Film production in LA may be in a terminal decline
The remainder of the Fox lot will probably be sold to developers soon, the Paramount lot not far behind. I expect Comcast to buy Warner Bros and consolidate production with Universal (U can turn more of their lot into rides and attractions.)
Los Angeles will only support a small production community who are kept afloat by gigantic tax breaks. All jobs will be union jobs and impossible for outsiders to break into. People who want to get started in production- including actors- will go to Atlanta or Albuquerque instead of Hollywood.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 76 | November 1, 2024 2:16 AM
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OP, we don't have gigantic tax breaks, and almost all jobs are union jobs. Jobs are leaving Atl and NY as we speak- productions are finding that filming outside the US is less expensive.
by Anonymous | reply 1 | October 17, 2024 11:46 PM
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What happened to the FOX lot? I worked there for several years as a TV actor..
by Anonymous | reply 2 | October 18, 2024 12:38 AM
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Fox lot is still owned by Fox but Fox is now merely a broadcasting television company.
This should have been sold ages ago, but I suspect it is being kept for reasons that have to do with the Murdoch succession. This is the most valuable land in America. They can build a dozen high rise luxury condos with views clear to the Pacific.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 3 | October 18, 2024 1:55 AM
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OP you have been predicting for years that Comcast will buy Warners. Comcast doesn’t want Warners. Move on.
by Anonymous | reply 4 | October 18, 2024 2:00 AM
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That would be sad, r3. That was home for 3 years.
by Anonymous | reply 5 | October 18, 2024 9:16 AM
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r5, WB was my home for 8 years. When Zaslav took over WB, my boss' production company aligned themselves with Universal/Blumhouse and they took all their projects for this year out of the country. I've worked on the Fox lot maybe 5 times in 25 years.
by Anonymous | reply 6 | October 18, 2024 3:26 PM
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Production is declining overall because movies and TV shows are dying.
by Anonymous | reply 7 | October 18, 2024 4:20 PM
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California doesn't give as much financial incentives as states like Georgia do for productions to film there. If you are trying to save money, you are going to film somewhere that throws money at you.
by Anonymous | reply 8 | October 18, 2024 4:28 PM
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Back to the Black Maria in West Orange, New Jersey.
I knew that crazy California shit was a fucking flash in the pan.
You know who all over it.
by Anonymous | reply 9 | October 18, 2024 4:31 PM
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The lot would be sold to developers —a west coast Hudson Yards extension of Century City…except for the fact that there’s no demand for it at this time. Mixed-income housing is what’s needed, but will never happen there.
by Anonymous | reply 10 | October 18, 2024 4:37 PM
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r8, they're fleeing Atlanta and New York as well- my friends in both cities have been saying how dead it is in their respective cities.
by Anonymous | reply 11 | October 18, 2024 5:11 PM
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R11 a friend of a friend? Sure. 🙄
by Anonymous | reply 12 | October 18, 2024 5:17 PM
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I think LA will always be the hub. It's just too entrenched. But production has been everywhere but LA for a long time. That will continue to happen as each new state/city tries to become the new Atlanta. Then that new state/city will do what Atlanta: Become LA. Costs there will soar and a new state/city will pop up to take its place.
To my point: I'm producing a movie and we're actually filming in Connecticut (of all places) to act as LA! Why? Tax breaks and the local crew we're using are hungry, work hard and do a great job. Our below the line numbers are fantastic there compared to what they would be if we shot in LA or Atlanta.
For what it's worth, I love shooting in LA and wish the powers that would be make it workable like it used to be. The weather and the light are second to none.
by Anonymous | reply 13 | October 18, 2024 5:21 PM
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The entire system of jdx fighting for business with tax credits is a mess. NYC and NYS have no business doing this..it’s a drain on the rest of the taxpayers, and fucks up locations used for shoots on daily basis.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | October 18, 2024 5:24 PM
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[quote] I love shooting in LA and wish the powers that would be make it workable like it used to be.
