May 13 (Bloomberg) -- New York is a star again.

Filmmaking in the city is at a post-Sept. 11 peak. Crews made 245 movies in New York last year, a 36 percent increase from 2002, said Katherine Oliver, film commissioner. Aggressive marketing and tax incentives are driving the recovery, with an added boost from the U.S. dollar's decline, she said.

``I really wanted to do a film here very much, but you have to crunch the numbers,'' said Richard Ledes, director of ``The Caller,'' which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival. He said tax credits and the exchange rate made New York $500,000 cheaper than Canada in his $5 million budget.

Movies and television shows made in New York contribute $5 billion a year to the city economy and employ 100,000 people, according to Boston Consulting Group, which the mayor's office hired to assess the industry's impact.

The climate has turned around since 2002, when a made-for- TV movie about former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani was shot in Montreal, said Oliver, who was an executive with Bloomberg LP, majority owner of Bloomberg News, before joining the administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the company's founder and majority owner.

Filmmakers are winning entree to previously inaccessible locales, she said. Brooklyn Bridge traffic was diverted for 10 nights during the filming of ``Stay.'' Sydney Pollack got permission to shoot ``The Interpreter'' at the United Nations, which had never before permitted filming.

Current Projects

Movies being made on the streets of New York today include ``The Taking of Pelham 123,'' a remake starring Denzel Washington and John Travolta; ``Julia & Julia,'' directed by Nora Ephron; and ``New York, I Love You,'' an anthology.

``I've never seen so much shooting going on at one time,'' said Adam Spielberg, a producer and head of development at New York-based Gigantic Pictures LLC. ``I understand the complaint that New York has become a back lot.''

Fans of ``Sex and the City,'' the TV show turned into a movie opening May 30, flocked to watch Sarah Jessica Parker and her co-stars acting at the Four Seasons Hotel and Bryant Park. Production was done at Silvercup Studios in Queens, where the TV version was made for Time Warner Inc.'s HBO.

``The `Sex and the City' TV series was one of the best commercials we could have had,'' said Kimberly Spell, a spokeswoman for NYC & Co., the city's tourism agency. ``The city itself is another character.''

Tax Advantage

New York reduces filmmakers' tax liability by 5 percent of what is spent there. Governor David Paterson sweetened the pot last month, increasing the state tax credit to 30 percent from 10 percent.

``We were just flooded by people coming to talk to us'' after the change, said Pat Swinney Kaufman, executive director of the Governor's Office for Motion Picture and Television Development.

New York may be too favorable to television, according to the Los Angeles crew of the comedy ``Ugly Betty.'' Production of the show is being moved to New York, Walt Disney Co.'s ABC Studios said yesterday.

More than 300 crew members put a full-page ad in Variety last week, warning Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and other politicians that the loss of movie and television jobs to states offering incentives is a threat to the California economy.

``The texture of the city is what makes it so great to film here,'' said Susan Seidelman, who directed ``Desperately Seeking Susan'' and ``She-Devil'' in New York. ``It's the colorful graffiti on the walls or the elegance of the streets and buildings uptown, something that you can't duplicate any other place.''

City's Downside

Directors run into drawbacks in the city as well.

``It's a lot noisier,'' Seidelman said. She had to stop filming ``Cookie'' in Chinatown because firecrackers drowned out the dialogue. It's difficult when a performer draws so many fans, paparazzi and reporters that security has to be increased, she said.

Traffic congestion, finding parking for equipment trucks and payment demands from property owners add to the hassle, said Ramin Bahrani, who directed ``Man Push Cart'' and ``Chop Shop'' in New York.

Directors are perpetually attracted to iconic sites such as the New York County Courthouse in lower Manhattan. It's where Richard Grasso is defending his $190 million pay package from the New York Stock Exchange and a lawsuit on the $19.5 billion buyout of Clear Channel Communications Inc. is being heard.

Courthouse Views

``Baby Mama,'' starring Tina Fey, ``The Caller,'' Ledes's thriller starring Elliot Gould and Frank Langella, and ``What Happens in Vegas,'' starring Cameron Diaz, all have scenes at the courthouse.

Hollywood's use of the building ranges from ``Miracle on 34th Street'' in 1947 to ``The Godfather'' in 1972 to ``Wall Street'' in 1987.

TV viewers may recognize the 1926 structure with a Corinthian portico from ``Law & Order.'' The NBC Universal crime drama has shown the courthouse in 400 of its 415 episodes, said Moe Bardach, location manager. New York has taken in $1.15 billion from ``L&O'' and its spinoffs, Oliver said.

Seidelman said movies like ``Breakfast at Tiffany's'' made her want to move to New York.

``That's what's great about New York films,'' she said. ``They're like little sightseeing tours of New York City.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Patricia Hurtado in New York State Supreme Court at pathurtado@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: May 13, 2008 00:02 EDT