Atlanta Film Industry Slumps After 15 Years of Growth

After nearly 15 years of rapid growth, Georgia’s film and television industry is facing a sharp slowdown, leaving many workers in Atlanta struggling to find jobs.

Atlanta had earned the title “Hollywood of the South” as hundreds of movies and television shows were filmed in the city. Major productions including The Hunger Games, Stranger Things and several films from Marvel Studios were shot in the state over the past decade.

However, the recent drop in productions has deeply affected the people who work behind the scenes.

Chris Ratledge, a 48-year-old digital imaging technician, once earned up to $9,500 a week working on film sets around Atlanta. He moved from Indiana to Georgia in 2017 when studios were expanding their presence in the state due to generous tax incentives.

At that time, film crews often worked 70-hour weeks, with Ratledge earning about $72 per hour. The income helped him clear three years of back taxes in just one year.

He worked on several well-known productions, including the Netflix film Red Notice and television shows such as Miracle Workers and P-Valley.

Today, the situation is very different. Ratledge says he has worked only four days on a film set since May 2024.

To support his family of five, he now works part-time at the front desk of a local tennis center and strings tennis rackets on the side. He earns about $15 an hour and does not have health insurance.

His wife, a cancer survivor, has also started cleaning houses a few days a week to help with household expenses. Even with both of them working, their monthly income of about $2,000 barely covers rent, forcing the family to downsize their home and take on debt.

Film Production Spending Drops

Georgia’s film industry reached its peak in 2022, when production spending hit $4.4 billion.

Since then, the industry has seen a major decline. In the most recent fiscal year, spending fell to $2.3 billion. The number of productions also dropped significantly—from 412 projects in 2022 to just 245 last year.

Industry officials say the slowdown accelerated after the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes, which stopped many productions for months. Even after the strikes ended, some studios started filming more projects overseas where costs are lower.

Major studios have begun shifting large productions abroad. The last major Marvel film shot in Georgia was Thunderbolts, after which the company moved several projects to the United Kingdom.

Streaming platforms are also producing fewer shows and filming more content outside the United States.

At the same time, other states such as California and Texas have increased their incentives to attract film projects, creating stronger competition for Georgia.

Film Workers Facing Uncertainty

The slowdown has affected thousands of film workers in Atlanta, including technicians, costume designers, location scouts and other crew members.

Many workers who previously had constant projects now face long gaps between jobs. Some say they once had to reject work offers because they were too busy, but now they are struggling to find steady employment.

Online groups used by film workers in Atlanta are filled with discussions about the lack of work and uncertainty about the industry’s future.

Efforts to Revive the Industry

Despite the slowdown, some industry leaders believe Atlanta still has strong potential.

One of the city’s largest production facilities, Shadowbox Studios, is working to attract new types of productions. The studio is promoting its soundstages to independent filmmakers, digital content creators and esports events.

The company has also launched training initiatives such as the Backlot Academy program to prepare new workers for film and television production careers.

Students in the program learn how film sets operate, including understanding call sheets, communication systems and the demands of long production days.

Hope for Recovery

Some young people in Atlanta still believe the industry will recover, as the city has built a strong community of filmmakers and creative professionals over the years.

For experienced workers like Ratledge, however, the future remains uncertain. He says he is simply hoping for one steady television project that could help him recover financially.

Even a five- or six-month series job would allow him to restore health insurance and stabilize his finances.

State officials say Georgia is expanding its tax incentives to include new types of productions such as short-form videos and ad-supported streaming channels.

Industry veterans believe these changes could help bring new opportunities back to Atlanta and start a new chapter for the state’s film industry.