California used to be so great before the communists took over.
by Anonymous | reply 15 | October 18, 2024 5:25 PM
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Toronto is a popular production location.
by Anonymous | reply 16 | October 18, 2024 5:31 PM
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^ That's a lot of factors. Even without tax incentives, the exchange rate is a huge gift to the budget. It's got substantial soundstage facilities and experienced crews. The city can pass for a lot of different places.
by Anonymous | reply 17 | October 18, 2024 5:44 PM
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It passes for nothing—you can tell it’s Toronto and not anywhere in the US
by Anonymous | reply 18 | October 18, 2024 5:49 PM
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r11, no, people who have worked for me and are Department Heads in their own rights. Big projects too.
by Anonymous | reply 19 | October 18, 2024 5:52 PM
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[quote] It passes for nothing—you can tell it’s Toronto and not anywhere in the US.
Only for those paying close attention to detail. At street level, Toronto easily passes for just about any American city, including LA, Chicago, DC, Philly, Seattle or any borough of NYC.
by Anonymous | reply 20 | October 18, 2024 5:54 PM
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What a stupid thing to say, R18.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 22 | October 18, 2024 6:00 PM
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R21, have you visited Toronto?
by Anonymous | reply 23 | October 18, 2024 6:05 PM
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Better! I’ve spent 60 years between NY, LA, Boston and SF, none of which ever have, nor ever will, look like Toronto. And vice-versa.
Your PowerPoint link proves nothing, other than your ability to link to nothing. Merci!
by Anonymous | reply 24 | October 18, 2024 6:08 PM
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There's two people refuting your stubborn statement, old man. Go find your remote.
by Anonymous | reply 25 | October 18, 2024 6:21 PM
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More attention than you get most days, I'd guess, unless you count talking to yourself and Meals on Wheels.
by Anonymous | reply 27 | October 18, 2024 6:24 PM
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Real estate is so expensive in LA and NYC that just having storage for sets was ridiculously expensive.
That's one of the big line items costs that killed many of the soaps - the storage costs were more than salaries for creative staff. Probably one reason why so many shows now find a real, existing space to film.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | October 18, 2024 6:32 PM
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Vancouver is used for many tv shows as well.
by Anonymous | reply 30 | October 18, 2024 7:11 PM
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R29 sets aren’t stored, like you seem to think. WTF
by Anonymous | reply 31 | October 18, 2024 7:17 PM
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I have a couple of film crew friends (not aspiring actors, but behind-the-scenes workers who used to be in high demand) who have no gotten zero work in LA.
by Anonymous | reply 32 | October 18, 2024 7:27 PM
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^make that "now gotten zero"
by Anonymous | reply 33 | October 18, 2024 7:28 PM
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The entire industry is in a down cycle. We know.
by Anonymous | reply 34 | October 18, 2024 7:29 PM
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R31 They were for some shows, like soaps.
And for sitcoms, in addition to permanent sets, there were sets that would be for specific episodes or be dressed differently for a single show. Permanent or temp, those sets took up real estate.
by Anonymous | reply 35 | October 18, 2024 7:43 PM
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😵💫. You watch teevee dontcha—
Without a clue about the business
by Anonymous | reply 36 | October 18, 2024 7:52 PM
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I've interviewed many people in the business, so stuff your attitude inside of your rancid, sepsis-ridden cunt, R36.
by Anonymous | reply 37 | October 18, 2024 8:00 PM
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“Bring me another lover!”
by Anonymous | reply 38 | October 18, 2024 8:29 PM
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Perhaps from watching Suits, I can usually spot Toronto, especially when they want us to think we're in New York.
by Anonymous | reply 39 | October 18, 2024 8:49 PM
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Toronto is the stand in for anything and everything. It's been Pittsburgh, Chicago, even DC in various films/series.
And TO isn't *that* inexpensive to film in - it's also insanely expensive.
by Anonymous | reply 40 | October 18, 2024 9:22 PM
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It’s finally come to this. We have enough movies.
by Anonymous | reply 41 | October 18, 2024 11:24 PM
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Toronto is becoming insanely expensive too. They’ll decamp to Montreal soon.
by Anonymous | reply 42 | October 19, 2024 2:16 AM
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Thirty years ago even films widely associated with location shooting were shot in Los Angeles. Jurassic Park was filmed at the Los Angeles Arboretum. Because in the old days if they wanted to shoot a sick Triceratops, all the people who could construct a Triceratops were in Los Angeles. The T. Rex scene was filmed in the big soundstage at Warner Bros. The animatronic Rex was one of the most complex practical effects ever built.
