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A tranche of stars and top film and TV writers and producers are calling for new incentives to bolster filming in LA after the wildfires.
Close to 6,000 LA residents have signed a petition – Stay In LA – as they try to encourage more production in the city to help aid recovery for those that lost their homes in the Palisades, Eaton and Hughes fires.
LeVar Burton, Alison Brie and Elizabeth “Bitsie” Tulloch are among those who have signed the pledge as well as showrunners and directors such as Julie Plec, Lucia Aniello, Tanya Saracho, Nick Antosca, Mike Royce, Gloria Calderon Kellett, Gia Coppola and Katie Aselton.
“We were already deeply worried about the livelihoods of Los Angeles area cast and crew, not to mention the countless small businesses suffering from production moving out of state and overseas. The fires have made a desperate situation worse. We are terrified that the city we love so much may lose its most vital resource: its people. We need a flood of new work to help our beloved city rebuild itself and ensure LA’s future viability as a place where craftspeople, film workers, and businesses thrive,” the group wrote.
It is being organized by CA United, grassroots coalition of over 5,000 California residents and the Union Solidarity Coalition, which was founded by writer/directors who were moved to connect with crew affected by the 2023 WGA strike.
The group has proposed uncapping the tax incentive for productions that shoot in LA County for the next three years as part of the overall disaster relief effort as well as calling on the studios and streamers to pledge at least 10% more production in LA over the next three years.
They want to uncap mediums to also bolster short-form productions such as commercials as well as post-production work, want to reduce or eliminate permit fees to lower the cost of production and address insurance restrictions.
They have urged Governor Newsom, Mayor Karen Bass, the California State Legislature and the LA City Council to join forces on such emergency measures.
This comes after FilmLA found that there has been a 36% decrease in TV production in the city over the last five years as well as a 28% fall in film production.
The group have called Gavin Newsom’s $750M tax incentive expansion a “vital step forward” but said that “additional assistance is urgently needed” given the competition from other states and overseas.
