LOS ANGELES, CA — Following labor strikes in the entertainment industry, film production remained slow in the first quarter of 2024 as many projects’ shoot days were pushed back and others canceled, according to a report released Thursday.
FilmLA, a partner film office for the city and county of Los Angeles and other local jurisdictions, issued its quarterly update on filming activity. The report showed that in 2024 it took eight to 10 weeks before production picked up after writers and actors went on strike to secure higher wages and better work conditions last year.
The end of labor actions pushed many projects’ start date into the new year. At the same time, runaway production, series cancellations and planned reductions in content spending limited industry output and work opportunities, according to the report.
Local on-location filming declined 8.7% from January through March in 2024, representing a total of 6,823 shoot days in the first quarter.
Additionally, the report showed a double-digit loss of television production as the main reason for the drop. Television production stood at a 16.2% year-over-year reduction, compared to the same time last year. In 2024, there were 2,402 shoot days compared to 2,868 in 2023.
Over a longer study period, present filming levels aren’t looking well as television now trails its five-year category average by 32.8%, according to FilmLA.
“Unfortunately, production is still slow, and things are not as they were,” FilmLA President Paul Audley said in a statement. “Production didn’t really stabilize until March, meeting our predictions while falling short of our hopes.”
He added, “Job seekers sometimes ask us how shoot days and days spent working on-location are connected to the creation of industry jobs. When we dug into the permit data and examined the self-reported number — of cast and crew present, and working on-location — we found additional evidence of the delayed return to work.”
The quarterly report also showed that fewer cast and crew jobs were associated with all film permits active in the first quarter, compared to the same period in 2023. The difference was notable in January with 30.6%,or 2,282,fewer jobs, and by March it had increased by 0.4% by March, up to 3,274 jobs.
In the television category, reality TV production dropped by 18.6% in the first quarter, to 1,317 shoot days, while TV drama production dropped by 5.5% to 720 shoot days, and TV comedy production saw a decrease of 51.5% to 157 shoot days. TV pilots, almost none of which were made in 2023, saw a 842.9% rise in quarterly production, to 66 shoot days.
Commercial production decreased by 9.6%, as well, to 813 shoot days. The study noted that the loss of production in this category remained a concern because it trailed in the first quarter five-year average by 33.1%.
Feature film production slightly rose in the fourth quarter of 2023, picking up to 634 shoot days to finish with a 6.6% increase. In the category tht includes still photography, student films, documentaries, music and industrial videos, production declined by 4.5% to 2,974 shoot days for the first quarter in 2024.
City News Service