Location Filming Rose 6 Percent in 2016

On-location film, television and commercial production increased by more than 6 percent last year compared to 2015, according to figures released Tuesday by FilmL.A. The Hollywood nonprofit that coordinates location filming permits in Los Angeles, unincorporated county and other jurisdictions reported that last year was among the busiest in recent memory and the strongest for feature film production since the state started its tax incentive program in 2009. During 2016 film crews worked on location for 39,605 shoot days, as compared to 37,289 shoot days a year earlier, an increase of 6.2 percent. A shoot day is one crew’s permission to film at one or more locations during a 24‐hour period. The statistics track on-location filming of television series, feature films, commercials, web videos, music videos and student projects – but not work on studio lots or soundstages. FilmL.A. President Paul Audley said it was gratifying to see feature film work and related jobs returning to Los Angeles. “Although L.A. now has permanent competitors in this space, the incentive is working as intended in bringing exciting new projects to the area,” Audley said in a prepared statement. Feature films accounted for 4,865 shoot days last year, an increase of 12 percent over the 4,344 shoot days in 2015. Projects receiving incentives from the state’s Film & Television Tax Credit Program made up 192 shoot days, or about 15 percent of features total. Television had a 4.8 percent increase in shoot days in 2015, rising to 16,463 from the 15,712 in 2015. On-location filming for television comedies rose by 9 percent and dramas by 1.2 percent last year. Filming for commercial dropped 2.1 percent last year to 5,090 shoot days compared to 5,201 shoot days in 2015.