Elias: Newsom’s plan to save California film, TV industry deserves OK

It s very rare for a giveaway project to more than double and nevertheless merit praise That s the development though with Gov Gavin Newsom s current plan to increase California s film and TV tax credit effort to million a year from the current million Related Articles Elias America won t be able to survive without undocumented expatriates Elias Newsom s beef with Trump on tariffs may boost his presidential bid Elias Office conversions wave of future present in California elsewhere This plan seems to be about the only way to assure that California remains the preeminent place to make and refine the cultural and entertainment content that represents America majority in the world s marketplace of ideas It also seems to be the only way to make sure preponderance of the ancillary jobs that accompany film and television production also stay in California That s because there s no guarantee that costume rental shops caterers post-production facilities with film editing shops sound editing studios and composers quarters and various more businesses that dot Southern California s landscape will stay here forever when movies are being made in faraway locations as disparate as Georgia and British Columbia to name just two places with currently better tax credits than California One of the main draws for businesses moving to other states has long been the property tax exemptions that other states offer them no levies for the first years or so in Texas for just one example The pull of tax credits is just as influential for entertainment production Filmmakers don t have to move not when California contains almost every kind of location but they will when other states and particular Canadian provinces make it worth their while Here are particular of the latest numbers English-language scripted films and TV shows being filmed in the Los Angeles area fell by in compared with the previous year reports Film LA which tracks regional production California s share of the world s productions fell from to during that short time This is no formula for continuing dominance of an industry once totally synonymous with California Right now this state s biggest competitors include Georgia North Carolina New York and several Canadian provinces like British Columbia and Ontario where new high-tech studios have been built in Vancouver and Toronto respectively So now comes Newsom with a necessary move He seeks to more than double what the state has lately offered Do those offers matter You follow the money actor-director Ben Affleck informed a reporter when explaining a sparse years ago why he filmed Live by Night in Georgia Tax credits and incentives sometimes cover as much as one-third of production costs in a business in which profits are not guaranteed For the states this can produce new jobs and more ruling body revenue without the environmental problems of factories and warehouses What s more California s current million is puny compared to what other states spend Georgia for example plans to give billion in movie and TV tax credits this year rising to billion in So if California legislators balk at what Newsom is proposing they just might doom California filmmaking to dinosaur status Don t bet on that happening The current proposal calls for production companies to get back of what they spend for costs incurred inside California This includes short TV shows as well as full-length films Even animated shows are included so long as their budgets are more than million John Prabhu a partner at LA North studios and a supporter of the boost in tax credits stated Daily Variety that Not a day goes by when someone fails to knock on our door Before it s too late California must intervene so we don t lose the entertainment industry for good along with the quality jobs it provides The bottom line is that when entertainment production leaves the state money departs along with jobs and talented professionals That s why the expanded film credit is needed now with the strong likelihood it will have to be bumped up further every year for the foreseeable future It s OK to criticize Newsom on a lot of fronts He occupies the high ground on this one though and whoever succeeds him in after will have to act similarly Email Thomas Elias at tdelias aol com and read more of his columns online at californiafocus net