"They can't move to Nashville because the actors won't move with them. They can incorporate in Nashville but who the fuck cares anymore? If you're not going to pay taxes in my state why would I care whether you incorporate in my state? "
There's so much wrong with that sentence, and yet it pretty much sums up why California lost hundreds of millions of dollars of production to other states (and countries), because the politicians in California believed the same thing until it was too late. It's the myth of American exceptionalism but applied specifically to California.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
"By 2025, the cost of filming in California was so high relative to other jurisdictions that it was cheaper to fly Rob Lowe all the way to Dublin, Ireland and back to host the game show The Floor, along with 100 American contestants, than to simply film the show in California.[19] About that, Lowe said: "Itâ(TM)s criminal what California and L.A. have let happen â" itâ(TM)s criminal. Everybody should be fired.'"[19]
A side effect of outsourcing film and television work is that fewer apprenticeships are available to the next generation of California filmmakers. This is slowly eroding the concentration of experience and know-how which had made Hollywood unique.[8] As show business jobs continued to evaporate steadily during the 2020s, Los Angeles was widely seen at risk of becoming the next Detroit.[19] The January 2025 wildfires pushed many filmmaking professionals to their breaking point.[19] Financially, it made more sense for many of them to move to the places where their jobs had gone, than to try to stay and rebuild.[19]"
To give a specific example of another city in the US that has become a major film power house - Atlanta:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
"Trilith Studios is an American film and television production studio located south of Atlanta in Fayette County, Georgia. Originally known as Pinewood Atlanta Studios, the studio has been used to produce many films and television programs, particularly those produced by Marvel Studios. Trilith Studios encompasses a 700-acre site, with a 400-acre backlot and 32 soundstages.[1] A virtual production volume, Prysm Stage, opened in early 2022. As of 2024, Trilith Studios is the largest production facility in the state of Georgia and the largest outside of Hollywood."
Atlanta is only a day's away by plane from Los Angeles. Same thing with New York. I know people in the film industry who commute outside of LA to work for months at a time (because even though they'd rather work close to home... there's no work here.) It's not like this is a new thing - think about it - how else do you shoot on location?
But even Atlanta is feeling the pinch as production moves overseas these days.
"The first production to film at the studio was Marvel Studios' film Ant-Man (2015), which began in September 2014.[5][6] Marvel primarily shot their films at the facility for nearly a decade until 2025, where they changed their primary filming location to London."
https://cinedrones.com/updates...
"On July 2, 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill increasing Californiaâ(TM)s Film and Television Tax Credit Program from $330 million to $750 million annually, a significant step aimed at luring productions back to the Golden State. The legislation, hailed as a lifeline for an industry battered by a âoequadruple-whammyâ of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2023 writersâ(TM) and actorsâ(TM) strikes, Southern California wildfires and fierce competition from other regions, is projected to generate thousands of jobs and billions in economic activity. Yet, industry insiders and data suggest this boost may be too little, too late, as Los Angeles continues to lose its grip on film and TV production.
According to FilmLA, the film office for Los Angeles, shoot days in the region plummeted to 5,048 in the third quarter of 2024, marking the weakest quarter of the year and a 22.4% drop from the same period in 2023. Overall, 2024 saw just 23,480 shoot days, the second-lowest figure recorded outside the pandemic-stricken 2020. Since 2022, California has lost an estimated 17,000 entertainment jobs, with the stateâ(TM)s share of national film and TV employment dropping from 35% to 27%. These numbers paint a stark picture: Hollywood is bleeding, and the new tax credits may not be enough to stop the exodus."
You're clearly not in tune with the local news here. Film production is way down. Studios are essentially banks, and have been for decades - they package deals and get financing. The days of the studio system ended half a century ago. There are equally nice places outside of California (Vancouver, B.C. being one of them) that have successfully doubled for shooting locations in the US, and yes, they have union crews there.
Finally, you make it sound like studios don't pay taxes. Regardless of the financial accounting tricks they play (like killing already completed movies), I'll tell you the guaranteed taxes they do pay: payroll taxes for all the hourly and salaried employees that are working in the state, which covers medicare, social security, and state unemployment insurance.
