The provincial government's decision to introduce highly competitive tax credits for film productions in Ontario could prove a "huge incentive" for the Sudbury region's rapidly growing industry, according to local officials.
Legislation passed in late June 2009 increased tax credits for 25 per cent of all film and television production costs. This complements existing regional incentives, such as a 45 per cent labour tax credit for productions outside the Greater Toronto Area.
This move stands to maintain the momentum already in place in Sudbury, which is fielding outside interest and hosting new productions at a record pace.
"It's excellent news for us," says Tara Levesque, director of programming at the Sudbury-based Music and Film in Motion, a non-profit development agency.
"We're the busiest we've ever been in our history, and we're still getting service requests from producers from all over, so it's great to see."
The film and television industry has generated roughly $66.5 million in the region since 2001, with ever-larger numbers of productions being drawn to the city. Last year was a quieter than usual as companies sought financing, but at least six productions are slated for the Sudbury region and four more throughout the North in 2009.
This includes "Oliver Sherman," a dramatic movie to be filmed in Sudbury, and "Death Comes to Town," a limited eight-episode run of Kids in the Hall for the CBC, due to be filmed in North Bay in the fall.
Efforts to attract these kinds of projects to the area have been facilitated by the rapid growth of the local skill base, thanks to the many productions that have rolled through town in recent years, says Levesque.
In particular, she credits Météo +, a locally produced francophone television series now in its fourth and final year, for creating a wealth of related skills and knowledge.
This has made the region more financially attractive to producers by reducing the costs needed to import skilled workers, she says.
This growth has also helped to cement the reputation Sudbury is earning as an easy, welcoming and high-quality place to shoot, which has begun to spread through the greater film community as producers return to Toronto and spread the word about their experience.
"We're getting feedback from people saying, 'I met a producer at Cannes' or 'I met a producer at the Toronto Film Festival who said something about Northern Ontario; what's going on up there?'" says Levesque.
Among these projects is the Toronto-based Bensondale Productions' "Moon Point," an off-beat road trip movie due to be filmed through the Sudbury area in late September.
"Sudbury is an untapped cinematic treasure," says Sean Cisterna, director and producer. "In doing a road trip movie, you need a setting in the background that is visually interesting to complement the story, and Toronto is overused and overdone, and we need something stimulating to look at. There's nothing better than Northern Ontario in the fall, with its colours and rocky landscapes."
The $1.3-million four-week shoot will make use of a crew of 40, half of which will be from Sudbury, alongside a cast of 20. Though the lead actors are from Toronto and Los Angeles, supporting characters are in the process of being cast through Sudbury, which Cisterna calls "the filmmaking centre of Northern Ontario."
The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund and Northern Media Fund have contributed a combined total of roughly $300,000 to Cisterna, whose company has overseen the creation of numerous children's television shows and films.
He also credits the staff of Music and Film in Motion as being "extremely helpful" in getting the project off the ground.
"It really is a great area for film."
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