Los Angeles on-location filming took a sharp step back in Q3 2025, with total permitted Shoot Days (SD) falling 13.2% year over year to 4,380 across all categories, according to FilmLA’s latest quarterly report.
Television, still the region’s core engine, was the biggest drag. TV activity dropped 20.7% to 1,441 SD, a slide FilmLA links chiefly to a steep comedown in reality and game show production, which retreated to 649 SD after spring highs. Scripted series also felt it: TV Dramas fell 19.0% to 545 SD, while TV Comedy was a rare bright spot, up 41.1% to 79 SD; pilots slipped 34.5% to 19 SD.
Recent LA-shot series in the mix include 9-1-1 (FOX), Criminal Minds (CBS), High Potential (ABC), “Bel-Air (Peacock), Golf (Netflix) and Shrinking (Apple TV+).
Commercial production also cooled, sliding 17.9% to 668 SD. With no state incentives to offset costs, the ad sector’s pullback hit a five-year low relative to historical norms. Even so, spots for Brooks Brothers, Lululemon, McDonald’s, Walmart, American Express, DoorDash, Spotify, BMW, Lexus, Nissan, and Toyota still rolled cameras around town.
Features were the contrarian mover. The category ticked up 9.7% to 522 SD, one of the quarter’s few gains, fueled in part by independents such as Animals, Misty Green, The Musical, The Seekers, and You Can’t Be Happy.
Even with that lift, the quarter’s charts underscore how far below trend LA remains: versus the five-year average (excluding 2020), Television sits down 57.9%, Features down 30.4%, Commercials down 38.8%, and the “Other” bucket (still/photo, docs, shorts, online, music/industrial) down 29.7%.
Incentives are starting to register, but only at the margins so far. Projects tied to California’s newly expanded Film & TV Tax Credit represented 22% of Q3 feature SD and 9% of TV SD, as the first wave of approved shows and films begins lining up stages and permits. FilmLA notes those productions have 180 days to start after their awards, suggesting the heaviest impact will land across the next two quarters.
“On-location production continued to slip this summer despite the state’s increased investment,” said FilmLA VP Philip Sokoloski, adding that early calls from incentive-backed projects are a promising signal. FilmLA plans industry listening sessions to streamline processes and recommend policy fixes to local government partners. “LA’s creative industry is too important to let go without a fight,” he said.
Q3 was a reset quarter. Features showed life, but TV and commercials—together the bulk of LA’s day-to-day crew work—dragged totals down. If incentive-linked series and films ramp as expected, FilmLA’s Q4/Q1 snapshots should be the real test of whether the rebound is more than a flicker.
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