Supporting LA’s Legacy Industry: Mayor Bass Join Entertainment Industry Leaders to Launch New Film Studio Campus in LA’s Arts District

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LOS ANGELES – Today, Mayor Bass joined leaders from the entertainment industry to celebrate the opening of East End Studios’ new Mission Campus in LA’s Arts District. The opening of this state-of-the-art studio campus builds upon Mayor Bass’ efforts to make City Hall a dedicated partner to LA’s legacy industry, helping boost production in the city and spur the creation of new good-paying union jobs across Los Angeles. B-roll of the event available here. 

“LA is the creative capital of the world with our entertainment industry being core to this city’s history and the backbone of our economy,” said Mayor Bass. “When we invest in our signature industry we are creating good-paying union jobs, expanding creative outlets and spurring new economic opportunities. I want to congratulate East End Studios on this milestone and look forward to continuing our partnership to deliver for Angelenos.” 

“The Downtown Los Angeles Arts District has been a key focus for us for many years as one of the region’s most dynamic development markets,” said Shep Wainwright, Managing Partner at East End Studios. “Its deep cultural roots and unique character make it an ideal setting for a world-class, fully integrated film and television studio campus.” Wainwright added, “We are deeply grateful for the support of the City of Los Angeles and Mayor Karen Bass, whose leadership helps ensure Los Angeles remains the global center of the entertainment industry.”

Mayor Bass joined East End Studio leaders in July, 2024 to officially break ground on the campus. At the groundbreaking, Mayor Bass emphasized her administration’s commitment to keep production local, stabilize LA’s foundational industry and make City Hall a partner to the industry. The Mayor’s Office of Business and Economic Development worked closely with East End Studios’ leaders to streamline City processes and ensure today’s ribbon cutting was possible. 

“East End Studios’ continued investment in Los Angeles is a strong vote of confidence in our city’s creative economy and workforce. The opening of the Mission Campus not only expands world-class production capacity in the Arts District, but also reflects a long-term commitment to keeping jobs, talent, and innovation here in Los Angeles,” said Denise Gutches, CEO, FilmLA. “Congratulations to the entire East End Studios team on this impressive achievement and their growing success in our region.” 

“Collaboration is key to protect, stabilize and grow our film and television industry and the important jobs it creates across our state and right here in the heart of Los Angeles,” said Lindsay Dougherty, Teamsters Local 399, Principal Officer & Motion Picture Division Director. “It is the commitment of Hollywood Teamsters, and Hollywood Labor, to continue the advocacy work for programs, policies and investment in infrastructure that promotes a vibrant industry for our members and participates in a thriving local and state economy. While the work continues to remain competitive, we are excited to celebrate the official opening of East End Studios. Now, let’s fill these stages.” 

The new Mission Campus is a 255,000 square foot facility providing a multitude of services for creatives including, expansive office space, state of the art production facilities and five-full service sound stages. In total the campus created 1,500 construction jobs and is expected to spur an additional 750 permanent jobs for Angelenos.  

Mayor Bass recently announced critical progress on implementing her Executive Directive 11, aimed at bolstering LA’s entertainment industry. She announced the following improvements: 

• The Central Library will reopen filming for major productions this year. 

• The Port of Los Angeles has cut the time it takes to review filming applications.

• City staff are preparing a proposal to return to lower fees for filming at the Griffith Observatory. 

• The LA Department of Transportation has extended staff hours to ensure timely on-street signage posting requests and changes for local productions.

• FilmLA, the City’s film permitting partner, is developing a tiered permitting fee structure for low-impact productions, working in coordination with Film Liaison Steve Kang and the Mayor’s Office.

• The LA Department of Transportation has pre-approved certain closures in Downtown Los Angeles, allowing FilmLA to authorize curb lane and local street closures in accordance with established manual guidelines.

• LAPD has identified activity and locations where the assignment of personnel can either be waived or decreased since the Mayor’s directive.

Additionally, the appointment of Board of Public Works President Steve Kang as the Mayor’s Liaison to the Film and Television Industry has streamlined many of the day-to-day barriers that productions face in Los Angeles. By providing a concierge-style service and addressing issues directly as they arise, the Mayor’s Liaison ensures that productions receive timely support and that the City remains a film-friendly partner.

Mayor Bass recently welcomed back productions to Los Angeles, including the reboot of Baywatch following the historic passage of Governor Newsom’s expanded Film & TV Tax Credit Program. Mayor Bass has championed LA’s signature industry since she was Speaker of the State Assembly, overseeing the passage of the inaugural Film and TV Tax Credit Program. Now as Mayor, she has used her mayoral authority to focus on streamlining city processes and delivering excellent customer service so creators and crews can do what they do best — in the city that does it best.