Los Angeles’ share of TV pilot production hits low

LOS ANGELES » Los Angeles, once the king of TV pilots, is rapidly losing its domain to New York and other rivals. The L.A. region’s share of pilot production dropped to a historic low in the most recent pilot season, as producers took their business to the Big Apple and other cities offering stronger tax breaks and rebates, according to a survey by FilmL.A. Inc.

Among 203 pilots produced in the 12 months ended in May, only 44 percent (90 pilots) were filmed in the L.A. region, down from 52 percent the previous season and 82 percent from the 2006-07 pilot season.

The rest mainly filmed in New York, Atlanta and Canadian cities Toronto and Vancouver, British Columbia.

The decline has been especially sharp in the category of TV dramas: New York surpassed Los Angeles for the first time in filming one-hour TV drama pilots. The Big Apple drew 24 TV drama pilots versus 19 in L.A.

Los Angeles Times