California might be the iconic home of the film and television industries, but it’s not always the ideal location to shoot in. The state faces increasing competition from other locations eager and willing to offer financial incentives in order to play host to a Hollywood production. The flood of applications into the California Film Commission’s Hollywood offices, though, is a sign that many productions would like to remain in state. That is, if the price is right.
The application window for the state’s next round of tax credits opened June 1 and saw 322 submissions arrive before close of business. That’s up from 176 projects submitted on the first day last year. Of the applications submitted for the new fiscal year, 28 have been selected to receive credits before the allocation of $100 million is exhausted, officials said.
In last year’s round, 27 projects received the initial acceptance, although a total of 74 projects ultimately received some form of tax credit. That increase was due to the large number of smaller independent projects that moved from the waiting list to receive credits as larger projects withdrew from the program, according to the CFC.
Recent projects that have received funding from the program include films such as "Drive," "Bridesmaids,” and "The Social Network," and the FX series "Justified.”
A tax credit of 20 percent is available for films budgeted between $1 million and $75 million, movies of the week or miniseries with at least a $500,000 budget, and new cable TV series licensed for original distribution. Some of the credits may be transferred or sold to another party, but credits applied to income tax liability aren't refundable.
The process of doling out the $100 million in credits began as lawmakers in Sacramento are still waiting to take action on legislation granting a five-year extension to the program.
Since the incentive was put in place in 2009, it has benefited some 165 projects, resulted in $2.9 billion in direct production spending, and created more than 30,000 jobs in California, according to the CFC.
