Bid for LA: The Industry Movement Fighting to Save the City's Production Future

Los Angeles, to put it lightly, has been through the wringer in recent years. Years of setbacks to its production community have included uncompetitive tax incentives, the pandemic shutdown, the SAG and WGA strikes and, most recently, the devastating wildfires.
It has all taken a severe toll on the city’s industry.

In 2019, Los Angeles logged 5,290 commercial shoot days. In 2024 that number fell to 3,207 - a 39% decline in just five years, and a direct hit to small businesses, the local economy, and the 141,000 individuals in LA who rely on advertising production for their livelihoods. What’s more, according to FilmLA, despite a 6.2% increase in overall shoot days during the fourth quarter of 2024, permit data reveals a 5.6% reduction in production shoot days in Los Angeles County compared to 2023. This decline marks 2024 as the second least productive year for Los Angeles filming, again according to FilmLA data, surpassed only by 2020 during the pandemic.

The recent wildfires also displaced hundreds of production workers, adding financial strain to an already precarious gig economy. Furthermore, California's business climate is reportedly driving companies away. From 2018 to 2023, eight Fortune 500 companies relocated from California, citing high taxes and more attractive incentives elsewhere, leaving only 57 headquartered within the state. This exodus potentially translates to lost production opportunities.

Finally, competition from emerging production hubs in Atlanta, Chicago, Texas and New Mexico is fierce, and many are actively courting productions and skilled workers to run them.

The combination of these factors – declining production, economic hardship, and increased competition – has created a perfect storm for LA's production community. Which is why two members of it, Veronica Lombardo and Jenn McConville, have launched Bid for LA, an initiative encouraging companies to include a ‘Bid for LA’ in all production tenders, even if other locations are on the table. “Give LA a fighting chance,” the website reads. “Even if you're exploring other locations, including a Los Angeles based bid gives the city the opportunity to compete for your production, which means work for LA crews who are struggling to find it.”

Veronica is the founder of VLM, an independent representation and creative management company, while Jenn is the founder of POP OPS and long-time agency production and operations specialist. The idea for Bid for LA began cementing during the wildfires when Jenn called Veronica, who was born and raised in the Pacific Palisades, which experienced particularly extreme devastation, to check in. Jenn, who now calls LA home, was keen to do something to help. When Veronica told her about the idea for Bid for LA, she didn’t hesitate – she was all in on helping make it happen.

“Los Angeles offers an unmatched combination,” says Veronica. “Iconic locations, reliably perfect weather, and a production infrastructure built on decades of innovation - from state-of-the-art studios to the most versatile backlots. We boast the most skilled professionals in front of and behind the camera, period.

“Right now, this extraordinary production ecosystem is facing a critical challenge. That's why marketers, agencies, and production companies should prioritise bringing their productions to LA.” Veronica acknowledges the financial and bureaucratic hurdles that can be involved, but says that Bid for LA is actively working to address these issues by identifying achievable, "low-hanging fruit" targets that the city and county can implement. “It’s a ground-up initiative to revitalise our industry,” she says.

“The moment I heard it, I knew it was the perfect way for me to make an impact,” adds Jenn. “Having built my career on the agency side — growing up as an agency producer and now working as a fractional COO — this is exactly the kind of assignment I take on: complex, meaningful problems that need structure, clarity and action.”

With Veronica’s deep roots on the production side, and Jenn’s in-agency operations, they feel that they’re coming at the problem from both ends — brands and agencies to production, and production to agencies and brands. “That’s what makes us such a powerful team,” says Jenn. “Two complementary perspectives working toward one goal.”

The goal of Bid for LA is in the name, she adds. “We want brands, agencies, and production companies, vendors, etc, to ‘Bid for LA’.”

But that’s just the beginning, Jenn and Veronica are keen to stress. Like any complex problem, the process began with discovery. Unearth what is keeping production away from the city they call home, and bring that information to the people who can help drive change. “By understanding the real contributing factors to the decline of ad production in LA we have the information to turn those insights into action,” says Jen.

Natural disasters are difficult to predict and can be impossible to avoid, but there are other things with which the state of California is potentially shooting itself, and LA’s production community, in the foot. The city struggles to compete with other markets on tax incentives and Veronica and Jenn say that the city’s permitting process is “complex, unpredictable and costly”, creating a cocktail of uncertainty for producers. “And if that weren’t enough,” adds Jenn, ”with craft being devalued in favour of lean budgets, and an uncertain political and economic climate, this is a challenge facing the entire industry - not just LA.”

Ultimately, Jenn and Veronica’s aim is to be “the ears and voice of the industry”. They want to gather all of this information and bring actionable recommendations, such as temporary moratoriums on permits, locations, police and fire fees, and track bids, wins and losses data, to influence policy and process. They’ve already spoken with the LA mayor’s Economic Development team and plan to deliver their initial summary with the hope of encouraging new policies for advertising production, much like the ones that have been put in place for the film and television industries.

“My hope,” says Veronica, “is that LA's production community, especially those who've built careers here, [will] actively Bid for LA. The advertising industry has a history of championing vital causes, and this is no exception. We must support the gig workers and craftspeople who are the bedrock of our creative magic. Let's not abandon the foundation that empowered us. Their dedication is the wand that makes our visions reality.”

“Production didn’t decline overnight,” adds Jenn. “And it’s not going to rebuild overnight either. Beyond the initial push to Bid for LA, this is a long-term effort to bring work back to a city that has been the creative heart of advertising production for decades.

“If we want LA to remain a global hub for creative production, we need to play the long game—one bid at a time.”

Bid for LA is launching roundtable discussions, the first of which takes place this Friday, April 11th. They are seeking participation from bidders, line producers, company owners, and anyone actively involved in assembling bids. These sessions will gather crucial insights, develop actionable solutions, and deliver them directly to the LA city mayor’s office and council members, aiming to drive real change for a better production environment.

To join these conversations, email action@bidforla.com.

You can also show your support by filling out the form on their website, and by following them on Instagram at @bidforla.