According to a FilmLA report, the fourth quarter 2021 (October-December), saw on-location filming set a new record for greater Los Angeles.
According to the report, however, COVID-plagued year 2021 did not make for a record in terms of local filming.
The pandemic had the most severe impact on all major production categories, but it has had the largest negative impact on local feature film production. Netflix features were filmed in local areas during the pandemic. “Me Time,” “Your Place or Mine” “The Gray Man”Jonah Hill movie untitled. Independent films also included “He Went That Way,” “Way Down Bundy” “Wild Chickens.”
According to the report, television production did better than feature movies, and continues doing better. The biggest driver of Q4 in TV was TV drama.
According to FilmLA’s latest report, on-location filming in the fourth quarter of 2021 (October-December) remained robust, setting an all-time quarterly record of 10,780 shoot days. This figure is four percent higher than the previous three-month record of 10,359 shooting days, set in Q4, 2018. The report also stated that it is a four percent increase on the previous quarter’s record of 10,359 shoot days set in Q4, 2018.
“This is an encouraging report by most indicators, but how production will fare in 2022 remains uncertain at this time,”Paul Audley, President of FilmLA, released a statement. “With the highly contagious Omicron variant driving record COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles County, industry output is also affected. Just as 2021 got off to a slow start, the New Year has filmmakers feeling cautious, with many studios and production companies delaying their return to filming. Our hope is that 2022 follows a similar trajectory as last year – with a slow, responsible start and strong end-of-year finish.”
The Television category posted 4,925 SD. This is the same as the previous two quarters. The record for the year was 18,560 SD in 2021. This is 18% higher than the record of 16,463 SD set in 2016. Put another way, approximately one-half of all Shoot Days recorded by FilmLA in 2021 – 49.2 percent – were generated by scripted or unscripted television production.
Among the subcategories for television, TV Dramas in Q4 generated 1,294 SD, and a total of 5,610 SD were generated for the year – representing a 23.8 percent increase above the previous annual pre-COVID average. The following are local dramas that were shot in the past quarter All American (The CW), Promised Land (ABC), Snowfall (FX), Euphoria (HBO), Bel Air (Peacock). The Flight Attendant (HBO Max).
TV Dramas in Q4 generated 1,294 SD, and a total of 5,610 SD were generated for the year – representing a 23.8 percent increase above the previous annual pre-COVID average. The following local dramas were shot in the last quarter All American (The CW), Promised Land (ABC), Snowfall (FX), Euphoria (HBO), Bel Air (Peacock). The Flight Attendant (HBO Max).
The TV Comedies subcategory continues to fall, with the quarter ending down -40.6 per cent from the pre-COVID averages (1,302 against 2,192). Here are some local TV Comedies. Home Economics (ABC), Kenan (NBC), Mr. Mayor (NBC), Chad (TBS), Grace and Frankie (Netflix), Made for Love (HBO Max).
As streaming and network platforms search for new content, the TV Reality category set more records. The number of SD generated by shoot days for TV Reality shows was 9,551 in 2021. This is 129.8 per cent more than the pre-COVID average of 4,157.
According to the report “the rise and fall of COVID-19 infection rates at the beginning of 2021 saw production get off to a soft start”. After the 2020 holiday surge, studio production was put on voluntary hiatus for the first part 2021. Shoot Days increased as the infection rate declined in Greater Los Angeles. It reached 9,791 SD Q2, then rose higher to 10,179 SD Q3.
More to come…