Los Angeles is witnessing a significant decline in reality TV production as Hollywood continues to recover from last year’s dual labor strikes. According to statistics released on Wednesday (July 17), the impact of these strikes is still felt across the industry.
Actors, writers, and crew members had hoped for a resurgence in filming across all genres after the strikes halted most productions starting in July of the previous year. However, from April through June this year, on-location filming days in the Los Angeles area fell by 12.4% compared to the same period last year, according to a report from FilmLA, the permitting organization. FilmLA issued permits for 5,749 shooting days during this quarter.
In the comparable period in 2023, production had already begun to decline ahead of the Writers Guild of America strike in May, with filming dropping further when actors walked off the job in July. This year’s decline was primarily driven by a 56.9% drop in reality TV production, the FilmLA report indicated.
Philip Sokoloski, a spokesman for FilmLA, attributed the decline to the widespread reduction in production from the high levels of recent years as investors demand profits from the media industry’s switch to streaming. Additionally, some studios are delaying new projects due to the potential for another strike, with the Teamsters union currently negotiating a new labor agreement before its contract with Hollywood studios expires on July 31.
Despite the overall decline, the filming of scripted shows saw an increase during the April-June quarter. Drama productions rose by 98.3%, and comedy productions more than doubled, showing some positive trends within the industry.
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