October 15, 2025 • 6 mins
FilmLA’s latest report shows on-location filming in Greater Los Angeles dropped 13 percent in the third quarter compared to last year. The city logged just over 4,300 shoot days, with the steepest declines in television and commercial work.
But there are signs of a rebound thanks to California’s newly expanded Film and Television Tax Credit Program, which has already approved 22 new projects — most of them set to film in the L.A. area.
FilmLA’s Philip Sokoloski spoke with KFI's Heather Brooker on Entertain Me and says the impact of these incentives will take time to show, but early calls from productions are a positive sign for Hollywood’s recovery.
But there are signs of a rebound thanks to California’s newly expanded Film and Television Tax Credit Program, which has already approved 22 new projects — most of them set to film in the L.A. area.
FilmLA’s Philip Sokoloski spoke with KFI's Heather Brooker on Entertain Me and says the impact of these incentives will take time to show, but early calls from productions are a positive sign for Hollywood’s recovery.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome back to entertain Me, the show where we cover
all the story shaping Hollywood from Sokal to the silver screen.
I'm your host, Heather Brooker. Today, well, we've got some
more I guess bad news, you might call it from Hollywood.
We're talking about the latest Film LA report, which shows
a thirteen percent drop in filming across the Greater Los
Angeles area in the third quarter. But don't despair. There
(00:26):
is good news ahead. Thanks to California's newly expanded film
and TV tax credits, there's more incentive backed productions that
are gearing up to shoot here in the coming months.
Joining me today is Philip Sokolowski, Vice president of Film LA.
We're going to unpack these numbers and find out what
they really mean for the local entertainment workforce and when
(00:47):
we might see that long awaited rebound. Okay, Philip, this
new report shows a thirteen percent dip in filming from
last year. Can you talk about what's driving that decline?
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yes, So, if you look into the production numbers, as noted,
we have a thirteen point two percent drop overall. We
crack production by category, and by far the biggest category
to take a hit this quarter, was reality television production,
which oddly earlier this year saw a bit of a
spike in activity, but resumed its downward trends here in
(01:18):
the third quarter.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
You mentioned in the report that the new incentive backed
project are starting to show positive early signs. What are
some examples of productions returning or expanding in LA.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Well, in July, the California Film Commission issued an award
to twenty two new projects coming to the state of California,
and very fortunately, eighteen of those are slated for production
here in Greater Los Angeles. We're starting to take calls.
We're starting to get calls from producers lining up their
locations and their permits for production. But because they have
one hundred and eighty days to begin production from the
(01:50):
date of their incentive award, it's still a little early
to see the full impact of that production here in
the streets.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
So how soon do you think that that will translate
into more on location work days.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Well, the good thing is the jobs benefits will happen
even before it is reflected in film Melee data. You'll
probably see it begin to take an effect in the
fourth quarter of this year, and then on an ongoing capacity,
it should build because the Film Commission awards projects in
different funding rounds throughout the year. So the more projects
that they bring online through the recently expanded funding and eligibility,
(02:24):
the greater the job's impact for the region.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
Now, you mentioned that television took the biggest hit this quarter,
especially in reality TV and drama. How much of that
is the lingering after effects from the strikes versus long
term shifts in the industry.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Everything you see in this report is fully reflective of
the state of play on the ground as things were
previous to the tax credit announcement. And that's just because
there hasn't been enough time for the tax credit to
take effect yet and to really be visible in the data.
But we have one hundred and twenty jurisdictions who are
aggressively seeking this business, some of whom have emerged to
(02:59):
become major competitors to California. And so we can't take
any projects for granted. To bring a single feature film
or television showback as a major accomplishment, and we should
be celebrating that.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
It seems like we just have a continuous stream of
bad news when it comes to the entertainment industry. Is
there any hope left out there for the entertainment industry.
Give me some good news.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Well, there are a couple of things. One is that
I know there's another announcement from the California Film Commission
due out soon that will take a look at renew
feature film projects brought back to the state, and I
believe we're going to see that within a week or so,
so that'll be good. That's additional work, additional employment opportunity
for California based crews who've really been suffering through an
unprecedentedly difficult time. The other thing is that on a
(03:43):
local level, there is an increased amount of interest in
supporting production through various programs and modifications to make the
permit process and the opportunity to film here as easy
as possible. So, whether it's with the County of Los
Angeles or the City of Los Angeles, is interested in
examining how they've been approaching filming and looking to find
(04:03):
ways to facilitate it. And that's been a very exciting
conversation to be having.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
I know a lot of people are worried about the
future of the industry, and you know, it does seem
very dire, and I have to ask do you think
we're still going to be having these same conversations a
year from now or six months from now.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
Well, I don't have a crystal ball, but I sincerely
believe that, because of how low production levels are now,
that to be having the same conversation a year from
now sounds next to impossible. Twenty twenty four was the
very worst year on record apart from the COVID year
for production, and we haven't been tracking that well against
it to date. So I think it's only up from here,
especially since we have new production supports in place at
(04:43):
the state level and an increased interest in saying yes
to filming here on behalf of every local official that
has a say. I do believe will be in a
much better place next year, and so i'd invite you
to ask me that question again. Twelve months from now.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
I will, and maybe even six months from now or
a couple months from now. Thank you so much, Phil,
I really appreciate your time. That's Philip Takolowski from Film
LA and I'm so glad we get to sit down
and talk more in depth about what's happening in the
film and television industry. I know a lot of people
are concerned about their jobs, their livelihoods, their homes, and
(05:18):
it's an important issue and I'm glad that we have
the opportunity to go more in depth and share the
information that we have. So thank you guys so much
for listening to entertain Me. If you would please hit
subscribe on that button and maybe even share the show
with some friends, I appreciate you. Also, don't forget this week.
