Film, television and video production, 2023

Released: 2025-03-17

Revenue falls in the Canadian film, television and video production industry in 2023 amid two labour disruptions

The film, television and video production industry generated $10.4 billion in operating revenue in 2023, down 9.5% from 2021. This was the first biennial decline for the industry since comparable data became available in 2013.

The decrease in 2023 was partly because of labour disruptions by the Writers Guild of America and Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Despite these labour disruptions, operating revenue in 2023 remained higher than levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing 15.2% from 2019, as sustained demand for content continued to drive growth.

Operating expenses also declined in 2023, but at a slower pace than operating revenue, falling 3.9% from 2021 to $10.0 billion in 2023 as operators struggled to cut costs following disruptions in industry activities. Consequently, the operating profit margin for the industry decreased from 9.0% in 2021 to 3.4% in 2023.

Salaries, wages, commissions and benefits (60.8%) remained the largest component of operating expenses in 2023, albeit decreasing 11.2% to $6.1 billion, as labour disruptions contributed to lower wages. Among operating expenses, fixed costs, such as rent and leasing, insurance, utilities as well as professional and business fees, continued to grow.

Industry revenue remained largely concentrated in 2023, with the vast majority of total industry revenue coming from Ontario (36.3%), British Columbia (34.1%) and Quebec (22.7%).

The largest decline from 2021 occurred in British Columbia, where operating revenue fell $725.3 million (-17.0%) to $3.5 billion in 2023. Ontario saw the second-largest decline, down $402.1 million (-9.6%) to $3.8 billion.

Television productions continued to make up the bulk of the industry revenue, accounting for 59.3% of total production revenue in 2023, a slight decline from the 59.9% observed in 2021. Feature films saw a slight increase in 2023, with a share of 25.8% of total production revenue, up from 25.6% in 2021.

Tax credits and incentives set the stage for the industry

As the effects of labour disputes in the industry may carry over into 2024, provinces such as Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia have introduced enhanced incentives to help mitigate uncertainty within the industry.

To stimulate local production in the province, Quebec has increased the cap on eligible labour expenditures for the film and television tax credit for Quebec productions, effective March 2024. The province has also increased the base rate of its service production tax credit to further incentivize film productions within the province and to attract more foreign film projects.

Similarly, British Columbia announced an increase to the basic tax credit for productions starting principal photography on or after January 1, 2025. In addition, the province will reinstate the regional and distant location tax credits for animated productions with a physical presence in a regional or distant location.

Ontario has introduced the Ontario Creates Film Fund, to bolster activity in the province and offer development and production financing to local producers for feature film projects.

With the relative depreciation of the Canadian dollar in 2024, in addition to enhanced subsidies, the Canadian film production industry may experience continued growth going forward.

Contact information

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