5 hrs ago
Los Angeles Officials Seek Funding to Streamline Film Production
Los Angeles wants more movies and television shows to be filmed in the city.
City officials say the rules and permits can be difficult for productions to navigate.
Steve Kang, the city’s film liaison, described how officials helped the Baywatch reboot solve permit problems quickly.
That kind of special help is hard to provide to every production because the office has very few staff members.
Councilmembers want the system to work better for smaller productions too.
The city is working on a free permit for very small shoots.
Some changes are delayed because departments would lose fee revenue and do not yet have replacement money.
Kang also said California’s film tax-credit program needs more funding because more productions apply than the program can support.
Los Angeles film liaison Steve Kang told councilmembers that streamlining production will require additional funding and staff.
Kang said his office helped Fox’s Baywatch reboot navigate permits involving multiple city, county, state and local agencies.
Councilmembers questioned how the intensive “concierge service” used for Baywatch could be expanded to smaller and independent productions.
The city has drafted a free micro-shoot permit, but other initiatives face delays because departments lack replacement funding for waived fees.
Kang said California’s $750 million film tax-credit program is oversubscribed and argued that funding should be increased to $1.5 billion.
- Who
- Los Angeles film liaison Steve Kang, city councilmembers, and leaders from the Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles Fire Department.
- What
- Officials reviewed ways to simplify film permitting, expand support for productions, and increase available funding.
- Where
- Los Angeles City Hall and the wider Los Angeles region.
- When
- At the committee’s first meeting on Wednesday; Kang was appointed in August 2025 and reported on his work over the previous year.
- Why
- Local leaders are trying to retain and attract film and television production amid complaints about slow permitting, regulatory barriers, staffing shortages, and limited incentives.
Industry and Council Concerns
City Officials’ Response
Implementation speed
Industry and Council Concerns
Councilmembers said the city’s progress is too slow and that the pace is unacceptable given production needs.
City Officials’ Response
Kang said regulatory cleanup takes time and pointed to the Baywatch reboot as evidence that coordinated intervention can work.
Expanding concierge support
Industry and Council Concerns
Councilmembers want the successful Baywatch-style assistance made available to more productions, including independent projects with fewer resources.
City Officials’ Response
Kang said scaling that service requires additional staff and resources because his office currently has limited capacity.
Fee waivers and incentives
Industry and Council Concerns
Production advocates and some stakeholders want broader fee relief and stronger tax incentives to keep filming in California.
City Officials’ Response
Kang said departments have not identified replacement funding for waived fees, while the state tax-credit program is already oversubscribed.
Key facts
- Film liaison
- Steve Kang, who also serves as president of the Los Angeles Board of Public Works.
- Committee
- The Ad Hoc Committee on Film, Entertainment and Creative Industry is chaired by Adrin Nazarian, with Traci Park as vice chair and Imelda Padilla as a member.
- Baywatch example
- Kang said officials coordinated with multiple agencies and held weekly meetings with Fremantle to address the reboot’s production issues.
- Staffing issue
- Kang said the city’s film liaison office currently consists of him, while an additional Board of Public Works position was frozen until January.
- Micro-shoot permit
- A draft ordinance for a free permit for smaller productions was being prepared.
- State tax credit
- California’s Film & TV Tax Credit Program was expanded to $750 million, but Kang said demand exceeds available funding.
- Proposed funding level
- Kang said $1.5 billion would be more suitable for the Los Angeles region than $750 million.
Quotes
Steve Kang
Los Angeles chief film liaison and president of the Los Angeles Board of Public Works
“There’s more productions applying than the money is available. So I am seeing that we need to at least double [the funding] or [have] no cap. So $1.5 billion is more suitable for our region versus $750 [million].”
deadline.com
“I have approached this work with a simple principle: when a production wants to film in Los Angeles, we work with urgency to find a path to a solution and make that process as easy as possible.”
deadline.com
Adrin Nazarian
Los Angeles City Council member and chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Film, Entertainment and Creative Industry
“The city’s current pace of implementation falls short of the industry needs. Quite frankly, it’s unacceptable.”
deadline.com
Sources
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