Ironically, Jurassic Park was also one of the first major films to introduce ultra realistic CGI. CGI means props, practical visual effects and sets no longer needed to be built.
That was the beginning of the end for Hollywood production. Liberated from the need to actual shoot the stars of the movie - the dinosaurs are the stars - movies could be made anywhere on a greenscreen covered soundstage. Jurassic World was filmed in New Orleans. Jurassic World Rebirth is filmed in the UK and Malta.
Eventually they won’t even need a camera or actors anymore.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 43 | October 19, 2024 2:38 AM
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[quote]Tax breaks and the local crew we're using are hungry, work hard and do a great job.
Los Angeles crews are the very best, though.
by Anonymous | reply 44 | October 19, 2024 6:26 AM
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A lot of this is because of the looming threat of AI, required union minimums, and that budgets are being cut to the bone.
Porn is next!
by Anonymous | reply 45 | October 19, 2024 8:48 AM
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R45, there is no porn industry. It’s all about Onlyfans.
by Anonymous | reply 46 | October 19, 2024 9:01 AM
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Doubling the tax incentive won’t be enough. Los Angeles is simply too expensive to shoot. The industry will always be in LA because studios, agents, lawyers and other “entertainment bureaucrats” need to be close to each other, but nearly everything else will be made elsewhere.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 48 | October 27, 2024 4:57 PM
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[quote] At street level, Toronto easily passes for just about any American city,
Bullshit. When a movie or show is supposed to take place in NYC but is filmed in Toronto, you can always tell.
by Anonymous | reply 49 | October 27, 2024 5:10 PM
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Toronto is very easy to recognize on film due to the quality of light. A good example is Season 1 of Reacher which is supposed to be set in Georgia, and the light is very easily recognizable as high latitude, very diffused and gray looking. In short, bleak. Sometimes it works to the show’s advantage (Umbrella Academy).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 50 | October 27, 2024 5:40 PM
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Here’s the deal. When your company/industry turns from growth mode to struggling for profitability, the inevitable next step is to seek out lower-cost locations for real estate and talent.
I wouldn’t be surprised if soon more productions moved even farther from Hollywood.
by Anonymous | reply 51 | October 27, 2024 5:49 PM
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On the other hand, Georgia is recognizable for very warm light (Atlanta and most of the state is further south than Los Angeles) but it also tends to be diffused because of high humidity (huge cumulus clouds).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 52 | October 27, 2024 5:51 PM
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I've been binging Smart Less... am surprised regularly by the number of guests who've referenced filming in Toronto at one time or another. The point isn't whether or not it is recognizable but whether it can pass even so and, most importantly, justify the economics. The exchange rate only probably justifies the handful of eagle eyes who know Dundas Street when they see.
by Anonymous | reply 53 | October 27, 2024 5:57 PM
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The tax breaks that Canadian provinces offer are just outrageous. That's why so much filming is done there now.
by Anonymous | reply 54 | October 27, 2024 6:07 PM
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The Deadline article at R48 sounds promising. When California instituted the first tax credits a decade ago it greatly helped keep production in Los Angeles. This updated increase in incentives and tax credits will hopefully help a lot. The industry really needs help and I'm glad the city and state are doing something. (I want the best for L.A. film crews because I know how hard they work.)
by Anonymous | reply 55 | October 28, 2024 5:35 AM
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Yes raising the limit is good, but he has to up the rebate to at least 30%- some states even have 35% (NJ & NM). And our rebates are just for under the line. NY and GA has rebates for over the line (directors/producers), which means even more money in their pockets.
by Anonymous | reply 56 | October 28, 2024 5:44 AM
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Without me, there wouldn’t be a Paramount.
by Anonymous | reply 57 | October 28, 2024 6:08 AM
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Where is the money coming from for rebates? Are tax payers subsidizing these companies? Has anyone done a cost analysis and seen if it makes sense to keep ratcheting up this give away?
by Anonymous | reply 58 | October 28, 2024 7:56 AM
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I love reading about the old Los Angeles-area shooting locations; all the ranches and studio lots and such. It seemed so shoestring and passionate and creative way back then.
by Anonymous | reply 59 | October 28, 2024 8:05 AM
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What type of tax breaks do they get?
by Anonymous | reply 62 | October 28, 2024 8:16 AM
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The Fox lot isn't going anywhere. The Murdochs like it. It's staying. Paramount most likely will not be going anywhere though there have been looking at "opportunities" Universal was always going to do more with their land. At one time they had so much extra land. Warner Bros. just built a ton of new sound stages at Warner Ranch, sold them and is leasing them back with the opportunity to buy back the property at some point. Film production in Los Angeles, at the moment, is in a decline yes. But if you go onto most any lot, most of the stages are in use and still in demand.
by Anonymous | reply 64 | October 28, 2024 1:57 PM
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This thread is fascinating.
