Location Shoots Still Off for Year

Location shooting in the Los Angeles area rose slightly in September but continued to lag through the first nine months of 1999, mostly because of a slowdown in feature film work.

The number of production days on the streets of Los Angeles was up 6.14% for the month, according to numbers released by the Entertainment Industry Development Corp., with film and commercial work rising. Television and music video production work, the other two major categories, was down in September from a year earlier.

Still, for the first nine months, overall production days were off 6% from a year earlier.

The statistics are compiled by the EIDC, which issues permits for shooting outside of studio lots in most of Los Angeles County. The numbers are a barometer of overall production activity, which has slowed as studios have cut back on feature films and scheduled their productions in lower-cost locations such as Canada and Australia.

Cody Cluff, president of the EIDC, expressed hope that the numbers are a sign that the drop in production activity is bottoming out.

Cluff said the September drop in television work was surprising given that a large number of shows this season are being shot in Los Angeles. He attributed it to some shows being slow in coming back from summer hiatus.