Location filming in L.A. up 9% in second quarter thanks to TV
Los Angeles area on-location filming increased 9% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, fueled by a bounce in television production and Web-based shows.
The figures mark the third consecutive quarter of growth for location filming on the streets of L.A.
Location shoots for television shows jumped 27% from April through June to 4,310 production days, according to figures from FilmL.A. Inc, which handles film permits for the city and the county.
The rise was driven by an increase in Web-based TV, which jumped 63% in the quarter; TV pilots, which rose 52%; and TV sitcoms, which climbed nearly 40%.
TV drama production posted a sharp rebound, jumping 29% in the quarter, but still underperformed its five-year average by 12% this quarter.
Reality TV remains the largest contributor to L.A.’s television totals and saw a 6.4% increase in the quarter, according to the report.
California’s film and television tax credit program did its part to support local projects. State-qualified television shows, including “Franklin & Bash†“Lost Angels†and “Major Crimes,†comprised 23% of all TV drama activity in the quarter.
Production in the commercials category increased 4.5% last quarter, generating 1,986 production days. The commercials category finished 21.5% stronger than its five-year average.
ON LOCATION: Where the cameras roll
On-location feature production was virtually flat in the quarter with 1,758 production days. Nonetheless, the category’s latest results were 9.4% better than its five-year average.
“The latest report underscores the importance of two recent developments,†FilmL.A. President Paul Audley said in a statement. “The first thing to note is an incremental increase in filming driven by new production categories like Web-based TV. The second is that unfortunately, we’ve also seen considerable erosion in the most economically significant production categories. On-location feature production in L.A. is nowhere near as common as it was in the mid-’90s, and despite a good run, we’re still logging fewer days for TV dramas and TV reality series than we used to.â€
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