in Toronto, along with TV series produced by CBS, Netflix, Disney and Warner Bros. in Vancouver, likeIndustry insiders remain wary that the latest lockdown measures as Canada breaks records for new coronavirus cases could yet shut down local film production sectors. But so far there's been no repeat of Hollywood production north of the border being forced to stop in mid-March 2020, leaving dark soundstages and idle Canadian cast and crew during the earliest stages of the pandemic.
With film and TV production having returned in summer 2020 and now exceeded pre-pandemic levels, the Canadian industry so far come through the existential threat posed by the COVID-19 crisis, says Paul Bronfman, chairman and CEO of studio operator Comweb Corp. and chairman of Pinewood Toronto Studios, as Los Angeles producers fill his soundstages.
"It became quite a challenge for us, one pick up day for each actor and they required us to pay for all quarantine days and what was a much affordable shoot ended up skyrocketing costs well beyond our means. You got to pay all these days, regardless of verbal agreements," Torrie recounts.
Canadians don’t have a film industry. This article has been flagged as untrue