Feature film production in the Los Angeles area has dropped by 50 percent since 1996, according to a new report.
The report, published by the nonprofit FilmLA, shows that both feature film production and television drama production in the local area have sharply declined in the past few years, due largely to incentives provided by other states and countries.
“A key takeaway is the tremendous overall growth in TV drama production and California’s loss of that growth to other regions that offer incentives,” California Film Commission Executive Director Amy Lemisch wrote to the LA Times.
“The same applies to feature production where most big budget films are no longer filmed in Los Angeles – this has meant billions in lost revenue to the state,” she went on to say.
Malibu has been known for decades as a popular destination to film on-location. In 2012, Point Dume was named the second-most popular location for film shoots, hosting shows such as “Modern Family” and many car commercials. Many Malibu homeowners have also hosted film production in their houses over the years, for movies including “Spanglish,” (2004), “I Love You Man,” (2009), and “Funny People,” (2009). However, many high-value productions, feature films, have increasingly moved to other states and countries, according to the study.
The decline in local filming is thought to be a result of an increase in tax incentives from other states and nations, luring production outside of California. The data shows that although low-budget local films have become increasingly popular, the high-budget feature films have been moving away from the area and taking their economic value with them.
Several small-budget films have been shot in Malibu over the past year, some going on to international film festivals. However, the loss of big-budget feature films employing over 100 crew members means that as money is spent elsewhere, thousands of jobs are at stake.