I'll be at the ice House Comedy Club on October eighteenth,
Saturday Night show nine thirty and October thirtieth. Come on
(05:42):
out eight o'clock. I'll be performing with comedian Drew Lynch.
Would love to see you guys out there, and let's
just keep entertaining each other, shall we. Thanks for listening.
Remember you can listen to entertain Me anywhere on the
iHeartRadio app that
Welcome back to entertain Me, the show where we cover
all the story shaping Hollywood from Sokal to the silver screen.
I'm your host, Heather Brooker. Today, well, we've got some
more I guess bad news, you might call it from Hollywood.
We're talking about the latest Film LA report, which shows
a thirteen percent drop in filming across the Greater Los
Angeles area in the third quarter. But don't despair. There
(00:26):
is good news ahead. Thanks to California's newly expanded film
and TV tax credits, there's more incentive backed productions that
are gearing up to shoot here in the coming months.
Joining me today is Philip Sokolowski, Vice president of Film LA.
We're going to unpack these numbers and find out what
they really mean for the local entertainment workforce and when
(00:47):
we might see that long awaited rebound. Okay, Philip, this
new report shows a thirteen percent dip in filming from
last year. Can you talk about what's driving that decline?
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yes, So, if you look into the production numbers, as noted,
we have a thirteen point two percent drop overall. We
crack production by category, and by far the biggest category
to take a hit this quarter, was reality television production,
which oddly earlier this year saw a bit of a
spike in activity, but resumed its downward trends here in
(01:18):
the third quarter.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
You mentioned in the report that the new incentive backed
project are starting to show positive early signs. What are
some examples of productions returning or expanding in LA.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Well, in July, the California Film Commission issued an award
to twenty two new projects coming to the state of California,
and very fortunately, eighteen of those are slated for production
here in Greater Los Angeles. We're starting to take calls.
We're starting to get calls from producers lining up their
locations and their permits for production. But because they have
one hundred and eighty days to begin production from the
(01:50):
date of their incentive award, it's still a little early
to see the full impact of that production here in
the streets.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
So how soon do you think that that will translate
into more on location work days.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Well, the good thing is the jobs benefits will happen
even before it is reflected in film Melee data. You'll
probably see it begin to take an effect in the
fourth quarter of this year, and then on an ongoing capacity,
it should build because the Film Commission awards projects in
different funding rounds throughout the year. So the more projects
that they bring online through the recently expanded funding and eligibility,
(02:24):
the greater the job's impact for the region.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
Now, you mentioned that television took the biggest hit this quarter,
especially in reality TV and drama. How much of that
is the lingering after effects from the strikes versus long
term shifts in the industry.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Everything you see in this report is fully reflective of
the state of play on the ground as things were
previous to the tax credit announcement. And that's just because
there hasn't been enough time for the tax credit to
take effect yet and to really be visible in the data.
But we have one hundred and twenty jurisdictions who are
aggressively seeking this business, some of whom have emerged to
(02:59):
become major competitors to California. And so we can't take
any projects for granted. To bring a single feature film
or television showback as a major accomplishment, and we should
be celebrating that.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
It seems like we just have a continuous stream of
bad news when it comes to the entertainment industry. Is
there any hope left out there for the entertainment industry.
Give me some good news.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Well, there are a couple of things. One is that
I know there's another announcement from the California Film Commission
due out soon that will take a look at renew
feature film projects brought back to the state, and I
believe we're going to see that within a week or so,
so that'll be good. That's additional work, additional employment opportunity
for California based crews who've really been suffering through an
unprecedentedly difficult time. The other thing is that on a
(03:43):
local level, there is an increased amount of interest in
supporting production through various programs and modifications to make the
permit process and the opportunity to film here as easy
as possible. So, whether it's with the County of Los
Angeles or the City of Los Angeles, is interested in
examining how they've been approaching filming and looking to find
(04:03):
ways to facilitate it. And that's been a very exciting
conversation to be having.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
I know a lot of people are worried about the
future of the industry, and you know, it does seem
very dire, and I have to ask do you think
we're still going to be having these same conversations a
year from now or six months from now.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
Well, I don't have a crystal ball, but I sincerely
believe that, because of how low production levels are now,
that to be having the same conversation a year from
now sounds next to impossible. Twenty twenty four was the
very worst year on record apart from the COVID year
for production, and we haven't been tracking that well against
it to date. So I think it's only up from here,
especially since we have new production supports in place at
(04:43):
the state level and an increased interest in saying yes
to filming here on behalf of every local official that
has a say. I do believe will be in a
much better place next year, and so i'd invite you
to ask me that question again. Twelve months from now.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
I will, and maybe even six months from now or
a couple months from now. Thank you so much, Phil,
I really appreciate your time. That's Philip Takolowski from Film
LA and I'm so glad we get to sit down
and talk more in depth about what's happening in the
film and television industry. I know a lot of people
are concerned about their jobs, their livelihoods, their homes, and
(05:18):
it's an important issue and I'm glad that we have
the opportunity to go more in depth and share the
information that we have. So thank you guys so much
for listening to entertain Me. If you would please hit
subscribe on that button and maybe even share the show
with some friends, I appreciate you. Also, don't forget this week.
I'll be at the ice House Comedy Club on October eighteenth,
Saturday Night show nine thirty and October thirtieth. Come on
(05:42):
out eight o'clock. I'll be performing with comedian Drew Lynch.
Would love to see you guys out there, and let's
just keep entertaining each other, shall we. Thanks for listening.
Remember you can listen to entertain Me anywhere on the
iHeartRadio app that
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