New York, I Love You (2020)

I adore New York City.

To me, I associate the City with its images in the movies.

The jutting skyscrapers and flashy skyline in Manhattan. The fall-time Central Park and the mesmerizing pastrami sandwich in When Harry Met Sally. The well dressed women lingering on the streets of Uptown in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. And of course, the gloomy red-and-yellow neon signs in Taxi Driver.

Movies about New York places the city at the center of the world, making up the imagination and fascination of mine and that of many New Yorkers-to-be.

In 2020, all the lights seem to be dimmed as the city becomes the epicenter of a pandemic. With Broadway dark, concert venues closed, and live performances strictly limited, New York’s powerhouse arts and entertainment industry has been devastated since March. But amid the downturn, film and television productions started to rebound in November, filling the city’s sound stages and increasingly, the city’s streets.

If you are like me - a cinephile and an avid traveler - 2020 may be the worst year to date. The silver lining is, with many extra hours bored at home this winter, we all have a chance to revisit some of our favorite movies, or, take a virtual tour to learn about the film scene in NYC.

The Big Picture: Filmmaking in New York

Filming in New York has a long history as early as in 1896, but it wasn’t as easy as it is today. In the 1960's, producers often required upwards of 50 permits to shoot in the City and gaining access to some of New York's hottest locations was expensive and time-consuming.

When the Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting was established in 1966, New York City became the first city in the world to offer one-stop permits and expedite requests from production companies seeking to use public locations. Today, the film and television industry contributes nearly $9 billion and over 130,000 jobs to New York City's economy each year.

Using public data on film permits (2012-2020) from Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting, , I explored some interesting insights about the city’s hottest locations, the most likely season to stop by a film set, and how the city's creative industry is handling the pandemic hit.

Question 1: Where do most film, TV productions, and shows happen in NYC?

You may guess Times Square - we see it in movies all the time. The billboards and neons are screaming NYC.

Or maybe Staten Island - nothing is more American than the Statue of Liberty and Hollywood loves it!

Guess what? Both are popular on-location sites, but the winner for “hottest zone” is - Long Island City!

About the data: The data includes all film permits for movies, TV series, theatre shows, and news issued by the Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre, and Broadcasting from January 1, 2012 to December 13, 2020. It comprises a total of 65,545 permits issued in this period.

Long Island City and upper north areas in Queens are among the hottest zones because of clusters of many legendary sound stages.

Silvercup Studios in Long Island City, Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens, and Steiner Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yard are among the largest studios in New York.

All of them report that they are fully booked since November, according to the New York Times, though each stage can only function at 50% of its regular occupancy under state rules.

In the interactive map below, you can hit the "play" button on the right to see how production hot zones in the five boroughs changed over time from 2012 to 2020.

Feel free to drag and drop, or check out specific area you're interested in using the navigator bar on the left. Click on "full screen" at the bottom for better view. If you want to check out the animation one more time, simply hit "play" once again.

Question 2: What is the seasonality like for the creative industry in NYC?

If you want to increase your chance to stop by a film set on-location and "pump into" your favorite actor, say, Ethan Hawke or Timothée Chalamet, visit in the fall!

According to film permits data, the number of productions hits the peak in October and the lowest in January.

It makes sense - even Harry and Sally would agree fall is the most beautiful season in New York.

Question 3: How many productions are set in NYC, before and after the pandemic?

From 2012 to 2019, an average of 8,023 films, TV series, commercials, and theatre shows combined happen in New York City each year, according to the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. The trend seems to tick up, attracting more creative projects to the City, until the production halt in March, 2020.

After a complete spring and summer shutdown, the numbers began to slowly rebound in October, when film crews of up to 100 were allowed to work. Up to December 13, 2020, a total of 1,359 permits were issued in 2020, a 83% decrease from that of 2019.

The film and television industry is far from its normal heights. Of the nearly 80 series that were filming or planning to film in New York City in 2020, 35 were back at work by early November — including popular shows like “Younger and “Blue Bloods” — with another 5 expected to be back by the end of the year. In addition, a virus surge could threaten the recovery, especially during the winter low-season.

However, the creative industry has been quickly adapting to the New Normal. In a pandemic-weary Manhattan, the sight of dozens of shiny production trucks and the hum of workers rolling equipment on and off film sets is giving the city a glimpse of its former self. In the studio and on the streets, production slowly resumes following robust safety protections and rapid testing. Millions of people worldwide are waiting to watch New York-based content, and that’s what pushes creative workers in New York forward every day.

"New York Is Dead"?

There is no metropolis more resilient than New York City. From the “I’m Leaving New York'' essay to the “New York Is Dead” essay, the MTA stopped and resumed. The Navy hospital ship came and returned to the sea.

While it is a year full of sirens and chaos, it is also a year when our hearts are warmed by clanging pots and pans at 7 p.m. In a new year with more political certainty and vaccine hope, The New York-based creative community will rest, reflect, and bring us back the stories of the whispers and yelling and stomping and rushing and laughter and tears of eight million individuals across five boroughs.

New York City is not dead - and it will never be.

"I Love New York" Created and Directed by Bardia Zeinali. Written by Jeremy O. Harris. Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg.