New York Gov. Kathy Hochul Says She Met With Bob Iger About Bringing More Production to the State: “Forget About Georgia”

New York Governor Kathy Hochul is trying to ramp up TV and film production in the state, and in a conversation Thursday afternoon, said that she is more than willing to make the case to the entertainment community herself.

Over lunch at the Paley Center for Media in New York, Hochul said that she met with Disney CEO Bob Iger Wednesday in an effort to persuade him to bring more projects and jobs to the state.

“I was just sitting down with Bob Iger yesterday talking about how I want more production in New York State. London shouldn’t exist. Forget about Georgia. I’m a little aggressive, as you can tell,” Hochul said, adding that while the state under her leadership has increased its production tax credits, she is “going to look at how to make that even better,” in order to remain competitive.

“We have very generous production tax credits, because I want to make sure that we don’t lose the business to a New Jersey or a Georgia or Toronto or London, that’s where our competition is,” she added.

“I literally get involved and meet with the leadership in their space and talk about what else I can do,” Hochul continued. “If Disney has 6,000 jobs, I say, how do I get to 7,000?”

Disney has a major office in New York (it is moving to a new location downtown this fall, leaving its longtime Upper West Side home), with corporate and advertising executives, many staff from ESPN, ABC News, WABC, and productions like The View all present in the city. Disney also has a number of Broadway productions in New York City.

While there are some natural advantages to filming in New York, she recognized that for many producers it has become a dollars and cents game.

“The talent wants to be in New York by the way, all the talent wants to be here, either they started here, they have friends here, or they have family here, but they will go where the show goes,” she said. “So we have to continue making it worth their while to do this.”

“Success breeds success. We have more production here, others see it when they’re making those decisions. And I’ve gone out to Hollywood, and I’ve sat in rooms with all the major producers. I told them about our incentives, our workforce, the apprenticeship training programs, the caliber of the work, and they know they’re going to be looking at the bottom line,” Hochul added. “And so I have to always be persuading them.”

And Hochul added that Broadway has also become a priority, with the state seeking incentives that can keep the live theater community vibrant.

It’s all about creating an atmosphere that can lead to economic success for the entertainment industry, while also making New York, frankly a “cool” place to live and work.

“When we think about what sets us apart, it is really our creative talent, and when people see productions being made on their streets, it just feels like it’s a cool place to live,” Hochul said. “And I’m always trying to up the cool factor.”