Desert areas and wild landscapes, such as those of
Tabernas, wide sierras with luxurious vegetation,
coasts, cliffs and the pristine beaches of Cabo de
Gata-Nijar, few Spanish provinces can boast of such
a varied and strongly contrasted geography.
Undoubtly, this feature is what caused Almería
to become one of the world's major film production
centres, with up to 200 films and series filmed as
of 2001.
Beginning with Spanish films soon European and American
productions followed suit, bringing with them the
brightest international stars as well as making tourism
a major source of wealth and development in the province.
Under the direction of Sergio Leone, Western films
became landmark productions. The zone, however, did
not wish to focus on a single genre and wisely "marketed"
its charms to directors and actors working on other
types of filmes. Areas of the captial city such as
the Alcazaba were transformed to shoot Indiana Jones
and The last Crusade under Steven Spielberg and Battle
of Guettar in Patton was filmed on location at Rambla
del Buho in Tabernas.