ILR News Center

Noted panelists discuss New York’s economic value as a “creative base”

New York City is an undisputed hub of the arts and entertainment universe, ranking behind only Los Angeles in terms of industry size. The combination of theatrical performances and film and television production creates tens of thousands of jobs, generates billions of dollars in wages and tax revenues, and each year attracts millions of visitors and tourists to the region. Spillover to the rest of New York State is significant, and economic developers often tout this sector as key to the state’s future growth and vitality.

A recent policy forum in New York City co-sponsored by Cornell’s ILR School and the Alliance for the Arts, a non-profit arts advocacy organization, explored the prospects for the media and performing arts in New York State. Panelists and leaders of public, private, and non-profit arts organizations discussed the challenges facing the industry while also noting the many reasons why artists and producers should, and do, choose New York as their creative base.

The forum panel included John Connolly, executive director of Actors’ Equity Association; Jed Bernstein, president of Above the Title Entertainment and former president of the League of American Theatres and Producers; Gary Kesner, executive vice president of Silvercup Studios; Michelle Byrd, executive director of the Independent Feature Project; Dan Mahoney, international representative for the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees; Patricia Kaufman, executive director of the New York State Governor’s Office for Motion Picture and Television Development; and Maria Figueroa, director of labor and industry research at ILR

“New York is a cultural mecca,” said Lois Gray, the Jean McKelvey-Alice Grant Professor Emerita of Labor-Management Relations at ILR and forum moderator. “In terms of the variety of sectors and the breadth and depth of the talent pool, we are more diverse than L.A. We have a superb infrastructure and world-class stage and film crews.”

Panelists shared a variety of insights regarding New York and its great potential as an arts and entertainment hub:

• Three years ago the state and city governments enacted a tax incentive program that makes it more affordable for movie and television productions to film a major portion of their projects in New York City. As a result, stage and studio space has expanded and more movies and television pilots are being written specifically for New York.
• On the performing arts side, the increasing range in ticket prices -- a change driven largely by the internet -- has made theater more accessible to more people. Moreover, live performances are an appealing alternative to technology-based entertainment; that is, they provide audiences an opportunity to emotionally connect with the production and the artists in a way that is just not possible with computers.
• The New York arts and entertainment industry benefits from an unusual spirit of cooperation among its stakeholders -- notwithstanding the current labor tensions involving writers and Broadway stagehands – that reflects a mutual desire for a thriving arts scene.

But, the panelists noted, long-run success is not inevitable. Independent film producers, who receive the lion’s share of the tax credits and have made New York their capital, continuously struggle for resources and attention. The economics of today’s theater discourages risky or innovative productions while favoring those with mass appeal. Neighboring states are now offering even more lucrative incentives to lure television and film projects. 

The forum is part of an outreach initiative linked to a planning grant ILR received from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to develop a research agenda for an arts and entertainment industry center based at the school. A study published by Cornell in 2006 entitled “New York’s Big Picture: Assessing New York’s Position in Film, Television and Commercial Production” provided the context for the forum. Gray and Figueroa were among the co-authors.