L.A. Filming Declines as Pandemic Production Shift Subsides
FilmLA has reported a total of 9,066 Shoot Days (SD)* in the third quarter (“Q3”). This figure reflects a 10% decline from the same period last year and a -1.7% decline from 2020.
FilmLA President Paul Audley said the decline was a modest one as last year was an unprecedented one due to the pandemic. Audley said, “To that point, we note that the COVID-19 Delta wave forced an out of season production shift last year. That shift led to record-breaking filming levels in the latter half
of 2021.”
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Shoot Day activity for feature films and commercials declined, both year-over-year and compared to the five-year averages, while TV and other categories were more mixed
Among the productions shooting in LA were Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” “Beverly Hills Cop” from Netflix and Universal’s “Fast X.”
A total of 115 SD – 13.9 percent of the category total – were generated by projects that received the California Film & Television Tax Credit, which the California Film Commission oversees.
Commercial production activity also saw a decline, down to 1,021 days this quarter compared to 1,533 last year.
Kohl’s, Peloton, Southwest Airlines and Walmart along with many car companies including Hyundai, Maserati, Nissan, Toyota, and Volkswagen all shot commercials in the region.
Despite TV being down by 10.5% compared to the same period in 2021, it remained 4.7 percent above the five-year average.
TV drama activity declined by 11.7% year over year (1,198 SD in Q3 2022 vs.1,356 SD in 2021) and 5.5% compared to the five-year average.
“Barry,” “For All Mankind,” and “Snowfall” were among the shows shooting in L.A., and shows like “Abbot Elementary,” “Young Sheldon” and “Grand Crew” were among the comedies contributing to the 352 SD in that category, resulting in a 4.1% increase.
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