Written by on Jan 14, 2015. Posted in On Location

Los Angeles reports location filming boost

Los Angeles saw an overall 10% increase in location filming in 2014, according to a new report from FilmL.A. Television production rose by 12%, but feature film activity declined by 3%, including a dramatic drop of nearly 30% in the last quarter alone.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti understandably focussed on the overall increase: “This is big news for our city given the critical role the entertainment industry plays in creating tens of thousands of good middle class jobs and showing the world what it means to be an Angeleno.”

“Our work to make LA more film-friendly is already paying off and we're excited to see even bigger numbers when the new film tax credit we got passed goes into effect.”

California has suffered a major runaway production problem over the last few years. The state’s filming incentive has lacked effective funds and has not supported big-budget shoots so has increasingly lost out to competitors like New York, Atlanta, New Orleans, Vancouver and Toronto. Feature production in Los Angeles has fallen by 50% since its peak in 1996.

This year, California will more than triple its film fund and will also expand its production support to big-budget studio movies, which could help broaden the state’s appeal as a filming location.

Star Trek Into Darkness and Captain America: The Winter Soldier are among the only large-scale features to have shot primarily in California in the last few years.

The UK has become one of California’s main competitors, hosting multiple Marvel movies and the Star Wars franchise.