| The Ontario Media Development Corporation have released their 2014 Stats for Film & TV Production in Ontario.
The full figures, compared to 2013, can be viewed here.
Some key notes from the report can be seen below:
Film and television production contributed $1.29 billion to the provincial economy in 2014 – the fourth year in a row over the one billion dollar mark – sending a welcome message of jobs and stability, and reflecting Ontario’s reputation as a top-quality and reliable jurisdiction.
The film and television industry accounts for almost 28,000 full time direct and spin-off jobs, an increase of 2,600 over the previous year.
Television production accounted for $1,048.8 billion or 81% of the total. The greatest area of growth was in foreign TV movies and mini-series which grew 57% ($45.1 million versus $28.7 million in 2013). The increase in foreign activity was driven by a number of high-value television series, such as Reign; Beauty and the Beast; Universal Cable Productions’ Covert Affairs and Suits; and Guillermo del Toro’s Zombie thriller The Strain for The FX Network.
Domestic TV production is still a primary driver of these results, contributing $684.4 million (compared to $641 million in 2013). Canadian series saw continuing success at home and abroad in 2014, including: Rookie Blue and Saving Hope from eOne and Thump Entertainment for CTV and NBC; Prodigy Pictures’ Lost Girl for the Syfy network; and perennial favourite Murdoch Mysteries for CBC. New shows in 2014 included the CBC sitcom Schitt’s Creek starring Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara and eOne’s Bitten for the Space and Syfy networks.
The number of TV movies, mini-series, specials and pilots decreased 12% (from 69 projects in 2013 to 61 last year), while budgets declined 25.6% reflecting the continued increase in non-scripted television.
While the number of domestic feature films rose dramatically (48%), budgets decreased by 21% compared to 2013, resulting in part from a number of lower-budget films including: The Dark Stranger, and Shelby: The Dog Who Saved Christmas. OMDC-supported feature films in 2014 included Remember; God and Country; October Gale (a TIFF Special Presentation); Inland (aka Beeba Boys); Born to Be Blue; The Intruders, Coconut Hero and The Dark Stranger.
The number of foreign features remained the same as last year, but budgets increased by 42.6% due to two large Hollywood productions: Adam Sandler’s tentpole comedy Pixels from Sony Pictures, and Legendary Pictures’ Crimson Peak for Universal, directed by Guillermo del Toro and starring Jessica Chastain and Charlie Hunnam.
Foreign animation activity increased 37.5% in 2014 and budgets were up 76%. Local animation companies were the beneficiaries of this increase, producing projects for international broadcasters, including Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse and Thomas and Friends from Arc Productions; Jake and the Neverland Pirates from Mercury Filmworks for Disney.
While domestic animation activity decreased by 20%, a highlight included the first OMDC-supported animated feature from Awesometown Entertainment entitled Get Squirrely. Set for 2016 release, the film features the voices of Sylvester Stallone, Danny Devito and Ian McKellen.
Other domestic animation television series included: The Adventures of Napkin Man from Breakthrough Entertainment for CBC; Dinopaws from Guru Animation; Annedroids from Sinking Ship Entertainment; and Trucktown from Nelvana for Treehouse.
The post production industry also performed well in 2014, with many productions shot outside Ontario choosing to bring their post and VFX work to the province, including such TV productions as: Penny Dreadful; Vikings; Paranormal Witness; American Pickers; and Ice Road Truckers.
2015 production activity is already off to one of the best first quarters on record in Ontario. As of early February, approximately 19 productions were shooting or in prep., including the studio tentpole feature film Bravo 14 from Warner Bros. A number of returning TV series such as Defiance; Hannibal; and Orphan Black are currently in production along with new shows including: Damien from Fox TV; The Girlfriend Experience for Starz; Rogue for eOne; Dark Matter from Prodigy for Syfy; Good Witch from Whizbang Films for the Hallmark Channel; and a revival of the popular Heroes series called Heroes: Reborn from NBC TV. Several U.S. network pilots – Minority Report and Warrior, have also chosen to call Ontario home. |
