On March 26th, the Los Angeles City Council passed what became known as the “Ugly Betty” package of recommendations designed to make it easier to film in Los Angeles. The blueprint for the seven-point package approved by Council was a report by the Chief Legislative Analyst’s Office (CLA) on runaway production, which Councilmembers Garcetti and Greuel called for after the … Read More
California Finally Gets Own Filming Incentive
>After years of work by dedicated champions for entertainment industry jobs, California has a film tax incentive. On February 20, 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger signed legislation creating tax credits for qualified film and television productions. The funding allocation is $100 million a year for five years. The state legislature has recognized that the filmed entertainment industry is extremely mobile and that … Read More
L.A.-Based Big-Budget Features Going, Going, Gone?
FilmL.A.’s annual production figures for 2008 are in, and the data reveal that all is not well with L.A.’s signature industry. Total on-location filming coordinated by FilmL.A. decreased 8.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 compared to the same period in 2007, from 13,353 to 12,277 permitted days of production. By year’s end, total days had dropped 1.7 percent, … Read More
L.A. Filming Centennial Highlights What’s at Stake
This year Los Angeles’ movie industry celebrates a centennial. One hundred years ago in 1909 the first motion picture filmed entirely within Los Angeles was shot downtown at 8th and Olive. Film production became a signature industry for our region and state, as its products were exported throughout the world. Unfortunately, movie industry jobs have been exported as well. The phenomenon … Read More