Toronto Readies Megafilm Studio Even As Industry Sags
Toronto's stepping back into the movie making spotlight, embarking on a massive project to bring a sagging Hollywood North back to life.
Seven state of the art soundstages are nearing completion at FilmPort, Toronto's new mega film studio on 20 hectares in the Portlands.
Although Toronto was once a much sought-after location for film makers, a series of factors have severely hampered the local industry.
A strong dollar, less than ideal facilities, strong tax incentives state side, and a looming Screen Actors Guild strike, combined to make the movie industry in T.O. dry up.
The new centre is hoping to once again attract the big guns in film making.
"This is what we've been missing in Toronto, is large sound stages. Then we can do $100 million films, $200 million films, and that's not something that a lot of people could just steal away from us," explains Ken Ferguson, President, Filmport.
Joe Fraser and Bob Pearson certainly hope things change, between them they have more than 50 years experience building sets, but are forced to work in renovations most of the time.
At least they're on the job --- some estimates show 70-80% of film industry workers are unemployed.
"I'm really looking forward to Filmport and it's going to fit a specific need but that's not the only answer, we can't all work at Filmport," said Fraser.
The official opening for phase 1 of FilmPort is June 5th.
No comments:
Post a Comment