Final Pilot Production Report.Pub
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2012 Television Pilot Production Report 1201 W. 5th Street, Suite T-800 ● Los Angeles, CA 90017 ● 213.977.8600 ● www.filmla.com 2012 Pilot Production Overview . Each year between January and By one measure, this is the second L.A.’s status as the premier pilot April, Los Angeles residents observe a -largest annual tally in Los Angeles his- production center now hinges on industry marked increase in local on-location tory, totaling five projects more than willingness to produce comedy projects in filming. the prior cycle and just nine fewer than Los Angeles. L.A. handled during its peak year of New television pilots, produced in '04/'05. Pilot Production Locations anticipation of May screenings for tele- vision advertisers, join continuing TV Magnet for New Comedy Projects series, feature films and commercial Over the years, other jurisdictions projects in competition for talent, have enticed away much of the L.A. re- crews, stage space and sought-after In '11/'12, the Los Angeles region gion’s historical TV drama pilot production locations. captured just 29 percent of all televi- share. The availability of financial pro- sion drama pilots produced, but 91 per- duction incentives and production infra- However, Los Angeles isn't the only cent of all television comedy pilots. structure are key factors influencing place in North America hosting pilot where pilot producers choose to film. production. Other jurisdictions, most For comedy pilots, the ’11/’12 notably the City of New York, the Van- figures are largely in line with the re- During the '11/'12 development cycle, couver area and the City of Toronto, gion’s recent yields. During the last 92 television pilots were filmed on Los have established themselves as strong three development cycles, L.A.’s share Angeles streets and stages. Another 60 competitors for this lucrative part of of comedy pilots has hovered between pilots — of which 53 were coveted one- Hollywood’s business tradition. 82 and 92 percent of available projects. hour drama projects — were produced outside the region in competing jurisdic- FilmL.A. — the not-for-profit or- Drama pilots, however, continue to tions. ganization that coordinates permits for flee their traditional home. During the filmed entertainment shot on-location last three development cycles, drama Domestic locales used by producers in the City of Los Angeles, unincorpo- pilots were filmed outside the L.A. re- included Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisi- rated parts of Los Angeles County and gion by a ratio of more than 2–to-1. ana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mex- other local jurisdictions — recently ico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsyl- updated its ongoing annual study of This is significant, because four vania and Tennessee. television pilots1 in production. production cycles ago (in ‘08/’09), the L.A. region still attracted 38 percent of Non-U.S. locations included multiple FilmL.A.’s official count shows that total drama pilots. Six development Canadian cities (Vancouver area, Toronto, 152 broadcast and cable television pi- cycles ago (in ‘06/’07), L.A.’s drama Montreal) and Australia. lots2 were produced during the '11/'12 share was 63 percent. development cycle3, making the past Some form of production incentive year the second most productive on Los Angeles can thank its local was available in every one of the non- record. talent base, the proficiency of local California locations used during the '11/'12 crews and availability of audience-rated development cycle. Drama producers use Out of those 152 television pilots, a soundstages as reasons comedies locate incentives to offset the increased cost of total of 92 projects were filmed in the in the region. These factors exert their long-distance production while affording Los Angeles region. greatest pull on multi-camera projects. higher-end production values. Television Pilots Produced by Location, '05-'12 '08/'09 '09/'10 '10/'11 ‘11/’12 '04 '05 '06 '07 Net- Net- Net- Net- '05 '06 '07 '08 Cable Cable Cable Cable work work work work Los Angeles - One Hour 101 81 30 35 17 5 14 6 10 13 11 11 - Half Hour total total 52 30 32 5 39 17 38 26 47 23 New York - One Hour 8 11 9 9 1 5 0 2 10 5 11 5 - Half Hour total total 0 1 1 3 1 2 0 2 0 4 Canada - One Hour 4 11 3 12 10 2 9 7 8 10 10 9 - Half Hour total total 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Other Locations - One Hour 11 17 6 4 11 7 20 10 16 19 11 7 - Half Hour total total 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 11 0 3 TOTAL 124 120 100 91 103 129 169 152 . Key Production Trends TV PILOTS PRODUCED BY LOCATION, '05-'12 152 180 160 Total TV Pilots Produced