The creative community is a leading contributor to the Greater Los Angeles economy, as substantiated in the 2010 Otis Report prepared for the Otis College of Art and Design by the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC). For example, the arts, design and entertainment industries combined in ’09 to represent 835,000 direct and indirect jobs (almost one in every six in the L.A. region) and some $113 billion in sales/receipts in L.A. and Orange counties. More than $4.6 billion in state and local tax revenues were generated in ’09 by art and design-oriented businesses spanning the entertainment, toy, digital media, fashion, architecture, interior design, industrial design, and communication arts industries, as well as fine and performing arts.
However, as impressive as these numbers are, they represent a decline from those in the ’09 Otis Report which tallied nearly one million direct and indirect jobs, almost $140 billion in sales/receipts, and over $5.1 billion in state and local tax revenues in ’08. Clearly the overall global economic downturn impacted the latest set of numbers as did arguably such dynamics as runaway production to other states and for that matter countries with more inviting tax breaks and financial incentive packages.
Still in the big picture, the economic barometer has risen steadily since 2003 in Greater L.A. Between ’03 and ’08, employment in the service-oriented creative industries of L.A. grew by 9.9 percent, and by two percent in Orange County.
Narrowing results down to the entertainment industry, the 2010 Otis Report found nearly 119,000 people working directly in the business during ’09 in L.A. County. The estimated direct sales numbers were huge, $48.3 billion in ’09, most of which came from the film production industry. The total economic impact was 354,900 direct and indirect jobs, and estimated total output of over $129 billion. State and local taxes generated directly and indirectly by this sector totaled $2.4 billion in ’09.
The creative economy represents the second largest regional business sector in Greater Los Angeles, surpassed only by the tourism and hospitality industry, according to the Otis Report, which estimates the creative community’s total economic impact in L.A. and Orange counties as having been some $286.3 billion in ’09. The LAEDC factors each direct job as supporting roughly one-and-a-half indirect jobs in the marketplace. And the creative economy includes the largest segment of self-employed people (independent artists, writers, performers) in the L.A. region.
In terms of employment trends, the creative economy in L.A. is projected to be on the upswing through 2014–but that growth will be slow, with an estimated 6.7 percent increase in the number of jobs. Helping to drive that growth is the digital media market, which has already exhibited its ability to buck the recession with 700 additional jobs in ’09 as compared to ’08.
Actor Steve Guttenberg Returns To L.A. Neighborhood Now Charred By Devastating Wildfire
Steve Guttenberg awoke Thursday morning to a grim reality: The treacherous wildfire that tore through the Pacific Palisades had left his once-lush neighborhood charred and unrecognizable.
With homes smoldered, streets emptied and friends scattered by evacuation orders, Guttenberg counted himself among the fortunate. His property was miraculously spared. But the actor-producer still struggled to reconcile his relief with the haunting sight of his ravaged, once lavish community.
"Just this morning, I woke up and I was really conscious of my mental state and my mental health, because the last three days, I've seen so much tragedy," said Guttenberg, pacing through the ruins of his neighborhood. He said his home has electricity but no running water.
Guttenberg thanked God that his block was safe, but he said about 20 homes were burned "pretty bad" in his 80-home community after wind-whipped fires tore across Los Angeles, destroying homes, clogging roadways as tens of thousands fled as the fires burned uncontained Wednesday. He said the fires are the worst he's ever seen in his 66-years.
The wildfires have burned the homes of several celebrities including Billy Crystal, Carey Elwes and Paris Hilton.
Guttenberg said he never expected all of this to happen.
"It's like when someone dies suddenly," he said. "It's like when someone gets hit by a car. You never expect that to happen. That's how shocking it was."
During Guttenberg's stroll, it was an eerie scene with scorched palm trees, homes reduced to ash and rubble, and the daytime skies casted an ominous twilight over the devastation.
"I've seen people scared, people in wheelchairs, mothers and fathers trying to find their kids, people having anxiety and panic... Read More