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. At the beginning of the 2012/2013 Single-camera comedies that regu- fall viewing season, viewers will be ex- larly shoot on-location cost slightly more Locally-produced game shows in- posed to 47 L.A.-based shows (18 dra- to make at up to $2.0 million per epi- clude, but are not limited to, Jeopardy, mas, 29 comedies). They will also be sode. Creative reasons, as opposed to Wheel of Fortune, Let’s Make a Deal, exposed to 24 shows (23 dramas, 1 com- economic reasons, presently keep these Shark Tank, Wipeout, The Biggest Loser edy) filmed outside the region. productions in Los Angeles. and The Price is Right.

Thus for the first time in FilmL.A.’s “We think L.A. is settling into a Talent shows in L.A. include Ameri- ongoing study, L.A. is heading into the new normal,” said FilmL.A. President can Idol, America’s Best Dance Crew, The fall season accounting for less than 50 Paul Audley, “Without a more competi- Voice, The X Factor, America’s Got Talent, percent of the network screen time tive California tax incentive program, So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing with devoted to primetime scripted dramas. Los Angeles will find it hard to increase the Stars, Duets and America’s Next Top its share of total TV drama production.” Model.

Dramas’ Dramatic Flight.

The charts below illustrate some of the changes taking place in the network television production landscape. Based on primetime network television schedules as the start of the fall season, the charts reveal a shift in drama series production away from Los An- geles. L.A.’s hitherto unchallenged grip on comedy series has kept the region’s comedy production share above 90 percent.

58.3 % 57.1 % 43.9 %

Fall 2010 Fall 2011 Fall 2012

Based in Los Angeles Based in Canada KEY { Based in New York Based Elsewhere in US TV PILOT PRODUCTION BY NETWORK TYPE About this Report 180 160 This report is the product of 140 independent research con- ducted by FilmL.A., a pri- 120 vate, nonprofit organization 100 that coordinates and proc- esses permits for on-location 80 motion picture, television 60 and commercial production under contract to an ever- 40 increasing roster of public-

# of Total Pilots Produced # of Total Pilots sector clients in the Los An- 20 geles region. 0 In addition to researching '07/'08 '08/'09 '09/'10 '10/'11 '11/'12 matters of interest to enter- Pilot Development Cycle tainment industry leaders and local government repre- sentatives, FilmL.A. offers Broadcast Television Networks Cable Television Networks counsel to local governments on how to enhance the envi- ronment for filming in the greater Los Angeles region.

Ongoing community relations METHODOLOGY: NOTES: is a key component of the service FilmL.A. provides. Since January, 2005, FilmL.A. has 1. FilmL.A. uses the word “pilot” through- The organization works to conducted ongoing primary and secondary out this study to refer to all original strike a balance between the research to keep track of new television scripted pilots, shorter-length presenta- needs and interests of the tions or “hidden pilots” captured during pilots. entertainment industry and the development cycle. Pilot counts within This report captures all pilot pro- a development cycle include both stage- the neighborhoods affected ductions, presentations, and straight-to- based and location-based projects made in by on-location production. series television projects intended for any location, of any running duration, primetime showing on major broadcast and intended for primetime debut on either In today’s highly competi- cable networks. broadcast or cable networks serving U.S. tive, global entertainment audiences. production market, our ser- Our lists include all pilots of which vices help the Los Angeles 2. On occasion, networks choose to skip FilmL.A. has been made aware through region retain its status as the primary and secondary research, and for pilot and presentation production and which a primary production location could immediately “green light” promising new entertainment production be verified with either the pilot production shows for series production. Rather than capital of the world. company or the underwriting studio. discount new production occurring any- where within the development cycle, FilmL.A.’s agreements with these FilmL.A. includes the first episode of these entities require that no detailed produc- “straight to series” productions as “hidden Report Contributors tion information be shared with outside pilots” in all of its counts. parties and that all pilot production activ- ity be reported without project and pro- 3. FilmL.A. defines a development cycle as duction company identifiers. the period leading up to the earliest possi- Corina Sandru ble date that new pilots would air, post- Lead Research Analyst Please note that it is very rare for pickup. Thus, the '11/'12 development unscripted (reality) television series to cycle includes production activity that produce pilots. A few turn up in each starts in 2011 and continues into 2012 for Philip Sokoloski development cycle survey, but report au- show starts at any time in 2012 (or later). Director, Communications thors opt to exclude them from official counts. 4. FilmL.A. accounts for the difference between full pilot and presentation costs in its overall pilot season spending esti- Todd Lindgren mates. VP, Communications & Public Affairs