In November 1971, at the age of 21, Belgian film director Chantal Akerman moved to New York City.

There she took petty jobs, made films and befriended filmmakers such as Jonas Mekas and the cinematographer Babette Mangolte, who became one of her recurring collaborators.

"[2] Principal photography for News from Home took place in the summer of 1976, three years after Akerman had returned to Belgium and after she had achieved critical success with the 1975 film Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles.

Locations chosen for News from Home correspond to the areas where Akerman used to take walks, which include the Times Square subway station and a long shot driving up Tenth Avenue from 30th to 49th Streets in Hell's Kitchen.

[3] In 2010, The Criterion Collection released the film on DVD through its "Eclipse" series, as part of a set called Chantal Akerman in the Seventies.