California has launched an enhanced $750 million annual tax credit program to lure back film and TV production amid recent declines. The program, enacted in July 2025, has already approved 119 projects expected to generate significant economic activity. Officials emphasize its role in countering perceptions of a production exodus from the state.
The California Film and Television Tax Credit Program 4.0, signed into law in July 2025, increases the annual funding cap from $330 million to $750 million through fiscal year 2030-31, totaling $3.75 billion over five years. Key enhancements include a base credit of 35% to 40% on qualified expenditures—up from 20% to 25%—full refundability for the first time, and higher caps on per-project expenses: $20 million for independent features and $120 million for studio projects. These changes align California's incentives with competitors like Georgia's uncapped 30% transferable credit and New York's 30% to 40% refundable credit with an $800 million cap.
As of mid-January 2026, 119 projects have been greenlit, comprising 39 television series and 80 features, projected to create 25,000 crew jobs and $4.1 billion in economic impact. Notable approvals include Ang Lee's 'Gold Mountain,' Michael Mann's 'Heat 2,' the next 'Jumanji' installment, a 'Baywatch' reboot, second seasons of Apple TV+'s 'The Studio' and Netflix's 'The Night Agent,' a Universal Snoop Dogg biopic, and an untitled Sony film starring Glen Powell.
Colleen Bell, executive director of the California Film Commission since 2019, highlights the program's success despite challenges. 'In the past six years, we've had over 300 film and TV projects here through our tax credit program, including 'One Battle After Another,' which was a Golden Globe winner,' she said, responding to comedian Nikki Glaser's recent joke about a production drought in Los Angeles.
FilmLA data indicates a 16.1% year-over-year drop in Greater Los Angeles shoot days from 2024 to 2025, though Q4 2025 saw a 5.6% quarterly increase. Independent filmmaker Cheryl Isaacson credits the incentive with enabling her Bay Area-set drama 'Girlie' to film locally at the repurposed Oakland Hills Campus. 'We were at the point... where we were going to have to look at other states if we did not get this incentive,' she noted.
However, East End Studios CEO Craig Chapman cautions that higher U.S. labor costs—40% above Europe's—necessitate broader reforms, including union adjustments and federal incentives. FilmLA's Denise Gutches anticipates visible effects from February 2026 onward, as projects approved since August 2025 commence filming. Los Angeles' share of U.S. scripted content fell to 18.3% in 2024, but Bell remains optimistic: 'We've got the infrastructure and the equipment and the innovation. It's all happening here in California.'
The program now extends to animation and large-scale competition series, with applications opening January 26, 2026.
