On-location filming of scripted TV shows in Los Angeles has ground to a near-complete halt in the fourth week of the Writers Guild’s strike, according to data compiled by FilmLA, the city and county film permit office.
“In a normal week at this time of year, there would be dozens of scripted television projects in production,” said FilmLA spokesman Philip Sokoloski. “By contrast, we have just one scripted TV series with a permit this week, and that is for parking near a stage or studio. Under the circumstances, the existence of this permit is not a reliable indicator that filming is taking place.”
For the week ending May 28, the number of permits taken out by film and TV projects was down 62.8% – to 128 this week compared to 344 for the same period a year ago. “These are the categories into which all scripted projects fall, though not all production within these categories is affected by the labor action,” Sokoloski said. “Reality TV, as one example, still appears in these counts in addition to non-union independent films,” and they are not affected by the strike.
Last week, on-location filming plunged 51.5% from a year ago, with only five scripted television shows taking out permits, and three of those projects were reported in the news to have ceased production.
The week before, on-location filming plummeted 69.5% from a year ago, with just seven scripted TV series pulling permits, and four of those projects were reported to have halted production.
In the first week of the strike, on-location filming was down 51% from a year ago, with nine scripted TV series – seven dramas and two comedies – receiving permits to film on location here, although two of those projects were reported to have halted production.
The strike shows no sign of abating, with the production of TV shows shutting down across the country.
The WGA launched its strike May 2 after negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to reach a satisfactory agreement. The guild’s core issues include significant increases in compensation, minimum staffing, duration of employment, the establishment of viewer-based streaming residuals and curbs on the use of artificial intelligence to create scripts.
