Lights, camera ... keep film production from fleeing.

NOW that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has laced five show business friends on the board of the beleaguered California Film Commission, recently named Executive Director Amy Lemisch may be poised to lead a revival.

Lemisch is charged with courting studios and producers, and lobbying state lawmakers to make good on the governor's recent pledge to stop runaway production. More film production in California could mean more money for the agency in next year's budget.

"The states seeing the biggest increases now in film production are New Mexico, Louisiana and Illinois, where they have tax incentives, loan programs and some have wage-based incentives where you can write off what you spend on labor," Lemisch said. "I'm hoping we get something like that in California."

"Last fall, the 19-year-old commission, based in L.A., had its budget cut, its staff of 20 halved and its Film California First program, which subsidized location lees for filming on state property, canceled.

Lemisch moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the entertainment industry after graduating with a bachelor's degree in communications in 1983 from Temple University. She started as Penny Marshall's personal assistant before the former "Laverne & Shirley" star became a major force in Hollywood, only to quit after a year.

But when Marshall began production of the 1986 comedy "Jumpin' Jack Flash," starring Whoopi Goldberg, she called Lemisch back to work as assistant to the director, and Lemisch went on to become Marshall's in-house production executive and line producer until 2003, when she took maternity leave.

At Marshall's Parkway Productions, Lemisch worked on such films as "Big" and "Awakenings."

She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children.