Federal Film Incentive Could Double U.S. Production and Add Over 140,000 Jobs

The Motion Picture Association released a fresh report on Tuesday that reads like a rallying cry for a federal film incentive. If Congress were to approve a 20 percent tax credit, the study says U.S. film and television production could literally double by 2032.

Prepared by consulting firm Olsberg SPI, the analysis projects an annual creation of about 143,500 production jobs. Those aren’t just actors and directors; the numbers include set builders, construction crews, truck drivers, caterers and countless other workers who keep a shoot rolling.

Charles Rivkin, the MPA’s CEO, called the potential credit a “game‑changer.” He argued that the incentive would spread opportunity across all 50 states, letting storytellers of every stripe find work close to home.

According to the data, total spending on film and TV would climb to $34.7 billion by 2032 with the credit—almost double the $16.9 billion projected without it. Over the 2027‑2035 window, the study tallies an extra $125.3 billion in production activity and a cumulative economic impact of $249.1 billion.

The report leans on the premise that a federal credit would let the United States recapture a “sizable majority” of the global market. Today, the U.S. commands roughly 34 percent of worldwide film production and 42 percent of TV output. Without an incentive, those shares could slide to 25 percent and 29 percent by 2035. With a credit, the study predicts U.S. market share could soar to 65 percent.

That 65 percent figure echoes a 2015 FilmLA study which found 65 percent of a sample of 109 films were produced domestically. The MPA also examined 20 of its member companies’ projects and concluded that a 20 percent credit would make 16 of them competitive to shoot in the U.S. instead of abroad.

Globally, the incentive landscape is crowded. In 2017 there were 86 national, state or provincial film incentives; today that number has risen to 121, with hotbeds emerging in Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Eastern Europe and South Korea. The Olsberg report assumes those foreign programs stay static, which may be optimistic.

One gap in the study is the lack of a return‑on‑investment ratio—largely because the exact cost of the credit is still unknown. The proposal will soon be scored by the Joint Committee on Taxation, which will estimate the price tag for taxpayers.

President Trump’s recent endorsement of a federal film credit has breathed new life into the discussion on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers are expected to file a bill before the month ends, and the MPA is mobilizing a coalition of Hollywood unions to push the idea forward.