The city of Santa Clarita reported that the fiscal year ending June 30 was another successful year for filming in the community with 909 total filming days, representing more than $21 million in economic impact locally.

The Santa Clarita Valley Film Office recorded 909 film days and 372 permits issued for the last fiscal year, representing a 4 percent increase in film days and an 8 percent increase in film permits compared to the City’s previous record year in Fiscal Year 2010-11.   The economic impact of local filming increased 13 percent to $21,141,500 from 2011 when the estimated economic impact was $18,777,500.

“The City’s Film Office has put Santa Clarita on the map as Hollywood’s film community of choice as evidenced by yet another strong year for location filming,” said Mayor Frank Ferry.  “Filming not only supports local, high paying jobs, but is a big benefit for the community and our businesses as a result of production spending while filming on location.”

In March the City Council approved a three year extension of the City’s Film Incentive Program, which is dedicated to retaining and increasing feature and television production by reducing the costs of safety personnel and subsidizing permit fees and location fees for city-owned properties.  Incentives are also provided for productions that film on location four or more times in a year, as well as those that qualified for the state of California tax rebate program.

To date, the City’s Film Incentive Program has supported locally based productions by refunding more than $185,000 in permit fees since the program’s inception in 2009.  The program has contributed to an estimated $25.29 million in economic impact to the community through jobs and business sales.

The City of Santa Clarita provides diverse landscape, abundant settings, and a reasonable commute, attracting productions to the City and making it one of the most filmed areas in California.  Many productions continue to make the City of Santa Clarita their home including “NCIS,” “Switched at Birth,” “The Wedding Band,” “Jane by Design,” “Vegas,” “Franklin and Bash,” and “Justified.”

For more information about the Santa Clarita Film Office and the Film Incentive Program, please visit filmsantaclarita.com or contact the Film Office at (661) 284- 1425.