But despite the doom and gloom, a Los Angeles film permitting agency said on-location shoots were up from a year ago.

In addition, several big movies set for release next year were still rolling the cameras.

The nonprofit agency FilmL.A. Inc. said it had obtained a total of 21 location permits for film producers during the week ended Tuesday.

The figure was up from 13 in the same period a year ago, agency spokesman Todd Lindgren said.

In the five-week period ended June 24, the number of film permits increased 12 percent from 94 to 105, the agency said.

The brisk activity seemed to belie assertions by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers that the industry had lapsed into a “de facto strike” because of uncertainty about actors showing up for work this month.

“I wouldn't say it is the de facto strike that the AMPTP has mentioned,” Lindgren said. “We are seeing the opposite.”

The contract between SAG and the studios expired Tuesday. Actors said they had not called for a strike authorization vote by members and would remain at the bargaining table.

Studios vowed to keep Hollywood working.

The alliance did, however, offer the union what it said was its final offer worth more than $250 million in additional compensation to guild members over the three-year contract proposal.

SAG officials were studying the offer but previously said it did not appear to address some key issues for the 120,000-member guild.

Both sides were scheduled to meet Wednesday to discuss the offer.

Meanwhile, 17 films being produced or distributed by the major studios, including “The Da Vinci Code” sequel “Angels & Demons” from Sony, were still filming, according to a production list compiled daily by The Hollywood Reporter trade publication.

The “Angels” cast, led by Tom Hanks, has returned to Los Angeles after shooting for several weeks in Rome. Production was set to resume Wednesday in Los Angeles.

A total of six animated features also were in production, including “Toy Story 3” from Pixar, a unit of The Walt Disney Co.

Alliance spokesman Jesse Hiestand countered that 24 major studio productions, not including animated films, were shooting a year ago.

“Severe periods of labor uncertainty have a powerfully depressing impact on the amount of capital that people are willing to invest in major projects,” Hiestand said. “The longer the uncertainty continues, the more severe the economic impacts will be.”

Some studios, such as Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros., were cautiously scheduling future film shoots.

“Many of our current projects are finished, and those that are not have scheduled hiatuses in the event of a strike,” said Warner Bros. spokesman Scott Rowe. “As much as possible, we are prepping for future productions.”

Lorenzo di Bonaventura, producer of next summer's sequel “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” said filmmakers have factored in a hiatus around the end of June to turn their attention to visual effects to get by without actors if necessary.

Disney's “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” starring Jake Gyllenhaal, remained on track for a late July start.

The threat of an actors strike did not appear to deter television production.

Permits obtained by FilmL.A. for TV dramas jumped a whopping 222 percent from a year ago to 119 in the five-week period ending June 24, the agency said.

The increased activity came as producers struggled to get back on schedule after the 100-day writers strike that ended in February.

Warner's “Pushing Daisies,” broadcast on ABC, began shooting in June instead of the typical start in August, while “Chuck,” broadcast on NBC, began in May instead of July or August.

In New York, shooting began in June on the Warner Bros. shows “Fringe,” “Gossip Girl,” and NBC's “Lipstick Jungle,” according to the Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting.

Cary Tusan, a senior research editor at The Hollywood Reporter who leads the team that compiles the production list, expected many movies now in production to wrap up soon.

He said studios have been reluctant to set start dates on upcoming films, but a number of productions were ready to start shooting if labor uncertainty clears.

“They do seem to be hedging their bets,” Tusan said. “It seems as if they are waiting to see what to do.”