Hollywood developer unveils $450M plan to rescue movie industry

A Hollywood developer has come up with an old-school way to try to save the movie industry — with a $450-million bet.

Commercial real estate developer David Simon is building Echelon Studios Hollywood on Santa Monica Boulevard, on the site of a former Sears store.

The 600,000-square-foot campus revives the classic studio lot, rebuilt vertically to fit on five acres.

The complex includes four 18,000-square-foot soundstages with 40-foot clear heights and a 14,000-square-foot flex stage with a 25-foot clear height, according to the project look book.

Around them sit 150,000 square feet of production support, office, mill and basecamp space. Another 350,000 square feet is devoted to bungalows and workspace.

The signature feature is at the top: A landscaped cluster of private bungalows ringing a 25,000-square-foot elevated courtyard with views of the Hollywood Hills.

The LA Times reported tenants will also see the Hollywood sign, Griffith Observatory and downtown Los Angeles.

The project’s architect, Andrew Wright of RIOS, said the challenge was fitting a 10-acre studio onto a 5-acre site.

Simon felt bungalows, a beloved fixture of classic studio lots, were essential to getting the studio feel right.

Soundproofing was a major engineering task because nearly 1,000 cars will sit below the stages. Wright told the news outlet that builders addressed the risk of noise and vibration with layers of insulation, drywall and thick concrete.

Simon began planning the project about five years ago, when streaming giants were spending heavily and demand for stage space appeared limitless. He is building the studio through his company, BARDAS Investment Group.

“Hollywood is the greatest brand in the world. It’s not only a place, it’s an industry,” he told the LA Times.

Simon told the news outlet that expanded state tax credits and a pending 20% federal filming credit are drawing production interest back to Hollywood, and that people in the industry would rather film at home. 

A public art piece by Los Angeles artist Matthew Brandt, a collage of Hollywood skyline images on weathered stainless steel panels, will face Santa Monica Boulevard, according to The Times. 

The project sits in the heart of Hollywood’s production corridor, between Netflix and Paramount Studios, with potential tenants already touring the site and discussing leases for the studio, which will open early next year.

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