California Soundstage Boom Could Ease State’s Post-Strike Concerns
variety.comTodd Longwell Producer William Selig and director Francis Boggs came west from Chicago in 1909 to establish the first Los Angeles-based movie studio in a neighborhood that is today known as Echo Park.
By 1916, 60% of the films made in the U.S. were shot in Los Angeles. More than a century later, the city and, by extension, the state of California remain at the top of the country’s film and TV production heap.
According to a February 2023 report by California’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office, the state boasts roughly 125,000 industry jobs, more than twice as many as its closest domestic competitor, New York.
A big part of California’s allure then and now is its warm weather, wealth of natural light (an average of 284 sunny days a year), and, perhaps most of all, diverse topography, which encompasses mountains, deserts, coastlines and flatlands. “If there’s some specific thing you really need that you can’t shoot [in Los Angeles], you may be able to drive there in an hour or two,” says producer Steven J.
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