To overhaul California’s entertainment tax incentive program, a group of producers, labor leaders and lawmakers joined LaPlo’s exclusive roundtable to get into the work being done to save the struggling production industry in the Golden State.
As television production in Los Angeles fell 58% from its 2021 peak, state lawmakers are working with Gov. Gavin Newsom on plans to raise the limit of California’s film and television tax credit program from $330 million to $750 million. Among those lawmakers is Hollywood Rep. Rick Chavez Zuber, who spoke about the urgency of protecting the cornerstones of California’s economy.
“We have to convince lawmakers in other parts of the state that this is important for California as a whole. This is important for California workers,” he said during a roundtable streamed Thursday on RinkedIn and YouTube. “When we actually tell stories, we show them statistics. It helps them understand how the industry here faces what I call unemployment rates in the era of depression. When they realize that, we actually bring people in.”
ZBUR is joined by Colleen Bell, head of the California Film Committee. Susan Sprung, CEO of Producer Guild of America. Director Guild of America’s Western Executive Director Rebecca Line. Stayed at Noels Theon, a writer-producer and LA member.
During the panel, Souton spoke about how the LA campaign stay was rapidly mobilized in the wake of the January Pallisard and Eton Wild Fires, and that he read some of the somber stories about how entertainment workers struggle to meet the end of the fires, the pandemic and the relentless impact of the 2023 strike.
“We are a soundhouse of boutique post-production. Watching businesses depart for states and countries for the cheapest options was truly tragic at such an astonishing speed,” read one of the anecdotes shared by Stehman. “We usually employ over 40 people at any time, but now we have fewer than 10 staff. That’s heartbreaking. These are the people we had to lay off.”
There are very few simple modifications. Even if the tax credit program extension is approved this summer, it will not be until 2026 that its full impact will be felt by workers seeking employment.
But Sprung says there are other measures you can take to reduce costs and other costs that make shooting in California more expensive than other states. The Los Angeles City Council is exploring in a motion requiring local agencies to report how to reduce permit fees.
“The biggest thing is that people need certainty. They need to understand whether they’re getting a tax credit or not. “And I think the other thing that’s really important is making sure that every local agency in the state helps to facilitate and simplify the process as smoothly and easily as possible.”
Watch the full interview in the video above.
