Film Industry Reaches Titanic Proportions
Titanic's sweep of the Academy Awards isn't the only thing putting Nova Scotia's film industry on the map.
The year-end production figures are in and the numbers reflect an award-winning performance. "We are experiencing dynamic growth beyond even our best expectations," said Anne-Marie Varner, CEO of the Nova Scotia Film Development Corp. "In the last 15 months, the industry has grown from $47.5 million in production to $92.5 million at March 31, 1998.
"The infusion of additional funding for film development corporation programs, the continuation of the Nova Scotia Film Industry Tax Credit program and the renewal of the Canadian Cable Television Production Fund have no doubt had the most effect on production growth. The continuation of these programs will assist the Nova Scotia production community in reaching the $100-million mark by the end of next year."
Award-winning series like This Hour Has 22 Minutes and short dramatic programs such as Nan's Taxi are putting Nova Scotia's producers front and centre on Canadian television. Feature films like the recently released Love and Death on Long Island, produced by Imagex, and The Hanging Garden, written, produced and directed by Thom Fitzgerald, are breaking box office records in Canada.
"There is no business in Nova Scotia like the film business, at present," said Ms. Varner. "It has employed over 1,400 people this past year and has had extremely high return on investment. The lasting effects are felt in spinoffs to small communities like Hubbards, where Black Harbour is in production, and in the increased tourism we are seeing around the success of Titanic. You couldn't ask for a better economic success story."
Nova Scotia's film and video production figures for 1997/98 reflect the degree of production activity by Nova Scotian producers and by offshore producers working within the province. The statistics are taken from projects accessing provincial film industry programs administered by the Nova Scotia Film Development Corp.