LA Pilot Production Up or Down, Depending on How You Look at It

Some 96 pilots filmed in the Los Angeles area during the 2012-13 development cycle. That’s four more than last year and second only to the region’s peak cycle in 2004-05, when 102 pilots filmed in L.A. But with a total of 186 broadcast and cable television pilots produced, L.A.’s slice of the pilot pie was just 52 percent—the region’s second-lowest share on record and a steep decline from a record 82 percent in 2006-07.
FilmL.A., the nonprofit organization that coordinates permits for filmed entertainment shot on-location in the Los Angeles area, cited runaway production as a continuing threat to local production in its annual pilot study, with the biggest competition coming from New York City, Vancouver and Atlanta. Lucrative tax breaks helped the Big Apple attract 19 pilots, with 15 going to Vancouver and 9 to Atlanta.