The recent wildfires that have decimated parts of Los Angeles have not had a big impact on the entertainment industry despite some projects suspending filming and pushing back award shows, some experts say.
While some productions were affected by the fires in Pacific Palisades and the Altadena/Pasadena areas, most studios were not even filming in the Southland.
Colleen Bell, the executive director of the California Film Commission, expressed certainty in the industry.
“This has been a brutal moment for our communities, but we are resilient, and I am confident that we will rebuild and continue on,” Bell said.
The Eaton fire in Altadena/Pasadena has damaged or destroyed an estimated 7,000 structures and burned more than 14,100 acres, while the Palisades fire has damaged or destroyed more than 5,000 structures and burned more than 23,700 acres as of Thursday, officials said.
There were some productions that stopped filming the week of Jan. 6, but Bell said it was her understanding that some have already resumed filming.
Among the television shows suspending filming due to the fires were “Gray’s
Anatomy,” “Hacks,” “NCIS” and “The Price is Right.”
Phil Sokoloski, the spokesperson for FilmLA – a Studio City nonprofit that coordinates on-location permitting for film and television shoots in Los Angeles and other jurisdictions – said that the start of the new year tends to be a time when it takes a couple of weeks for filming to ramp up.
“This certainly doesn’t help,” Sokoloski said of the fires. “But it’s been difficult to decouple what may be the ordinary pace of resumption from the fires’ affects.”
He said that the number of shoot days is down 50% from what it had been at this time last year and that it was obvious one could make an inference that it is fire related.
A shoot day is one crew’s permission to film at one or more locations during a 24-hour period.
However, even though the activity is 50% of normal, “how many of those productions actually went ahead, I cannot say,” Sokoloski added. “I know they have permission, and they may come back to us saying they need to reschedule.”
He said he was not aware of any productions leaving the area.
“We have not heard any stories of productions picking up and leaving California or Los Angeles to film elsewhere, thankfully,” Sokoloski said.
One aspect of the entertainment industry, however, that has been affected by the fires has been “awards season” – the time of year for award shows.
Bell said that one way the industry can support the community of Los Angeles is by keeping those events moving forward. When award shows are cancelled there is a trickle-down effect that harms businesses, small medium and large, that support those events, she said.
“This is everybody coming together and keeping schedules and keeping people working and keeping these businesses upright,” Bell added.
Sokoloski said he wasn’t sure of any awards shows themselves being postponed, but nomination announcements have been delayed.
“I just don’t think anybody is in a celebratory mood at the moment,” he added. “That is understandable.”
Among the delayed nominations announcements were the Oscars, the Writers Guild of America and the Producers Guild of America.
The 2025 Writers Guild Awards are currently set to take place on Feb. 15 in dual ceremonies in New York and L.A. The Grammys announced that it was sticking with its Feb. 2 awards show date. The 97th Oscars ceremony remains set for March 2 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood while the Critics Choice Awards have been postponed indefinitely. The show is set to take place sometime in February and will still be held at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica.
The Visual Effects Society in Sherman Oaks, released its nominations on Jan. 14 and is scheduled to give its awards out on Feb. 11 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
