Written by new-contact on Apr 16, 2014. Posted in On Location

Los Angeles sees big quarterly boost for feature films but TV production falls

Los Angeles saw a large increase in feature film production in the first quarter of 2014, compared to the same period last year, according to FilmLA. Commercial filming saw a small increase but TV production saw an overall decline.

The city saw a 24% increase in the number of permitted production days for feature films and a quarter of these shoots qualified for California’s filming incentive programme. In contrast, television location filming slipped nearly 10% overall.

“This quarter’s report hints at what would be possible if California were to truly step up and compete for new film projects and jobs,” said FilmLA President Paul Audley.

“California’s Film & Television Tax Credit Programme is in its fifth year; just imagine where we could be five years from now if current efforts to expand the state’s incentive programme are successful.”

Few big-budget feature productions film in California because the filming incentive programme does not support them.

Just imagine where we could be five years from now if current efforts to expand the state’s incentive programme are successful.

Paul Audley, President of FilmLA

The incentive's annual fund of USD100 million is far below what’s available further east in places like Louisiana and New York, and the money is allocated using a controversial lottery system. As a result, California is suffering from a long-term runaway production problem.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Star Trek Into Darkness are among the only big-budget features to have shot mainly in California in recent years.

Television is also shifting east and Los Angeles was a distant second to New York this season in terms of the number of TV pilots that were filmed on location in the city.