Los Angeles Slashes Costs for Digital Filmmakers to Keep Them in Town

Buzzfeed, Fullscreen, Funny or Die among pilot participants to see 2/3 reduction in permit fees

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Los Angeles mayor Eric Garrett just made life a bit easier for digital filmmakers with limited budgets, and bolstered the local economy at the same time. Garcetti and FilmL.A. introduced The Digital Makers Initiative on Friday, a pilot program that will offer a two-thirds reduction on shooting permits in and around Los Angeles.

Buzzfeed, Funny or Die, Fullscreen and Tastemade are among the production entities that will first receive the benefit, aimed at keeping costs down and increasing filming in the city.

“Los Angeles has always been home to pioneers of the entertainment industry, and we should take down barriers to the kind of creative, future-minded innovation that small digital filmmakers represent,” Garcetti said. “The Digital Makers Initiative will help us make sure that L.A. — with all of our beautiful scenery, iconic landmarks, and unmatched production resources — remains accessible to them.”

Only productions that will see digital distribution first or exclusively are eligible for that break. Content of this kind accounted for 2,113 production days in Los Angeles, up 46% over 2015.

Digital filmmaking in L.A.  has increased by more than 350% overall since tracking began in 2010, according to the Mayor’s office. That’s  as many production days as network sitcoms, according to FilmLA.

In April, Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos said he’s looking to move the lions share of his original productions back home to Hollywood.

“When you think about productions chasing tax credits all over the world, it puts the onus on the cast and crew who have to travel. You move to Los Angeles, or you grew up in L.A., because you wanted to be in show business — and then you have to move to New Orleans six or eight months a year,” Sarandos said.

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