A series of new initiatives from Mayor Adams’ administration is designed to bolster TV and film production in the five boroughs – an industry that supports 185,000 New Yorkers. This includes hiring Kwame Amoaku, who served as director of the Chicago Film Office, and the creation of a Film and Television Production Industry Council – a group of 21 industry insiders chosen to advise the city on policies as the $82 billion industry continues to navigate pandemic-induced challenges.
Thirty-seven projects were set to film in the city in July, up from 35 in February 2020 – a month before pandemic-induced lockdowns began. In 2019 a record 80 TV shows and 300 feature films were shot in New York.
Amoaku said his top priorities are diversifying the industry’s workforce, providing greater support to independent filmmakers and streamlining the permitting process.
Source: Crain’s New York Business
