Film industry gets spotlight in L.A. City Council race

from the LA Times

by Maeve Reston

Christine Essel and Paul Krekorian each want to be seen as the one who would keep more Hollywood productions from leaving the state. The runoff election is Dec. 8.

In a campaign where jobs and unemployment have become a signature issue, the two candidates seeking to replace former Los Angeles City Councilwoman Wendy Greuel are fighting over who will do more to stem the exodus of Hollywood production.

With feature film production down 37% citywide compared to the same period last year, former Paramount Pictures Corp. executive Christine Essel and Assemblyman Paul Krekorian (D-Los Angeles) agree on one thing: City officials have waited far too long to address the issue.

But the two candidates, who are competing in the Dec. 8 runoff in the eastern San Fernando Valley, have sharply criticized each other's work on film issues as they vie to serve as the voice for the industry at City Hall.

Feature production in the Los Angeles area declined in 10 of the last 12 years, according to FilmL.A. Inc., which coordinates local film permits. And as more than 40 states offered lucrative tax incentives, California's share of studio feature film production dropped from 66% in 2003 to 34% in 2008, according to the California Film Commission. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in Los Angeles stands at 14%.

Essel argues that 30 years of working her way up from a studio accounting clerk to a vice president at Paramount prepared her to champion efforts to make Los Angeles more film-friendly. But Krekorian, who authored the state's current law offering film and television tax incentives, has blamed Essel for the plunge in production during her time as chairwoman of the California Film Commission and has faulted her for encouraging other states to enhance their incentive programs while she was an executive at Paramount.

"My legislation is saving California film workers' jobs today, right now," said Krekorian, whose proposal was approved as part of an economic stimulus package in February. "She failed these workers for a decade, because it was in the corporate interests of her employer to take jobs away from California."

In a recent debate, Essel expressed amusement at Krekorian's implication that she had the power at Paramount to send films to other states. While leading the commission, she said, she spent nine years bringing film industry officials together to advocate for an incentive that Sacramento refused to pass.

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