A Department of Revenue report that was released last year on this issue has been widely mischaracterized as a scathing assessment of the tax credit. In fact, that report shows that the credit has been a success, conservatively sparking more than $300 million in direct economic activity in Massachusetts in just its first three years (that’s excluding the salaries for out-of-state actors and other crew members).

The Bay State film industry is giving a thumbs down to Gov. Deval Patrick’s plan to slash the tax credit that helped create more than $1 billion in economic activity. “The film tax credit costs only one dime for every $1 it creates in jobs and economic growth,” said Mary Fifield, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Production Coalition, a group of companies that make films in the region.

The Massachusetts Production Coalition answers critics of the film tax credit.

Newton natives Eli Roth and John Krasinski impressed Esquire’s fashion police on the Red Carpet at the 2010 Golden Globe Awards.

For the past decade, MovieMaker’s editors have paid careful attention to location trends. From recent financial incentives to new soundstages, we have tracked these developments. Here, then, is MM’s 10th annual ranking of the country’s best cities in which to be an independent moviemaker: Albuquerque, NM; Los Angeles, CA; Shreveport, LA; New York, NY; Austin, TX; Stamford, CT; Boston, MA 
; Detroit, MI; Philadelphia, PA; Seattle, WA

The Globe caught up with Newton-bred “Glee’’ creator Brad Falchuk on the West Coast the other day, shortly after he picked up the Golden Globe for best comedy or musical series. “To be totally honest with you, you don’t think you care until you get there and then it’s like, I kind of care, I kind of want to win.’’

Harry Potter comes to the Museum of Science! Exhibition departs on February 21st.

Industries, individual firms, neighborhoods and low income residents are benefitting from the state’s tax incentive programs. And in some cases, the state benefits as well. Both State Senator Ben Downing and Boston Fed policy analyst Jennifer Weiner point to the film tax credit as a success. “A strong argument can be made that were it not for that credit, none of those movies would have been filmed here,” Downing said. Those movies include “Gone Baby Gone” as well as films such as Bruce Willis’ “The Surrogates,” which filmed in part in Worcester. And Weiner noted that states like Connecticut and Michigan have jumped into the film tax credit pool, as well. Michigan’s film credit is even more generous than Massachusetts’, she said.

According to the DOR report, between 2006 and 2009, direct new spending in the state as a result of movie production topped an estimated $1 billion and led to more than 3,000 new direct and indirect jobs.

Oscar-nominated actress Anne Hathaway can add another honor to her list: a Hasty Pudding award.

The ninth season of “American Idol,” the final of the series’ star judge Simon Cowell, debuted last night on FOX to boffo ratings. The show opened its first half hour of its Boston auditions with Victoria Beckham serving as a guest judge for the departed Paula Abdul with 26 million viewers and grew through the 9 PM half-hour. It peaked at 9 PM with 32 million viewers.

“The Lightkeepers,” the made-on-Cape Cod flick about a pair of women-hating old salts, is a dark-horse candidate for Oscar bling. So says none other than the Hollywood Reporter, which declares that Cape director Dan Adams’ flick gives Richard Dreyfuss his “showiest lead performance since 1995’s ‘Mr. Holland’s Opus.’ ”

For more than 30 years, Berkshire County has been a favored location for an impressive list of big-screen movies. Our Gilded Age mansions and bucolic scenery are likely to be even more attractive now that the state dangles tax-credit carrots and other incentives.

Headed to the movies anytime soon? If the film was shot in Massachusetts, take a closer look at the armoire in that one bedroom scene or maybe the desk in the main character’s office. Either may soon appear at a neighborhood Goodwill – a bit of Hollywood glam for a thrift store price.

As long as the tax incentives debate continues–If the state isn’t careful–whether it’s Plymouth or the group planning to come to SouthField in Weymouth, Massachusetts will seem like a less-than-reliable partner not only in the eyes of film executives but in the eyes of other industries, which are being wooed in hopes they will bring the jobs Massachusetts needs to thrive.

“We had many visitors who came to Rockport this past season, at least in part, because of the movie,” said Rockport Chamber of Commerce manager Peter Webber. “Several visitors with whom I spoke at the information booth mentioned seeing Sandra Bullock on either the (David) Letterman Show or Regis (Philbin) and Kelly (Ripa) speak in glowing terms about Rockport and with her experience here while filming the movie.”