The number of total shoot days for the first quarter of 2025 amounted to 5,295, down from 6,823 the previous year.
“Across ALL the categories we track in aggregate, filming is down 22.4 percent for the quarter in terms of Shoot Days,” Philip Sokoloski, FilmLA’s vice president of integrated communications, told The Epoch Times via email.
“Filming of different kinds is tracked separately by FilmLA,” he said, noting that on-location filming refers to any filming done outside of a certified production studio, requiring a permit from the city, county, or local jurisdiction.
The commercials category was down by only about 2 percent, falling to just under 800 shoot days from January to March.
The production of television dramas was down by almost 39 percent to 440 shoot days, while the television comedy category was down by almost 30 percent to 110 shoot days. The reality television category also saw a drop of just over 26 percent to 969 shoot days.
The television and feature film categories were hit just as hard, with the latter declining by almost 29 percent to 451 shoot days for the quarter.
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“Looking just at the segment of Shoot Days represented by [the television category], the drop was steeper year over year, at -30.5 percent,” Sokoloski said. “No category was up year-over-year, unfortunately.”
FilmLA’s report noted that the recent wildfires that ravaged many Southern California cities earlier this year, including the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, only had “a small effect” on productions that were shot on location in Los Angeles.
“A recent FilmLA analysis determined that combined, these areas had hosted 1,405 Shoot Days over the past four years—or roughly 1.3 percent of all regional filming,” the report states. “Approximately 545 unique filming locations fell within the fires’ burn zones. At the order of the City and County, burn areas remain off-limits.”
In January—while the blazes were still devastating parts of the Greater Los Angeles area—entertainment industry professionals joined forces to launch a petition urging productions to remain in the region.
The petition, which has more than 22,000 signatures, is supported by “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton, “The Vampire Diaries” co-creator Julie Plec, and “Mad Men” actress Alison Brie.
“We write this petition as film/TV workers and concerned citizens of Los Angeles in the wake of the Eaton, Hughes, and Palisades Fires,” the petition reads.
“We are terrified that the city we love so much may lose its most vital resource: its people. We need a flood of new work to help our beloved city rebuild itself and ensure LA’s future viability as a place where craftspeople, film workers, and businesses thrive.”
The Hollywood sign in Los Angeles on Dec. 29, 2022. Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
FilmLA said the city saw a decline in local projects last year, too.
So far, this year isn’t faring much better. FilmLA notes in its new report that the number of total shoot days for the first quarter of 2025 amounted to 5,295—down from 6,823 the previous year.
Sokoloski told The Epoch Times that the overall 22.4 percent drop in production during this year’s first quarter could largely be attributed to studios’ global cutbacks in new content production.
“[This is] something that affects all places where films and television shows are made, but particularly California, since so much of the work is done here,” Sokoloski said.
“This is exacerbated by the fact that the competition for the projects that remain is more fierce than ever, with 120 different countries and U.S. states offering incentives for local film production.
“California has a film incentive program too, but its funding is limited, and it can’t be accessed by many forms of production, so the work goes elsewhere instead of LA, SF, San Diego, etc.”
In an attempt to revive a seemingly dying industry, California Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged in October 2024 to increase the tax incentives for the state’s film industry by more than doubling the current film credit to $750 million per year, up from $330 million.
“Expanding this program will help keep production here at home, generate thousands of good-paying jobs, and strengthen the vital link between our communities and the state’s iconic film and TV industry.”
