PH Consulate General in Los Angeles Gets Preview of Post-COVID-19 Hollywood

(Photo credit: Joss Leaño and USC CPD)

LOS ANGELES 17 June 2020 – Hollywood is known as the heart of America’s powerful, globally-influential film and entertainment industry, representing a major segment of the creative economy of the State with the largest GDP in the U.S., California.  Still, like all sectors of the economy, it has not been spared from the onslaught of the pandemic, with Hollywood production being brought to a standstill by COVID-19, causing many to lose their jobs.

This was the focus of a livestream discussion dubbed “Hollywood in the Age of Coronavirus: A Conversation with Colleen Bell” and hosted by the University of Southern California’s Center for Public Diplomacy (USC CPD) on 10 June 2020.  Ms. Bell, Executive Director of the California Film Commission (CFC) and former U.S. Ambassador to Hungary, discussed how the industry is transitioning to the new normal.

With the resumption of film and TV production no sooner than 12 June 2020, key industry players, including labor unions and insurance agencies worked together to map out a reentry plan with new health safety guidelines. While new health and social-distancing protocols are expected to slow down production, there is an awareness that these are necessary steps to ensure everyone’s health and safety.

Despite the pandemic’s impact on the industry, film and TV will continue to be an important vehicle of America’s soft power and an agent of change, according to Ms. Bell. The business of entertainment can capture the hearts and emotions of people and it can bring issues so daunting and insurmountable to a place of thoughtful discussion. This is where culture change begins to take shape.

USC CPD Advisory Board Member Goli Ameri facilitated the discussion. Consul Rea G. Oreta and Information Officer Mary Grace “Joss” D. Leaño represented the Consulate General.

USC’s Public Diplomacy Program was established in 2003 as a partnership between the USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism and the School of International Relations.  END

For more information, visit https://www.philippineconsulatela.org or https://www.facebook.com/PHLinLA/.