CREATIVE INDUSTRY IS L.A.'S BIGGEST.

Byline: Chris Sieroty Staff Writer

Los Angeles County's largest industry is creativity - original thinking that is fueling the region's growth, according to an economic study released Wednesday.

Creative industries - movies and other entertainments, technology and designers of cars, clothes, furniture and even amusement park rides - account for more than 1 million jobs and almost $122 billion in sales or revenues annually in Los Angeles County.

``Most people only think of Los Angeles as a one-industry town based on motion picture and television production,'' said Jack Kyser, chief economist at the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. and author of the report.

``There is creativity all over the place.''

Kyser's study puts the Los Angeles region as the nation's leading design center - industry experts agree.

``Any company involved in a creative industry would be crazy not to tap into the talent and the creative vibe of Los Angeles,'' said Donn L. Walker, a spokesman for General Motors, which recently opened a design studio in North Hollywood.

``GM wants its cars and trucks to reflect the energy, creativity and vibe that makes Southern California such a cool place.''

Kyser compared creative industries in Los Angeles County with similar industries in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas-Fort Worth and Atlanta, and found Los Angeles ranked first in six of nine categories.

The six categories were apparel & textiles, auto manufacturing, furniture, motion picture production, technology and toys. Los Angeles ranked highest in auto manufacturing because Detroit was not included in the survey.

``It's no surprise to General Motors that Southern California is a creative place,'' Walker said.

The happy-face view of the L.A. economy was disputed by some who see Kyser's definition of creativity as overly broad and glossing over the fact that many of the workers in these industries earn low wages.

``This (survey) is all about civil boosterism, which isn't all bad,'' said Martin Krieger, a professor of planning in the school of Policy, Planning and Development at the University of Southern California.

``California historically has been the place for boosterism and fantastic visions,'' he said. ``There are reasons to come to Los Angeles, but to call auto manufacturing a creative industry is wrong.''

The downside to all this creativeness is that many of these jobs offer people low wages, he said. ``I don't believe the clothing industry in Los Angeles is creative.''

Rajeev Dhawan, director of econometric forecasting for the UCLA Anderson Forecast, agreed with Krieger's critique, saying many of the region's aerospace jobs lost after the Berlin Wall collapsed have been replaced by low-wage service jobs.

Both Krieger and Dhawan also said the way ``creative'' is defined by the study can be debated.

But David Hall, executive vice president of Chatsworth-based AVG Inc., said there was no debating that there is a tremendous pool of creative talent in Los Angeles that makes finding employment and technical support easier.

``For our industry, Southern California is the focal point of the world for the themed entertainment industry,'' said Hall, whose company designs and builds robotics for the entertainment and retail industries.

According to the report, Los Angeles ranked second in food and third in architecture and health sciences, the other categories studied.

``There are a couple of other firms, including automotive and high-tech companies, that could benefit from the region's creative work force,'' said Kyser.

The report's release was timed to coincide with a new campaign to promote Southern California's diverse industries and workers.

The ``LA by Design'' promotional effort includes a photographic mural of the mayors and city leaders of all 88 cities in the county, including the five county supervisors.

`` 'LA by Design' will guide businesses to the nation's most abundant reserve of creative people and new ideas,'' said Lee Harrington, president of the nonprofit LAEDC.