Petition Urges Film, TV Productions to Stay in Los Angeles After Fires

The Hollywood sign seen over Los Angeles on July 12, 2023. Mario Tama/Getty Images

Entertainment industry professionals have launched a new petition urging productions to remain in Los Angeles amid concerns that the devastating Southern California wildfires could trigger a mass exodus of film and television projects.

The initiative, titled Stay in L.A., was spearheaded by CA United, a grassroots coalition of over 5,000 California residents, in partnership with The Union Solidarity Coalition, a group of writers and directors that formed to support crew members amid strikes.

The petition has already garnered signatures from more than 9,600 people as of Jan. 24, including actors, writers, and filmmakers.

Among the supporters are “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton, “The Vampire Diaries” co-creator Julie Plec, and “Mad Men” actress Alison Brie.

“We write this petition as film/TV workers and concerned citizens of Los Angeles in the wake of the Eaton, Hughes, and Palisades Fires,” the petition reads.

“We were already deeply worried about the livelihoods of Los Angeles area cast and crew, not to mention the countless small businesses suffering from production moving out of state and overseas.”

The Hughes Fire is the latest wildfire to spread across the county.

The blaze, which is now 56 percent contained, erupted near Castaic Lake on Jan. 22 and has burned more than 10,000 acres, per the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire broke out on Jan. 7 and have scorched more than 37,000 acres.

The former began in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles and is 79 percent contained as of Friday night. The latter, which ignited near Altadena, just north of Pasadena, is 95 percent contained.

The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner reported 28 fire-related deaths as of Tuesday afternoon. That figure is expected to rise as search and rescue efforts continue.

“The fires have made a desperate situation worse. We are terrified that the city we love so much may lose its most vital resource: its people,” the petition reads.

“We need a flood of new work to help our beloved city rebuild itself and ensure LA’s future viability as a place where craftspeople, film workers, and businesses thrive.”

The wildfires have reportedly forced many productions to pause shooting.

Beachfront homes that burned in the Palisades Fire in Malibu, Calif., on Jan. 15. Mario Tama/Getty Images

On Instagram, Stay in L.A. noted that Los Angeles has been losing film and television productions to emerging competitive markets.

“The numbers are grim,” the account shared on Thursday. “Now, in the wake of the fires, L.A. is hurting even more. People can’t afford to live here if there isn’t work here.”

According to FilmLA, the partner film office of the city and county of Los Angeles, the city saw a decline in local projects last year.

In a news release published on Jan. 15, the nonprofit organization indicated that Los Angeles experienced its second-lowest number of shoot days in 2024—surpassed only by 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic halted productions.

As part of Los Angeles’s disaster relief efforts, Stay in L.A. is calling on state and local lawmakers—including California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass—to remove the cap on tax incentives for film and television projects shot in Hollywood over the next three years.

California’s Film & Television Tax Credit Program currently provides 20 percent to 25 percent tax credits for production costs and other qualified expenses on in-state projects.

The $1.55 billion incentive offers an additional 5 percent or 10 percent tax credit for out-of-zone filming, visual effects work, and local hire labor.

The petition also urged studios and streaming platforms to commit to shooting at least 10 percent more productions in Los Angeles over the same time frame to “[demonstrate] their dedication to the city’s recovery and their long-term investment in L.A.’s workforce.”

“We call upon lawmakers and studios/streamers to give the people of Los Angeles a fighting chance by taking emergency measures to bring production back to L.A.,” the group wrote online.

“This is a nonpartisan issue that affects every sector of our city. When we shoot in L.A., jobs are created, small businesses are supported, and the entire economy thrives.”