Next mayor to keep focus on growing NYC film industry

By EMILIE CRUZ

It started with a movie. Nicholas Giuricich was just a 10-year-old boy watching Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park when he knew his desire to be a film director would be the core narrative of his life.

Armed with his father’s VHS camera, Giuricich went on to make several short films starring his friends and family throughout middle and high school, and won multiple awards at local public school festivals.

Soon, the time came for him to leave his hometown of Bethesda, air jordan 1 Maryland and begin his college education in one of the most prestigious universities for film: NYU. There, he said, he began to fully appreciate the power and beauty of art while getting introduced to the harsh and competitive world of the film industry.

“I couldn’t figure out which was more important,” he said of the balance between creativity and business in the film industry. “NYU proved to offer excellent opportunities to learn about both sides of the equation.”

Now a 21-year-old senior, Giuricich is faced with one question: what’s next?

Under the Bloomberg administration, the film industry’s presence in New York City has expanded dramatically, raking in upwards of $400 million in tax revenue and providing many jobs for New Yorkers.

As Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s 12-year run nears its end, and candidates Bill de Blasio and Joe Lhota campaign for the position, they promise not only to maintain the growth, but also build on the film industry’s success.

De Blasio, the Democrat and frontrunner, has presented a concise plan that would build on the success of film and television in New York City.

“With smart leadership and continued engagement with this creative community,” states de Blasio’s Progressive Vision for the Film and TV Industries in New York City, “the City can grow the number of jobs in this sector by another 12 percent in the next four years, adding over 15,000 jobs in filmed production.”

His plan boils down to five key actions. He said he would expand Brooklyn College’s new Graduate School of Cinema at the Brooklyn Navy Yard to include bachelor’s and associate’s degrees, and enlarge the already successful Made in NY training program for production assistants. These improvements would make the competitive field of film-making more available to those with dreams to make it in the industry.

“[In the past], when we were shooting, it was just a small network of people that had access just by knowing the right people,” said NYU film student Dana Brawer. “It made for a much smaller community. With a bigger program, it [would open] up access to a larger pool of talent.”

Lhota, the Republican candidate, has not issued a formal plan for the future of filming in New York City, but his team said the industry is important to him.

“Joe has toured studios and spoken with production companies about how the city can be a better partner to the film industry,” his campaign tweeted in response to a question on how he will maintain the industry’s growth if elected mayor. “He understands [the] importance of [the] film industry to NYC’s economy and pledged to continue and enhance successful Made in NY program.”

It would prove difficult to argue that successful strides were not made in film and television in the city under Bloomberg’s administration. In fact, air jordan 3 according to a 2012 Boston Consulting Group study, the film production sector employed “130,000 people in New York City, an increase of 30,000 since 2004, and [accounted] for $7.1 billion in private sector spending, an increase of 70 percent since 2002.”

Furthermore, 26 prime time series were shot in New York City in the 2012-2013 television season alone, compared to the seven shot 10 years ago.

“Bloomberg encouraged tax incentives,” said Giuricich. “Right now there are some other places in America that are becoming competitive in terms of tax incentives and are encouraging filmmakers to come and shoot there. So if New York does not remain competitive, or get better in terms of tax incentives – which it already is good as is – then we may see more people leave the city and going to those places.”

Brawer mirrored his sentiment, saying that “just the allure isn’t enough when you’re paying twice as much to rent equipment and to rent space.”

Giuricich said there is a good chance he’ll stay in the city after graduating. “Jobs are ubiquitous, so I can find a sense of financial stability here,” he said.

Photo: Nicholas Giuricich (center) directing camera operators. (Emilie Cruz)