L.A. Location Filming Drops on Fewer Commercials

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Location filming in the Los Angeles area fell by 2 percent in the second quarter, driven by a sharp drop in the production of commercials, according to a report released Tuesday by FilmL.A.

The Hollywood non-profit group that handles film permits in the city and unincorporated county reported 9,396 shoot days from April through June compared to the 9,574 in the same period a year earlier.

Commercials had the largest drop at 7.3 percent to 1,248 shoot days, while television show production eked out an increase of 2.8 percent to 4,033.

Feature film production was essentially flat, with minute growth of 0.4 percent. There were just five additional shoot days over the second quarter of last year.

“This is a mixed report, but things are certainly looking brighter for television in Los Angeles,” FilmL.A. President Paul Audley said in a prepared statement.

FilmL.A. statistics track on-location filming, but not work on studio lots or soundstages. A “shoot day,” is defined as one crew’s permission to film at one or more locations during a 24‐hour period.

In the television category, on-location filming for sitcoms jumped by 94 percent in the second quarter to 505 shoot days. One-hour dramas also increased, by 12.3 percent to 1,004. Reality show production, however, experienced a drop of 13.7 percent to 1,420.

Audley said he was optimistic about the future production of scripted television shows, because of the recently expanded California Film & Television Tax Credit program.

A bill signed into law in September increased the tax credit to $330 million a year for the next five years from the current $100 million a year. It also changed how money is doled out: Instead of a lottery system, productions will be ranked on how many jobs they create.

Twenty-one broadcast and cable dramas have been approved to receive financial incentives out of the 53 that film in California. That total number is the highest number of dramas produced in the state since 2010.

The additional tax credit money was made available July 1, the beginning of the state’s fiscal year.

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