FilmLA, partner film office for the City and County of Los Angeles and other local jurisdictions, has issued an update regarding regional filming activity, reporting a total of 9,066 shoot days (SD) in the third quarter (Q3) which covers the period between July 1 through September 30, 2022. This is down 10.5 percent from the same period last year and also down 1.7 percent from the previous quarter this year (9,220 SDs).
“We’re seeing an expected slowdown taking shape,” noted FilmLA president Paul Audley. “To that point we note that the COVID-19 Delta wave forced an out of season production shift last year. That shift led to record-breaking filming levels in the latter half of 2021, so in light of that, this is a modest decline.”
Among the major categories of production, shoot day activity for feature films and commercials declined, both year-over-year and compared to the five-year averages. Activity in the television and other categories was more mixed.
Feature films ended the quarter with 828 SD, compared to 1,100 in Q3 2021. Local productions included Barbie (Warner Bros.), Beverly Hills Cop (Netflix), Destroy All Neighbors (Shudder), Fast X (Universal Pictures) and Young. Wild. Free. (Confluential Films). A total of 115 SD–13.9 percent of the category total–were generated by projects that received the California Film & Television Tax Credit, which is overseen by the California Film Commission.
Commercial production activity in the region continued to decline with a total of 1,021 SDs this quarter, compared to 1,533 last year. Commercials that shot in the region include work for Kohl’s, Peloton, Southwest Airlines and Walmart. Many car companies also filmed new spots locally, including Hyundai, Maserati, Nissan, Toyota, and Volkswagen.
The television category was down by 10.5 percent compared to the same period in 2021, but remained 4.7 percent above the five-year average. For the first time since the pandemic recovery began in Q2 2021, TV drama activity declined by 11.7 percent year over year (1,198 SD in Q3 2022 vs.1,356 SD in 2021) and 5.5 percent compared to the five-year average. Local TV dramas include 9-1-1 (Fox), American Gigolo (Showtime), Barry (HBO), Bel-Air (Peacock), Bosch Legacy (Amazon), CSI: Vegas (CBS), For All Mankind (Apple TV+), Snowfall (FX) and The Rookie (ABC). TV dramas that were recipients of the California film tax credit generated a total of 161 SD–13.4 percent of the total.
TV comedies (352 SD) posted a stronger performance with an increase of 4.1 percent year over year. The category is still down by 36.9 percent compared to the five-year average. Local sitcoms included Abbott Elementary (ABC), Home Economics (ABC), Grand Crew (NBC), and Young Sheldon (CBS).
TV reality, which has been robust throughout the recovery, was flat compared to last year (2,824 SD in Q3 2022 vs 2,825 SD in 2021) but still up an impressive 90.5 percent compared to the five-year average. TV reality series included Black Ink Crew: Compton (VH1), Dancing with the Stars (ABC), Growing Up Hip Hop (WeTV), Million Dollar Listing (Bravo), Selling Sunset (Netfiix) and The Voice (NBC).
