New film and TV studio to be built in Greater Sudbury, Ontario

Cultural Industries Ontario North (CION) has announced plans for Freshwater Production Studios (FPS) — a purpose-built film and television complex to be constructed in Greater Sudbury, Ontario.

The plan is to entice larger scale productions to Northern Ontario, which have previously relied on studio space mainly in the bigger cities like Toronto, Los Angeles, and New York.

In the first phase of the project, the 116,000 square foot (sq. ft.). facility will feature three clear span soundstages, ranging from 18,000 to 20,000 sq. ft. with 35-feet ceilings. There will be 23,000 sq. ft. of production and soundstage offices in addition to wardrobe, mill, paint, and other ancillary spaces.

“Since 2013, there have been upwards of 110 film and television projects shot with a total production spend of over $300m in Greater Sudbury. A purpose-built film studio is the next logical step in advancing the growth of the production industry in Northern Ontario,” said Tammy Frick, associate executive director of CION.

CION is seeking a party to partner with FPS to establish the studio. Interested proponents can visit freshwaterproductionstudios.com for more information. Request for Expressions of Interest (RFI) submissions are due Thursday, 6 May, 2021.

Northern Ontario is one of the fastest-growing film production jurisdictions in North America, as producers have taken advantage of the region’s unique backdrops, film friendly communities, experienced crew, and generous financial incentives.

The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) gives grants to eligible productions, while the service production tax credit is valued at 21.5% for production expenditure and labour, with no annual cap. It is also a refund rather than a buy back which can be combined with the federal tax credit, making it easier for producers to process.

Over the past few years, acclaimed productions including Hulu/Crave TV comedy Letterkenny, Netflix’s Bad Blood and the upcoming Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City have all been shot in Northern Ontario.

“The growth of production volumes and demand for studio space across Ontario continues to be strong,” said Justin Cutler, Ontario Film Commissioner at Ontario Creates. “This timely development will help attract additional production to Ontario and will drive high value job creation and economic impact in Sudbury and throughout Northern Ontario.”

Ontario is currently hosting several high-profile film and TV series, including DC Entertainment and Warner Bros.’ Titans, shooting from October 2020 to June 2021, and Amazon’s Jack Reacher series reboot, filming from mid-April to July 2021.

Apple TV+ are also set to shoot season three of drama See, starring Jason Momoa, from May to October 2021.

Watch our KFTV Talk where we spoke to leading local and international production figures about their experiences filming in Ontario, Canada...