This Week's Handful of Must-See Headlines

Don’t forget to check out our Friday Fivecast, the audio version of our weekly Friday Five blog. Listen in your car, at your desk, and anywhere you take your podcasts. Find it here, then click on our Spotify profile to subscribe.

Tax Incentives

California Film & TV Tax Program Set for Major Overhaul
California’s film and TV tax relief program is set for a revamp, increasing the annual cap from $330 million to $750 million and raising the credit to 35%. The revisions, which would expand eligibility to include shorter TV shows, animated films, and certain unscripted projects, would be the biggest updates since 2009.

Film

2024 ReFrame Report Highlights Gender Balance Progress
The 2024 ReFrame Report reveals that 30 of the top 100 films, including Wicked and The Substance, earned a "stamp" for gender-balanced production. However, despite on-screen progress, gender parity behind the camera remains stagnant, with a decline in women directors and screenwriters.

Movie Theaters

AMC and CJ 4DPlex To Revolutionize Cinema Experience
AMC Entertainment has teamed up with South Korea’s CJ 4DPlex to launch 65 premium cinemas across the US and Europe, including 25 ScreenX and 40 4DX installations by 2027. This partnership aims to drive audience engagement with cutting-edge cinema technologies.

Television

NCAA Tournament Sees Record Viewership
The men’s NCAA basketball tournament hit a 30-year high with 9.4 million average viewers for the first two rounds. While the women’s tournament saw a slight dip from last year, it still outperformed previous years, averaging 602,000 viewers per game.

International

Camden Film Quarter Takes Shape
The Camden Film Quarter project has advanced with its £1BN "Masterplan Vision," set to create a film and TV hub in Kentish Town, featuring soundstages, workshops, and a new London Screen Academy campus. The first soundstages are expected by 2028, pending approval.

High five! Another Friday Five is going live next week—same time, same place. We know what caught our eyes, but we’re all ears. Tell us what you’d like to learn more about in our upcoming editions by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Be sure to tag #FridayFive in your comments.

Want an even more convenient way to stay in the know? Get Friday Five sent right to your inbox each week by signing up for our direct newsletter below.

See you next Friday at 10 a.m. (PT).

INDUSTRY NEWS, FRIDAY5