Like the old DL.
Kudos you fucking cunts.
by Anonymous | reply 65 | October 28, 2024 2:11 PM
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[quote]The Fox lot isn't going anywhere. The Murdochs like it.
LOL guess who only has a few years left on Earth.
Surely you have heard of the series Succession
You realize it was about them, right?
The Murdoch family is fighting in a Nevada courtroom right now and shareholders are also trying to force their hand into surrendering control. The paper literally says “sharks are circling.”
News Corp is built on a dying economic model. Most believe that if the Murdoch siblings win their case against their father and Lachlan, they will sell the company.
Even if Lachlan triumphs over them, shareholders want him to relinquish control.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 66 | October 28, 2024 2:24 PM
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This is what you need to understand
This will be the only development on the West Side which not only has uninterrupted views of the Pacific but a significant green space on the south side
None of the high-rises on the Westwood Corridor can offer that. Your ocean views are largely blocked by the tower next to you.
Pacific views to the west, a golf course to the south, Beverly Hills to the east and the Century City mall and office buildings where agents and lawyers work to the north. Not only that, but, as far as LA is concerned, access to LAX is considerably easier than many other high end neighborhoods.
This is the most valuable land in California.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 67 | October 28, 2024 2:40 PM
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Reminder of why Hollywood used to exist and no longer needs to:
Massive elaborate physical sets built on soundstages. These used to be built more or less into two places; Hollywood, and UK at Pinewood or Shepperton. Because the people who were skilled enough to build them live there.
Advances in technology have made that unnecessary; sets no longer need to be built at all.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 68 | October 31, 2024 1:12 PM
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There is no substitute for real performers, real sets.
by Anonymous | reply 69 | October 31, 2024 1:21 PM
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Indeed, r69, one of my friends got to visit one of the Fantastic Beasts sets when he was working on a neighboring stage, and he was gobsmacked by the scale, the aging, all of the details. It really does ellicit a physical and emotional response when done correctly.
by Anonymous | reply 70 | October 31, 2024 7:08 PM
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If a movie requires lavish physical sets, it will almost certainly be filmed in Hungary or the Czech Republic if not the UK. This year’s Production Design winner Poor Things was filmed in Hungary.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 71 | October 31, 2024 7:20 PM
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Oscar winning production design
Poor Things: Budapest
All Quiet on the Western Front: Prague
Dune: Budapest
Mank: Los Angeles (took place in Los Angeles)
Once Upon A Time in Hollywood: Los Angeles (took place in Los Angeles)
Black Panther: Atlanta
The Shape of Water: Toronto
La La Land: Los Angeles (took place in Los Angeles)
Mad Max Fury Road: Sydney (interiors)
The Grand Budapest Hotel: Berlin
The Great Gatsby: Sydney
by Anonymous | reply 72 | October 31, 2024 7:28 PM
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R59- The film 🎥 industry began in the NYC metropolitan area around 1900 and after World War One began to shift to California.
by Anonymous | reply 73 | October 31, 2024 7:33 PM
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The film industry was centered in Northern New Jersey where they could pull actors from Broadway. Also in Northern New Jersey was Menlo Park and Thomas Edison, who patented the movie making process. Movie makers fled to Los Angeles starting in 1911 to escape Thomas Edison's patent enforcement.
by Anonymous | reply 74 | October 31, 2024 7:56 PM
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Perhaps it will all revert back to orange groves and the occasional roadhouse along the PCH now.
by Anonymous | reply 75 | October 31, 2024 8:01 PM
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I would love a real series about those days (not the fantasy versions so popular atm)
by Anonymous | reply 76 | November 1, 2024 2:16 AM
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