Our Entertainment Union Coalition continues to work collaboratively on a state, county and city level to support film and television jobs for our members and advocate for the stabilization of our industry. Our joint efforts between the Hollywood Unions and Guilds has also evolved to support our industry on a federal level.
This update shares the ongoing work and how our members can continue to get involved.
CA Film & Television Jobs Program:
Just last week, Governor Newsom announced the next round of 18 projects that are to receive the tax incentive from the recent television application window. This batch of projects awarded the credit included returning shows, as well as, for the first time ever, animated projects and high-budget competition shows. The recent projects are expected to generate $1.3 billion in statewide economic activity and employ more than 4,500 cast and crew members and 50,687 background performers.
To see the full list of projects approved to receive the CA Film and Television Incentive since its official expansion in July of last year, click here. The next Feature Film application window was open at the beginning of March and we expect to see the awarded projects sometime mid-April. The next television application window will open in earlier April and we expect to see awarded episodic projects by mid-May.
The EUC has also recently been engaged in discussions with groups developing proposed incentive programs for both commercial production and post-production work. While we are not the authors of these proposals, we are providing input to help ensure that any programs created are structured in ways that benefit our members and create jobs in order to have our full EUC backing and support.
Meetings with Gubernatorial Candidates:
As shared in our last update, representatives from our Coalition have continued to meet with gubernatorial candidates to educate them about the California Film & Television Jobs Program and to discuss the challenges our industry currently faces.
While some individual unions and guilds endorse candidates in this important race, Entertainment Union Coalition does not function as an endorsing entity. These meetings are strictly educational and intended to build relationships. We will be sharing this process publicly in April in hopes that each candidate for governor continues to highlight our industry and the work needed to protect it throughout the remainder of their race.
As a reminder of our last update, our talking points in these meetings include:
- Increased Funding: The funding for the California Film & Television Jobs Program that Governor Newsom and the State Legislature increased in 2025 must continue to grow in order to compete on a global stage and keep jobs in California.
- California Investment: The economic strength and vitality of California is tied to the health of the entertainment industry and the earning power of the hundreds of thousands of Californians who work in it. In the years ahead, California will be met with drastic federal funding cuts and we will need strong union jobs with good benefits and the tourism linked to our industry to bolster our economy.
- Avoiding Complacency: Governments around the world recognize the proven economic power of the film and television industry and the tourism it brings. They are aggressively competing not only with California, but with the entire U.S., and they are succeeding. Until recently, California took for granted that “Hollywood” would always remain here. We cannot afford to slip back into that mindset -and lose any more ground. The Governor plays a critical role in setting both the tone and the agenda.
- Challenges Ahead: Consolidation, Artificial Intelligence and emerging technologies, international production and Big Tech, are some of the major issues facing our members, and protecting their jobs is our mission.
The EUC also continues to advocate for a federal production incentive. The reality is that we need both, strong state programs and a federal incentive, to keep work here and ensure our members remain employed in an increasingly competitive global market.
City and County Initiatives to Enhance Filmwork:
On a city level in both Los Angeles and San Francisco the EUC has also been working to streamline and create better efficiencies when it comes to on-location filming. The goal continues to be making meaningful and enforceable improvements to the process, while continuing to respect the communities and neighborhoods where production takes place.
In Los Angeles, our EUC continues to be involved with the Mayor’s Office, FilmLA, City Council and the LA County Board of Supervisors in the streamlining of permitting efficiencies and fees.
The Mayor’s Directive signed last year on behalf of our industry has recently approved the shortening of the permit review process at our Ports, fee reductions associated with the use of Griffith Observatory and the opening of the LA Central Library for production work. Alongside FilmLA, the Board of Public Works President, Steve Kang and Dan Halden who serves as Bureau of Street Services and Senior Advisor, Location Managers that have recently concluded productions have been meeting one-on-one to address and advise on how the city can better support production work.
Through City Council, Councilmember Adrin Nazarian’s launched his “Keep Hollywood Home” initiatives which include (7) motions that have passed through Committee and with another (6) being reviewed at this time. While these motions also speak to the elimination of red tape to make filming easier on our streets and in our communities, the question of funding and implementation remains. Our EUC has met with Councilmember Nazarian’s team recently to stress that while we support any and all efforts to make filming easier, we must continue to preserve strong labor and safety standards through any and all changes, as well as be realistic implementation, enforcement mechanisms and intent of these motions as to not to create unrealistic expectations for our members.
On a LA County level, our EUC has also supported the recent motion made by LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath to conduct a study around the impact the proposed Paramount / Warner Bros. merger would have on our industry in LA county.
San Francisco has also recently passed a city tax credit to bump film and television work included a 20% rebate on spending above $1million as well as $1million in savings on city fees.
Keep Up the Fight to ‘Keep California Rolling:
Part of laying the foundation for further expansion and extending our program is showing elected leaders and our communities the positive impact these productions bring, the work created, the creativity sparked, and the economic benefits that flow to California families.
We are still collecting stories, videos and photos from members working on incentive projects. We want to thank those of you that have taken the time to share your story.
As a reminder, we have launched a form to submit photos and videos that we can post to help get the word out about the type of content we are looking to share. We will also be targeting members working on incentive projects for your story.
LINK TO FORM TO SUBMIT STORY: https://bit.ly/KeepCaliforniaRollingImpact
As these efforts continue, we will keep members informed. The EUC remains committed to advocating for policies that strengthen our industry, protect our work, and create opportunities for the more than 167,000 union members working in the entertainment industry throughout California.