{"version":1,"tree":{"n":"html","c":[{"n":"head","x":"\n ","l":"\n ","c":[{"n":"title","x":"Desconocido","l":"\n \n "},{"n":"link","l":"\n","a":[["rel","stylesheet"],["type","text/css"],["href","../../stylesheet.css"]]},{"n":"link","l":"\n","a":[["rel","stylesheet"],["type","text/css"],["href","../../page_styles.css"]]}]},{"n":"body","a":[["class","calibre"]],"c":[{"n":"div","x":"| ","a":[["class","calibre_navbar"]],"c":[{"n":"a","x":"Siguiente","l":" | ","a":[["href","javascript:void(0)"],["rel","articlenextlink"],["data-xQvX3JSyyUS4yAvbblzwf5","{\"name\": \"feed_15/article_1/index_u45.html\", \"frag\": \"\"}"]]},{"n":"a","x":"Menú de sección","l":" | ","a":[["href","javascript:void(0)"],["data-xQvX3JSyyUS4yAvbblzwf5","{\"name\": \"feed_15/index_u8.html\", \"frag\": \"article_0\"}"]]},{"n":"a","x":"Menú principal","l":" | ","a":[["href","javascript:void(0)"],["data-xQvX3JSyyUS4yAvbblzwf5","{\"name\": \"index_u63.html\", \"frag\": \"feed_15\"}"]]},{"n":"hr","l":"\n","a":[["class","calibre6"]]}]},{"n":"div","a":[["class","calibre-nuked-tag-article"]],"c":[{"n":"div","x":"Lights, camera, tariffs?","a":[["class","calibre8"]]},{"n":"h1","x":"Hollywood is in trouble. Politicians should not try to save it","a":[["class","calibre9"]]},{"n":"div","x":"Tariffs will not help, and taxpayers have no good reason to","a":[["class","calibre19"]]},{"n":"p","x":"may. 08, 2025 01:49 | LOS ANGELES","a":[["class","calibre10"]]},{"n":"div","a":[["class","calibre-nuked-tag-article"]],"c":[{"n":"img","a":[["src","images/img1_u52.jpg"],["title","An illustration of a film reel showing frames of the Hollywood sign with one of the letters falling down."],["class","calibre3"],["data-calibre-src","feed_15/article_0/images/img1_u52.jpg"]]}]},{"n":"div","a":[["class","calibre11"]]},{"n":"p","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"I","a":[["data-caps","initial"],["class","calibre13"]]},{"n":"span","x":"N “HOME ALONE 2” ","l":"he made do with a cameo. Now Donald Trump has cast himself in the role of Hollywood’s saviour. “The Movie Industry in America is DYING”, America’s president posted on May 4th on Truth Social, his social-media site. Other countries’ “concerted effort” to lure film production away not only hurts the economy, but also poses a “National Security threat”, he claimed, since foreign films are used as propaganda. To redress these ills, Mr Trump proposed a 100% tariff on films produced abroad.","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"In Hollywood the presidential post provoked a cacophony of ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"R","l":"-rated swearing. The film and television industry is remarkably globalised: a movie might be written in Los Angeles, co-financed by Wall Street and international investors and filmed in several countries. America’s entertainment industry generated $22.6bn in exports in 2023, according to the Motion Picture Association. If America slapped tariffs on foreign films, other countries might retaliate. It is not clear how such tariffs would work, nor whether Mr Trump’s off-the-cuff proposal will ever amount to a real policy, but they could hugely disrupt an industry already reeling from the ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"a","x":"decline of cinema-going","l":" and a ","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2020/05/07/when-cinemas-reopen-they-will-not-be-the-same"]]},{"n":"a","x":"rocky transition to streaming","l":".","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/business/2023/05/10/writers-on-strike-beware-hollywood-has-changed-for-ever"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"Cash-strapped studios would have to pass some of the extra costs on to viewers—who have so far benefited most from the internationalisation of film-making. American studios like to shoot abroad because it is cheaper. It also means they can choose from a wider range of striking scenery and work with local experts, which makes for better films. (Britain, for instance, specialises in visual effects.) Most movie fans won’t care whether the next “Avengers” film or Disney remake is shot in Los Angeles, Vancouver or Budapest, so long as the end product is entertaining.","a":[["class","calibre12"]]},{"n":"p","x":"And, thanks to streamers, viewers now have access to a vast array of storytelling from anywhere in the world: the most popular show on Netflix is “Squid Game”, a South Korean dystopian drama that has accrued more than 3.5bn viewing hours since 2021. In this global marketplace of ideas, American producers can find new collaborators and pick up inspiration.","a":[["class","calibre12"]]},{"n":"p","x":"Hollywood may not have liked Mr Trump’s proposal, but many writers, directors and lawmakers agree that he has identified a real problem. Film and ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"TV ","l":"production fell globally following the ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"a","x":"writers’ and actors’ strikes of 2023","l":"; production in southern California, however, has fallen off a cliff. (The wildfires earlier this year brought another shock.) According to Film","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/united-states/2023/08/17/the-hollywood-strikes-reveal-los-angeless-deepest-anxieties"]]},{"n":"span","x":"LA","l":", which tracks filming in Greater Los Angeles, the region hosted fewer days of shooting in 2024 than any year except 2020, when most filming was stopped in the pandemic. California is still home to more film and ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"span","x":"TV ","l":"jobs than any other American state, but its share is declining.","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"div","a":[["class","calibre-nuked-tag-article"]],"c":[{"n":"img","a":[["src","images/img2_u15.png"],["title",""],["class","calibre3"],["data-calibre-src","feed_15/article_0/images/img2_u15.png"]]}]},{"n":"div","a":[["class","calibre11"]]},{"n":"p","x":"Hollywood is a catch-all term for the movie industry but it is also a district, where workers at studios can gaze up at the white-lettered sign in the hills. Angelenos have long worried that they are losing their grip on the city’s best-known industry. Production first fled from ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"LA ","l":"to Canada in the 1990s when the ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"span","x":"US ","l":"dollar was very strong, says Kevin Klowden of the Milken Institute, a think-tank in Santa Monica. In the 1990s and early 2000s states such as Louisiana and New Mexico began offering tax incentives to lure production. Mr Klowden notes that “Breaking Bad”, which was set and primarily filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was originally meant to take place in Riverside, California. Eventually, in 2009, California began offering tax incentives of its own.","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"They are less generous, however, than those on offer elsewhere. Britain ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"a","x":"offers a tax credit","l":" on films and high-end ","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/britain/2021/09/09/britains-film-industry-is-booming"]]},{"n":"span","x":"TV ","l":"at a rate of 34%. This is one reason why blockbusters such as “Barbie”, “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Wicked” were filmed there. Last year spending on production in Britain reached £5.6bn ($7.5bn), an increase of 31% from 2023; much of it came from American companies.","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"All the while, California has been getting more expensive. Film industry workers make roughly 20% more in the Golden State than the national average. The workforce is heavily unionised and studios have to pay workers enough to live in one of the least-affordable housing markets in America. Rob Lowe, an actor, has explained why his game show shoots overseas: “It’s cheaper to bring 100 American people to Ireland than to walk across the lot at Fox.”","a":[["class","calibre12"]]},{"n":"p","x":"Some industry workers are leaving ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"LA","l":", slowly eroding the network effects that have helped the city keep other wannabe film capitals at bay. The production decline means ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"a","x":"spots in writing rooms are scarce","l":". Sean Collins-Smith, a ","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/business/2023/07/19/hollywoods-blockbuster-strike-may-become-a-flop"]]},{"n":"span","x":"TV ","l":"writer, lives off his residual payments for his work on episodes of “Chicago ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"span","x":"PD","l":"”, a police procedural. As a writer, he says, “If you don’t work for two or three years, you got no choice” but to leave.","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"Mr Trump already seems to have backed away from his tariff pledge, but it is unclear what might replace it. Jon Voight, an actor and one of the president’s “special ambassadors” to Hollywood, wants federal tax incentives. The shock that hit Hollywood when Mr Trump’s Truth Social post landed has turned to cautious optimism. Movie moguls would love to receive federal handouts, and California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, has their backs. Responding to Mr Trump’s tariff proposal, he suggested that Uncle Sam should give the industry $7.5bn a year instead. “Obviously, the president got excited about tariffs,” says Ben Allen, a California state senator who represents much of ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"LA","l":"’s west side, “but there are other ways to help.”","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"Why is Mr Trump interested in helping Hollywood at all? Foreign films are hardly a security threat; as propaganda tools, they are far less potent than social media. Lifting Hollywood over its foreign rivals could be seen as an “America First” policy, and movie bigwigs are pressing this button by likening their woes to those of the rust belt. Russell Hollander, the head of the Directors Guild of America, suggests that if enough film production leaves ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"LA","l":", “Hollywood can become the next Detroit.”","a":[["class","calibre14"]]}]},{"n":"p","x":"However, creating a federal handout for moviemakers would require congressional approval. Since the industry is concentrated in liberal states such as California and New York, that may not sit well with Republican lawmakers.","a":[["class","calibre12"]]},{"n":"p","x":"Even if Congress did act, California would still have to contend with other states’ incentive schemes. New York is mulling expanding its film tax credit; the Golden State may follow suit. Yet California’s Legislative Analyst’s Office has found “no compelling evidence” that such incentives boost the state’s economy, or eventually pay for themselves. Squeezing taxpayers to cosset the world’s most glamorous industry may prove hard to justify, come election time. In politics, as in the movies, there may be tears when the credits roll. ","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"■"}]},{"n":"p","a":[["class","calibre12"]],"c":[{"n":"i","x":"For more on the latest books, films, ","a":[["class","calibre18"]],"c":[{"n":"span","x":"TV ","l":"shows, albums and controversies, sign up to ","a":[["class","calibre14"]]},{"n":"a","x":"Plot Twist","l":", our weekly subscriber-only newsletter","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/culture/2022/11/23/introducing-plot-twist-our-new-culture-newsletter"],["target","_blank"]]}]}]}]},{"n":"div","x":"\n","a":[["class","calibre_navbar"]],"c":[{"n":"hr","l":"\n","a":[["class","calibre6"]]},{"n":"p","x":"This article was downloaded by ","l":"\n","a":[["class","calibre16"]],"c":[{"n":"strong","x":"calibre","l":" from ","a":[["class","calibre13"]]},{"n":"a","x":"https://www.economist.com/culture/2025/05/08/hollywood-is-in-trouble-politicians-should-not-try-to-save-it","a":[["href","https://www.economist.com/culture/2025/05/08/hollywood-is-in-trouble-politicians-should-not-try-to-save-it"],["rel","calibre-downloaded-from"]]}]},{"n":"br","a":[["class","calibre-nuked-tag-article"]]},{"n":"br","l":" | ","a":[["class","calibre-nuked-tag-article"]]},{"n":"a","x":"Menú de sección","l":" | ","a":[["href","javascript:void(0)"],["data-xQvX3JSyyUS4yAvbblzwf5","{\"name\": \"feed_15/index_u8.html\", \"frag\": \"article_0\"}"]]},{"n":"a","x":"Menú principal","l":" | ","a":[["href","javascript:void(0)"],["data-xQvX3JSyyUS4yAvbblzwf5","{\"name\": \"index_u63.html\", \"frag\": \"feed_15\"}"]]}]}]}]},"ns_map":["http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"]}