The Santa Clarita City Council is committed to doing everything possible to keep filming in L.A. County.  To that end, since 2009 the Council has approved funding a Film Incentive Program (FIP).  The FIP is aimed at retaining and increasing feature and television production in the City of Santa Clarita (City) and the Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) by subsidizing permit fees, in addition to reducing costs of safety personnel as possible.

The Fiscal Year 2012-2013 FIP offers refunds of basic film permit fees and portions of hotel occupancy taxes to qualifying productions as stated below.  The FIP subsidies are capped at $50,000 total for Fiscal Year 2012-2013 (July 1-June 30).  Applications will be accepted and subsidies will be allocated on a first come first served basis.  Productions currently based in the City will be given first priority.  Subsidies will continue to be allocated until all funds are exhausted.

The FIP also provides a substantial savings to productions assigned LA County Sheriff Deputies for traffic control and safety during filming within City limits.  In July 2010, the City began offering its contract rate to productions providing a savings of $12 to $23 per hour when compared to private entity rates.  The City’s process of ordering and paying for LA County Sheriff Deputies was also streamlined with all aspects being handled by the SCV Film Office as part of the permitting process.

Incentive Option 1 - Locally Based & Recurring Productions

City will refund the basic film permit fee(s) to the following:

• Production based at an approved location in the SCV for a minimum of four consecutive weeks; or
• Production that pulls four (4) or more City film permits during Fiscal Year 2012-2013
• Eligible productions include: feature length films, episodic television series, television pilots, television movies/miniseries, commercials, and music videos¹

   

  Incentive Option 2 - CA Film & Television Tax Credit Program Approved Productions

  City will refund the basic film permit fee(s) to the following:

  • Production project that is approved for the California Film & Television Tax Credit Program

   

  Incentive Option 3 - Occupancy at City Hotels

  City will refund fifty percent (50%) of Transient Occupancy Taxes (TOT), not to exceed five percent (5%), collected within the City to the following:

  • Production that purchases a minimum of five (5) room nights within a calendar month at a hotel located within the City; and
  • Production that films at an approved location in the SCV²

   

  ¹ Not eligible productions for Incentive Option 1 include: news programs, current events or public affairs programs, interview or talk shows, game shows, cooking shows, sporting events, awards shows, "reality" shows, productions that solicit funds, industrial and corporate films, films or programs consisting of more than 50% stock footage, documentaries, variety programs, daytime dramas, internet content or web programming, strip shows, student films, non-profit, and any production for which records are required to be maintained with respect to any performer in such production under Section 2257 of Title 18 of the United States Code (reporting of books, films, etc. with respect to sexually explicit conduct)

   

  ² “SCV” includes the following zip codes: 91321, 91350, 91351, 91354, 91355, 91381, 91382, 91383, 91384, 91387, 91390, 93510

   

   

  Downloadable Documents:

  Film Incentive Program Summary

   

  Other Incentive Resources:

  Santa Clarita Enterprise Zone

  California Film Incentives