ben trust his talent and instincts in the creation of Breakups Sucks."

"Breakups Sucks demonstrates remarkable skill in cinematography, screenwriting, directing and producing," Stone said. "It also shows that our department produces technically skilled and innovative works."

UNM's Film and Digital Arts alumni have achieved many notable successes. They include an Emmy nominee, a Forbes "Thirty Under Thirty" honoree, two members of Oscar-winning director David Fincher's postproduction team, numerous Sundance fellows and many others who have gone on to succeed at companies like Lucasfilm, Meow Wolf, Netflix and Industrial Light & Magic.

To learn more, visit UNM's Film and Digital Arts department.