Inside FilmLA's Much Needed Permitting Process Reform

Angle on Producers with Carolina Groppa

This week, we hear from Donna Washington, FilmLA's VP of Permit Operations.

After the June 20th Board of Public Works hearing in Los Angeles, I was taken aback by the outrage and frustration permeating the halls of City Hall. So many folks I've grown up on set with voiced their extreme concern with the permitting process and costs in LA - one of the main blockers keeping productions from coming or staying here.

Donna has been with FilmLA since its very beginning in 1995. She's witnessed firsthand the evolution from LA's golden era of production - when they were processing nearly 40,000 shoot days a year - to the current reality where production has dropped by 53% in just the last five years.

While FilmLA is not the sole cause of the production exodus, it certainly has not helped. I wanted to invite Donna on to address this criticism head-on and discuss the misconceptions about who sets what fees, Film LA's 17-point plan to streamline the permitting process, and how FilmLA actually functions compared to film commissions in other states.

This isn't about pointing fingers - it's about understanding the system, identifying the problems, and working together on solutions. Because as Donna puts it, FilmLA doesn't exist if the industry doesn't exist. And right now, with a 400% uptick in applications following California's increased tax incentives, we're at a critical moment that could determine the future of filmmaking in Los Angeles.

This impacts all of us and requires all of us to work towards a solution.