Hollywood employment seen dropping in 2008

By Paul Bond

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Entertainment is one of the largest employers in Los Angeles County, but growth will significantly lag others this year, according to a report issued Wednesday.

Movie and television production employed 157,800 people in the area last year but will drop this year to 151,800, said the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. It gave the industry a C-minus, one of the lowest grades among all major export industries.

The 3.8% drop puts entertainment second from the bottom among major industries, ahead of only construction, which will see a 6.6% drop in employees.

Broken into three subcategories, independent artists, writers and performers will take the biggest hit, losing 8.4% to 9,200 this year. Motion picture and sound is next, with a 4.3% decline to 122,700, and radio, TV and cable broadcasting fares best with 1.6% growth to 20,300.

The better news from the LAEDC's midyear report is that growth in the entertainment industry is expected to return next year as the industry makes up for the labor unrest that has hampered it this year.

In 2009, the industry is expected to directly employ 159,700 people in L.A. County, 5.2% more than this year.

When all independent contractors are included, the industry employed 241,000 people last year, making it the third-biggest employer among the 19 major industries in L.A. County.

The biggest negative force this year was the 100-day writers strike that started last year but didn't end until February, sucking $2.5 billion from the county's economy.

Negative forces expected to last into next year include a lack of government-sponsored economic incentives to keep production in California and a leveling off of DVD revenue while "no major new digital revenue streams have emerged," according to the report.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter