Personal Income Tax Law: Corporation Tax Law: credits: qualified motion picture: post-production

The credit targets post-production work in California, including projects that did not film here or receive an existing state film credit. It ties most available credits to wage, benefits, training, and workforce-reporting commitments.

What the law does ​

• Authorizes credits worth 35% of qualified California editorial post-production costs, with bonuses that can bring the total to 50% for qualifying work outside the Los Angeles zone, music scoring, or projects with substantial in-state filming.
• Limits base eligible expenditures to $6 million for non-visual-effects work and $6 million for visual-effects work per project.
• Requires at least 75% or $1 million of editorial post-production expenses to be spent in California, completion within 18 months of approval, and a diversity-workplan checklist.
• Directs the California Film Commission to allocate credits from July 2027 through June 2032, ranking applicants by qualified wages generated per credit dollar and subject to annual Budget Act funding.
• Reserves 85% of allocable credits for applicants that attest to prevailing local wages, employer-paid benefits and pension contributions, workforce training, reporting, and at least one direct California hire.
• Allows unused credits to carry forward for up to eight years; permits qualifying independent-film credits to be sold and corporate credits to be assigned to affiliated corporations.
• Lets taxpayers elect refunds over five years for 90% of credit amounts exceeding tax liability, paid in annual portions of 20% of the refundable amount.
• Requires public reporting on allocations and annual diversity reporting, while protecting applicant tax information; requires a Legislative Analyst’s Office evaluation by May 1, 2030.

Who it affects ​

• Film, television, animation, visual-effects, editorial, sound, and music-scoring productions seeking to perform post-production in California.
• California post-production workers, vendors, trainees, and independent contractors.
• Qualified taxpayers, including production companies, pass-through entities, independent films, and affiliated corporations receiving assigned credits.