New Study Shows Driving Force of Global Studios and Streamers in the Expansion of the Canadian Audiovisual Production Sector
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Global production fueled employment at a rate three times higher than that of domestic production over a 10 year period
TORONTO, ONTARIO, MAY 30, 2024 – The Motion Picture Association – Canada has released a first of its kind examination of the contributions made by global studios and streamers in Canada. The report, prepared by KPMG, shows that global studios and streamers have been the driving force behind the expansion of the entire Canadian audiovisual production sector and provides those who work within it a global platform to showcase their talent. Key findings include:
- Global studios and streamers account for more than half of total film, television and streaming production investment across Canada.
- 97% of cast, crew and production personnel that are working on global productions in Canada are Canadian.
- Global production fueled employment at a rate three times higher than that of domestic production over the 2012-22 period.
- Global studios and streamers generate almost 60% of total income paid to Canadian creative workers.
- Global producers support a wide range of Canadian businesses across the country – MPA Studios alone spend more than $4.8 billion with over 38,965 local businesses annually.
Annually, Foreign Investment in Production (FIIP) accounts for $7.58 billion, with the majority spent making world-class productions in Canada, and a significant portion spent financing Canadian-owned projects.
The report shows that global studios and streamers are one of the single-largest sources of financing for Canadian-owned productions, with investments equivalent to traditional broadcasters, and more than the CMF and Telefilm combined. In 2021-2022 alone, global studios and streamers invested in Canadian television and film productions to the tune of $874 million.
And there has been growth in Canadian-owned production alongside growth in global production, albeit at smaller rates, demonstrating that the growing presence of foreign production in Canada has not happened at the expense of Canadian-owned production, which has also grown in absolute terms.
In addition to important financial investments, KPMG’s report found that global studios and streamers have played a critical role in up-leveling the local production ecosystem, ensuring that suppliers used by both foreign and domestic producers are now on par with the highest international standards, with massive production infrastructure investments driven by the rapid increase of streaming productions. Global studios and streamers are also offering multiple pathways to above-the-line and below-the-line work in the audiovisual industry and offering training programs for emerging Canadian creators to help them acquire the skills that will position them for success.
The complete report is available here, with a summary of the highlights below.
QUOTE FROM THE MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION – CANADA
Wendy Noss, President, Motion Picture Association – Canada: “This new comprehensive report demonstrates the many ways global studios and streamers benefit the entire Canadian audiovisual sector. The growth in production fueled by global partners has led to the development of a well-rounded Canadian industry with world-class creative workers, crews, artists, and technicians. Through a range of financial and non-financial investments global studios and streamers strengthen the Canadian industry while providing those who work within it a global platform to showcase their talent.”
KEY QUOTES FROM THE REPORT
John Weber, Canadian Independent Producer and CEO of Take 5 Productions: “With the evolution of television streaming platforms, we have seen a significant increase in the volume of work here over the past decade. This growth is the result of larger projects/budgets, more streaming platforms choosing to produce in Canada, and an expansion in terms of US investment. These factors have contributed to an overall increase in the volume of production.”
John Lewis, Director of Canadian Affairs, IATSE: “In the last 22 years, I would say generally the capacity for production has increased exponentially in Canada; that is a reflection of deeply trained crews in multiple locations. We’ve seen capacity growth, and not just in the crews, but in infrastructure; you see it with sound stages, you see it with equipment rentals, all of the ancillary industries that are necessary to support the industry are there.”
Tara Woodbury, Director, Content – Canada, Netflix: “Netflix was the first place to realise the meaning in doing local storytelling, and doing it really well, and how that could lead to global hits. When we look at Canada, that’s our first intent. To make stories from Canadian creators, by local producers, primarily set in here, leaning into the endless well of Canadian stories for Canadian audiences. We believe that if we do this really well, then these stories have the chance to really explode.”
ABOUT THE MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION – CANADA
The Motion Picture Association – Canada (MPA-Canada) is the voice and advocate of the major international producers and distributors of movies, television and streaming programming in Canada and is an affiliate of the Motion Picture Association, Inc. (MPA).
Through the production of long-running television series, feature films, and world-class post-production, visual effects, and animation projects, the global studios we serve – including Disney, Netflix, Paramount, Sony, NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery (“MPA Studios”) – make substantial investments in Canada. One or more affiliates of each of the MPA Studios operate a streaming service that is available in Canada and elsewhere around the world. These services provide a wide range of entertainment choices to Canadians through a variety of services offering subscription video-on-demand (“SVOD”), ad-supported video-on-demand (“AVOD”), hybrid services offering both SVOD and AVOD, and free ad-supported television (“FAST”).
On behalf of the MPA Studios, we work with governments and local industry partners to support initiatives that strengthen the film, television and streaming industry in Canada.
ABOUT KPMG IN CANADA
KPMG LLP, a limited liability partnership, is a full-service Audit, Tax and Advisory firm owned and operated by Canadians. For over 150 years, our professionals have provided consulting, accounting, auditing, and tax services to Canadians, inspiring confidence, empowering change, and driving innovation. Guided by our core values of Integrity, Excellence, Courage, Together, For Better, KPMG employs more than 10,000 people in over 40 locations across Canada, serving private- and public-sector clients. KPMG is consistently ranked one of Canada’s top employers and one of the best places to work in the country.
The firm is established under the laws of Ontario and is a member of KPMG’s global organization of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International, a private English company limited by guarantee. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such. For more information, see home.kpmg/ca