[1] It is New York City’s agency responsible for coordinating municipal support for film and television production, including approving film shoots and liaising with government agencies and promoting the industry.

[2] In his 1965 campaign for mayor, John Lindsay promised to lure runaway film productions back to New York City by streamlining the process of obtaining the necessary approvals to shoot in the city.

[2] In 1974, Mayor Abraham Beame met with the newly formed New York Motion Picture and Television Council and its Chairman, Jerry Puchkoff.

At that meeting Mayor Beame agreed to expand the city's support for the industry by forming the Mayor's Advisory Council on Motion Pictures and Television in which Jerry Puchkoff was also elected Co-Chairman.

[2] In 1993, after a seven-month-long labor dispute between major studios and several theatrical unions which brought New York-based production to a near-standstill,[3] Mayor David Dinkins elevated the office to cabinet status and appointed film industry professional Richard Brick as its first Commissioner.