During 140 the 2011/2012 120 Development Cycle 100 80 60 92 40 Total Pilots # of Total Pilots Produced # of Total Pilots 20 Produced Within 0 Los Angeles Region '04/'05 '05/'06 '06/'07 '07/'08 '08/'09 '09/'10 '10/'11 '11/'12 Pilot Development Cycle 53 Los Angeles New York Canadian Provinces Other Jurisdictions Total One-Hour Drama Pilots Produced Pilots: The What & The Why Typical pilot production costs, having Outside L.A. This Season risen over the years, now average about $2 million (for comedy pilots) and $5.5 million As the initial episode of a proposed (for drama pilots). Presentations, which television series, many pilots are made, are sometimes made in lieu of pilots, cost but only a few will ever be shown to view- up to 40 percent less to produce than full- ers on broadcast or cable television. Be- length pilots. 76 % fore a pilot can be green-lighted for series, it must first be deemed marketable to Based on these figures, FilmL.A. esti- television advertisers and foreign distribu- Percent of Total mates that approximately $262 million was tors. L.A.-Based Projects spent on television pilot production in Los Angeles during the '11/'12 development That Were Comedies For decades, broadcast networks cycle.4 have courted advertisers in an expensive and seasonally-driven “upfronts” process. This is roughly 46 percent of the total amount spent by producers in all locations. Every year in late May, advertisers preview the shows that will go on to be 91 % aired on broadcast networks in the fall or Runaway Pilot Production early the following year as mid-season Percent of Total replacements. Pilot producers’ ongoing wanderlust Comedy Projects That introduces a pair of related concerns for Cable networks also screen a variety Filmed in Los Angeles those who work in television in L.A. of scripted content. Unlike network pilots, cable pilots are produced year-round and On one hand, lost production share have increased in number to contribute carries with it the threat of diminished mightily to development cycle yields. New pilot season spending. cable series debut throughout the year. $262m But another, more serious concern is Pilots’ Economic Importance that the one-time loss of a pilot can easily lead to the loss of a promising series. Estimated Total Pilot Production Spending Pilot production is worthy of study Historically, pilots made in Los Ange- because the activity creates significant in L.A. Region les were highly likely to stay in the region economic benefits for the hosting region. if picked up for series production. At one time, pilots produced in other jurisdictions According to industry sources, the could also be expected to return to L.A. average pilot directly employs about 150 for series, but this is no longer to be ex- people for the duration of the project. pected. Today, the availability of produc- Come mid-season, L.A.’s drama “Of course, having comedies made in tion incentives and established produc- share could be even smaller, since just town is a boon for L.A.” Audley continued. tion infrastructure outside Los Angeles one L.A. show was picked up as a mid- “It leaves us vulnerable, though. The com- make it possible to film series in other season replacement. Six mid-season edy genre is cyclical and there’s little to places. dramas were picked up elsewhere. prevent single-camera comedies from fol- lowing dramas out-of-state. Our economy This fact, combined with network The loss of just one television would be well-served were the region to decisions about which shows to pick up drama series can amount to thousands attract a more diversified slate of produc- or cancel in a given year, poses a serious of lost jobs and tens of millions of dol- tions.” threat to established production centers lars of lost production spending over like Los Angeles. several viewing seasons. Though not a focus of this report, other soundstage-reliant facets of Los To help quantify this problem, Comedy series are less expensive Angeles’ television production industry are FilmL.A. researchers analyzed new and to produce than drams and generally worthy of mention. continuing series pickups for 2010/2011, employ fewer people during production. 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 viewing sea- The L.A. region hosts numerous tele- son on major broadcast networks during Multi-camera, stage-bound come- vision talk shows, including Conan, The primetime. This analysis excluded cable dies, which L.A. has been able to retain Tonight Show, Last Call with Carson Daly, productions because of their irregular in great numbers, cost up to $1.5 million The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, series start pattern. to produce per episode. Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Talk, Ellen and Dr. Phil.