Forget those starving actors, Hollywood's back lot pays big.

There's a good reason that locales from Toronto to New Orleans are putting up big money to attract Hollywood filmmakers--and it's not only the glitz of the stars.

Salt-of-the-earth grips and gaffers are pulling down solidly middle- to upper-middle class wages--the kinds of jobs that many communities would love to have.

A recent study by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. found that the average wage of a film, television and video production worker in 2003 was almost $105,000, more than double the $39,000 average for all industries in Los Angeles. It's also higher than the year's second highest-paid employment sector--management executives--by nearly $30,000.

The study cited pay as a significant reason for high production costs that are causing studios to move productions elsewhere in exchange for monetary incentives. "The studios have started to pull their horns in, and loyalty to the local market isn't a factor," said Jack Kyser, the LAEDC's chief economist and a co-author of the study.

Median industry wages don't look nearly as rosy--$39,779 in 2002, up from $38,354 a year earlier. The median reflects the midpoint at which half the workers make more and half the workers make less. But a median salary can become skewed downward when there are large numbers of workers at the bottom of a pay scale.

That's the case in Hollywood, with vast numbers of part-timers who are included in salary figures.

Kyser said the average figure is more representative of those workers who drive the industry by actually earning a living acting, directing, editing or set dressing full time. For example, Local 728 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, which represents 2,200 electricians in Los Angeles, reports that the average salary of its members is about $70,000.

Salaries are also good at Local 706 of the union, which represents 3,000 makeup artists and hair stylists. Susan Cabral-Ebert, president of the local, noted that most members earn between $50,000 and $100,000, with some topping $300,000. But others, she noted, barely make ends meet. "These people are paid for being highly skilled," she said. "They work long hours and earn every penny they make."

Indeed, length of the workday is one factor behind the high wages. Production hours are invariably longer than a typical eight-hour office workday, and 16-hour workdays can send workers into double time.

High-paid jobs

The Writers Guild of America's annual report shows that among its members, the median wage in 2003 was $93,482. The top quarter made $226,787 and the bottom quarter earned $32,652. Part of the reason for the high pay is that to qualify for the WGA, writers must have sold a certain amount of work to a guild-signatory.

Representatives from the Screen Actors Guild, by contrast, have a lower threshold for membership, which explains why it has 120,000 members. Of that, more than two-thirds make more than the $13,700 that qualifies for full medical benefits, but only 2 percent make more than six figures a year. (To become a member of SAG requires a principal or speaking role in a union film, videotape, television program or commercial within two weeks of application. Members of affiliated unions are also eligible.)

Median annual earnings of salaried actors were $23,470 in 2002, with the lowest 10 percent earning less than $13,330 and the highest 10 percent earning more than $106,360.

These levels of wages have prompted localities all over the world to provide economic incentives of various kinds.

New York is using funds to train and grow a large, well-heeled pool of movie and television employees. The city also offers free permits and police assistance for productions, a 5 percent refundable tax credit from the city and a 10 percent refundable tax credit from the state for films and television productions that complete at least three-quarters of their stage work in New York City.

Late last year, Colorado's Office of Economic Development and International Trade set aside funding to re-establish the Colorado Film Commission, which was axed in 2003 due to budget cuts. One of the commission's goals is the creation of a skilled labor pool for films and to lure filmmakers to the state using competitive tax breaks.

Production workers in these states don't make as much as their Los Angeles counterparts, but they are still paid relatively well and, in many cases, the cost of living is lower.