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Hollywood North: The Canadian film industry
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What do the Oscar-winning movies Chicago, Good Will Hunting and Titanic all have in common? Along with thousands of other movies, television shows, commercials, music videos and corporate presentations, they were all filmed in Canada.
The film industry is a vibrant component of Canada's culture sector, with many U.S. productions enticed by the lower exchange rate, helpful tax credits, varied scenery and geographic proximity to the United States as well as a qualified work force.
About three-quarters of all Canadian foreign productions are based either in British Columbia or Ontario. In 2002, British Columbia led the country in foreign film production, receiving $830 million in revenue from filming activities, about 44% of the Canadian total. Work on big-budget, foreign feature films has expanded in the province, while the popularity of reality television has brought about a decline in the production of movies of the week and television mini-series.
Not only do other countries choose to film in Canada,
but they also buy Canadian-made films, although defining a "Canadian
production" can be quite complex. The province of Quebec is a major
force in the industry; though foreign production is less frequent
in Quebec than in other parts of Canada,
domestic production is very strong.
Foreign markets account for most of the sales of homegrown films: 67% of revenues from Canadian film and video distribution in 2002/2003 were generated from their export, up from 45% a decade earlier. From 2002 to 2003, Canadian film and video exports rose 27% to reach $618 million.
