Hollywood movie and TV shoot days drop 16% compared to 2024, FilmLA report finds

Numbers released by FilmLA show a decrease in local shooting days in 2025, but the organization says there are reasons to be hopeful that production of all sorts could see an increase across Los Angeles.

In the last quarter of 2025, there were 4,625 on-location shoot days in LA, which is down from 5,860 days in the same time period of the previous year, about a 21% drop. For the entire 2025 year, there were just under 20,000 local shooting days, but it was more than a 16% drop from the total number in 2024. 

Film LA said there's been a decrease in all kinds of productions, from films and scripted television programs to commercials and reality TV. They said that with the state government film and television tax credit program, there could be a steady increase.  

"While the year-end numbers are disappointing, they are not unexpected," said FilmLA VP of Integrated Communications Philip Sokoloski. "FilmLA has consistently projected that the full effect of the expanded Film and Television Tax Credit Program would take time to materialize, and although our overall numbers remain low, there are dozens of incentivized projects that have yet to begin filming."

The organization said that since the tax credit program went into effect in July, there have been 119 projects awarded incentives. FilmLA said that incentivized projects accounted for about 13% of all film and TV shoots in Q4.

Incentives have already been awarded to more than 100 projects. Some of those productions were getting underway in the last quarter of the last year, but there should be an even greater effect seen in 2026.

Meanwhile, on the local level, Mayor Karen Bass said she's been working with the City Council to streamline processes and reduce some permitting fees to encourage more shooting around LA. The mayor's office has also said they'll be reopening sites like the Central Library in downtown for major production this year.

City leaders said a focus of theirs is encouraging small-scale productions and independent filmmakers to shoot in LA. The city has long been considered the center of film and TV production nationwide, but has struggled to retain its dominance in the industry in recent years, losing business to other states that offer more attractive incentives, most notably New York and Georgia.