Film Industry Busy in Nova Scotia
The film, television and new media industry in Nova Scotia generated $97 million in production activity in the 2009-10 fiscal year.
Local productions attributed for more than half the total, generating $54 million. This includes four feature films, 12 documentaries, eight dramas, four animation and two lifestyle programs for television.
Guest productions generated $43 million in production activity, with two documentaries, four television dramas and 10 animation projects.
"Nova Scotia's film, television and new media industry represents the province as a strong, creative community," said Economic and Rural Development Minister Percy Paris. "Our province's strong reputation as a film-friendly destination continues to create good jobs and grow the economy by developing internationally renowned local productions and attracting foreign productions."
The 2010-11 year is starting off on a busy note with several homegrown and international projects in production.
Some of the current international productions include the Sony feature film Jumping the Broom, the Hallmark television movie November Christmas and the SyFy series Haven.
Locally, recent production includes: Hobo with a Shotgun, the first feature-length film from local filmmaker Jason Eisener; the Thom Fitzgerald feature film Cloudburst; the second season of Arcadia Entertainment's TV with TV's Jonathan Torrens; and the new series from former Trailer Park Boys stars Robb Wells, John Paul Tremblay and Mike Smith, The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour, among others.
Film Nova Scotia also had a high demand for projects at the first funding deadline for this fiscal year, in number of applications received and total money requested, a positive sign that the industry is still thriving.
"Nova Scotia has consistently been regarded as one of the top production centres in the country, creating more than 3,000 jobs for talented young women and men across a broad range of professions and supporting a variety of local businesses," said Ann Mackenzie, president and CEO of Film Nova Scotia. "The success we are seeing can be directly linked to the resilient support of the government and the dedication of our talented professionals."
Film Nova Scotia is a provincial Crown agency reporting to the Minister of Economic and Rural Development. The corporation provides a wide range of programs and services to build the capacity and competitiveness of the province's film, television and new media industry. The provincial film industry is the fourth largest in Canada.