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Stay in LA is a grassroots coalition of filmmakers, showrunners, crew members, actors, industry partners, and small businesses united by a shared mission: to keep film, television, and commercial production—and the thousands of jobs and local businesses it supports—right here in Los Angeles. Born out of the hardships of the LA wildfires, our movement has grown into a powerful voice for the region’s creative economy.
Our Impact (So Far)
In 2025, Stay in LA has met with more than 60 legislators at the state, county, city, and town levels — advocating for incentives and policies that protect jobs, support small businesses, and keep film, television, and commercial production thriving in Los Angeles.
But there’s more work to do.
To truly make Los Angeles the easiest (and most competitive) place in the world to shoot, we must lead on the issues that matter most to our industry and community:
- Permitting: Streamlining approvals, cutting red tape, and reducing unnecessary costs.
- Price Gouging: Combating exploitative practices that discourage productions from staying in LA.
- Community Engagement: Fostering a film-friendly culture by strengthening relationships between productions and neighborhoods.
Why This Matters
Our industry touches every corner of Los Angeles — from tourism, dining and hospitality to small business, schools and local jobs. These sectors are deeply interconnected. When production thrives here, our entire city benefits.
Our Commitment (as volunteers)
We will continue to fight for smarter policies, fairer practices,
and a stronger creative economy.
Los Angeles should set the standard for production — leading not just locally, but globally — as the most welcoming, transparent, and rewarding place for creators and communities alike.
IF YOU BELIEVE IN WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR, CHIP IN TO HELP US KEEP GOING
We are all volunteers. We're not a non-profit.
Not a company. Not lobbyists.
No one here gets paid. We do this because we care.
Donations reimburse volunteers for softwares, meals, gas and
other expenses related to the Stay in LA goals.
Timeline (so far)
JANUARY 2025
- 1/7 - Palisades & Eaton fires begin
- 1/14 - first draft of petition is written
- 1/15 - WhatsApp group created — formed from members of Society of Writer-Directors + Showrunner group
- 1/16 - the Stay in LA name is created
- 1/20 - CA United joins to rally behind the Stay in LA campaign
- 1/22 - Stay in LA petition launches
- 1/23 - Stay in LA instagram launches, Jessica Gao signs
- 1/24 - Keanu Reeves & Cord Jefferson signs
- 1/25 - Stay in LA petition hits 10k signatures
- 1/26 - Bette Midler & Kevin Bacon signs
FEBRUARY 2025
- 2/1 - Ruth Carter signs
- 2/13 - Stay in LA petition hits 20k signatures.
- 2/14 - Stay in LA attends L.A. City Council meeting to introduce the organization and endorse the tax incentive motion
- 2/23 - Stay in LA petition hits 21k signatures
- 2/26 - Lumen Awards honors the Stay in LA campaign
- 2/26 - W Hotel hosts first Stay in LA advocacy mixer
MARCH 2025
- 3/2 - Stay in LA leaders speak at press conference with Senator Allen & Assemblymember Zbur on behalf of the film/tv bills
- 3/3 - Stay in LA leaders go to Sacramento to push for the state incentive bills
- 3/18 - Stay in LA petition hits 22k signatures
- 3/24 - Stay in LA member attends Silverlake Town Council meeting to support their motion to support easier city and state filming
- 3/25 - Noah Wyle gives shout out to Stay in LA in Entertainment Tonight interview
- 3/27 - Stay in LA leader gives passionate testimony in Sacramento in favor of the state tax/film incentive
- 3/27 - CA United walks into Councilmember Adrin Nazarian's office with a 10-point permitting reform proposal in hand, kicking off a historic push for local reform. This was our first meeting with a city councilmember - the beginning of many.
- 3/28 - City Councilmember Nazarian introduces motion covering the 10 point locals reform to City Council for immediate city review
APRIL 2025
- 4/6 - Stay In LA Rally at Sir Reel Studios attracts 1,000+, 20+ legislators, and unions in support of tax incentives
- 4/14 - Stay in LA speaks at post-production and scoring carve out support panel at Evergreen Studios
- 4/22 - Stay in LA petition hits 23k signatures
- 4/28 - Stay in LA members head to Sacramento to support the state film/tv bills
- 4/29 - L.A. City Council Unanimously Passes Measure to Spur Reform of Film Permitting Process, led by Nazarian’s office
MAY 2025
- 5/7 - Bid for LA, an initiative focused on commercials, joins CA United
- 5/14 - Met with Supervisor Kathryn Barger's office to kick off LA County permitting reform, sparking a County motion to review outdated processes and reduce and waive fees
- 5/20 - Mayor Bass issues Executive Directive to support local film/tv needs
JUNE 2025
- 6/11 - Met with Supervisor Lindsey Horvath's office to start aligning permitting processes across all 88 cities to bring consistency, accountability, and reform to the entire LA region
- 6/20 - Over 100+ industry members show up to City Hall to voice their opinions and experience with FilmLA (contract renewal goes through)
- 6/23 - The show Hacks slips in a Stay in LA reference
- 6/23 - West Hollywood unanimously passes measure to make the city more film-friendly
- 6/24 - Burbank unanimously approves establishing a Creative Industry Taskforce
JULY 2025
- 7/3 - California officially passes the $750M tv/film modernization and expansion incentive bills
- 7/8 - CA United enters their commercial era
- 7/15 - LA County Board of Supervisors unanimously passes a Motion requiring concrete steps to strengthen production throughout LA County
STAY in LA Sayings
“LA doesn’t need to be the cheapest. We need to be the easiest.”
“Others are rolling out our red carpet, while we roll out red tape.”
“LA should lead, not lag.”
“LA should be the easiest place to shoot.”
“There’s no place like home.” - Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz
"This is the kind of organizing and movement we need for the TV & Film Industry! @stayinla2025 we are here to support!" - The Tolucan Times
"It's been so hard seeing our town lose so much local production work. Follow & support Stay in LA as they work to try and retain the work that's such a big part of LA." - Sean Pecknold
"Stay in LA is doing some amazing work trying to keep production work in Los Angeles. Highly recomment following and supporting where you can." - Clayton Farris
"Thank you Stay in LA and everyone who is paving the path for change." - Rheanne Garcia
"It's so much better for the quality of life for everybody in L.A. and in California to have a thriving film industry." - Christy Vega, Casa Vega
"Eastern Costume strongly supports the Stay in LA initiative! We will do the work, but we need help bringing the work back home." - Eastern Costume Inc
CA UNITED
CA United is a grassroots coalition of over 5,000 engaged California residents. We range from Film & TV production professionals and small business owners to blue collar employees and high level executives spanning many industries. Most importantly, we are Californians, united for a common purpose. www.caunited.org
TUSC
THE UNION SOLIDARITY COALITION was founded by writer/directors who were moved to connect with crew affected by the 2023 WGA strike. Watching people honor our picket lines touched and inspired us, and presented us with a model for unity in action. Though the strike is the catalyst for creating TUSC, we feel this is just the beginning of a larger, urgent movement of solidarity between all of the industry unions, and also our coworkers who aren’t part of a union. We want to think big about how we can support each other in the face of a national labor crisis. www.tusctogether.com