Filming in LA Dropped 97% in 2nd Quarter From Same Time Last Year, FilmLA Reports

FilmLA’s latest quarterly report on filming in Los Angeles County shows the damage the coronavirus pandemic has done to Hollywood, reporting a near-total loss of shoot days as the industry was forced to shut down for much of the second quarter of 2020. The report shows that overall production dropped to just 194 shoot days, representing a year-over-year drop of 97.8%. Local and state officials ordered all film shoots to cease on March 20, with FilmLA not reopening applications for on-location shooting until June 15. “The first shutdowns we saw in March were voluntary, and it was hoped they could be temporary. Looking back, it was hard to imagine the impact the pandemic would have on entertainment projects in progress, and the economic security of local cast, crew, and production vendors,” noted FilmLA President Paul Audley. “The good news is that production is starting to responsibly return, with advertising shoots, commercials, and limited television production now coming online. All permitted filming must comply with Health Orders as issued by County authorities. The measure of compliance we’re seeing is a real help in keeping the industry on the road to recovery.” How long that gradual recovery continues remains to be seen. While some TV productions like “The Bold and the Beautiful” have resumed filming, they do so as infections and hospitalizations continue to surge in most of the United States, including Los Angeles. In Los Angeles County, the number of daily new confirmed cases crossed 4,000 for the first time this week while hospitalizations have steadily increased over the last two weeks after declining until mid-June. “It’s clear that after months of quarantine, combined with the reopening of many sectors in the span of several weeks, we’ve had a lot of people disregard the very practices that allowed us to slow the spread,” Ferrer said. “Our inability to follow the most basic infection control and distancing directives leads to serious illness, and even the death of the people we love.”