More parking, land and electrical power are needed to rev up Coquitlam’s film industry.
That was the message yesterday, Nov. 6, as the city’s council-in-committee heard from officials from Creative BC and Coquitlam’s acting manager of economic development.
Peter Klassen of Creative BC talked about the lucrative industry in B.C. and how Coquitlam has profited by hosting film and television productions in such places as:
- səmiq̓ʷəʔelə/Riverview Lands
- Upper Coquitlam River Park
- Mundy Park
- Minnekhada Park
- Widgeon Marsh
- Town Centre Park
Among the TV shows where Coquitlam is featured include Fire Country, Yellowjackets, The Good Doctor, The Flash, Virgin River, Supergirl and Riverdale while feature movies filmed locally have included The Twilight Saga, Elf, Deadpool and Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
But the writers’ and actors’ strikes this year have hurt the industry with revenues down $93,000 so far for Coquitlam — trending close to the pandemic levels in 2020 and ’21.
Creative BC estimates 2,400 Coquitlam residents work in the film industry, and 917 Coquitlam residents are attached to the audio–visual and interactive media fields.
Pros and Cons
In a bid to boost filming in Coquitlam, Klassen touched on the opportunities and challenges for the municipality — namely, the lack of studio space in industrial zones.
Recently, Creative BC started a program called Reel Green with BC Hydro to incentivize B.C. communities and production teams to cut their environmental impacts by offering up to half of the electrical infrastructure costs for the design and installation of power kiosks.
These clean energy kiosks, some of which are up in Northeast False Creek of Vancouver, are now being considered for filming locations in Coquitlam, Kalnins told the committee.
In terms of filming space, Coquitlam has one studio while Burnaby will have five after the 1.3 million sq. ft. studio near the Lake City Way SkyTrain station opens next year.
Kalnins said protecting and creating industrial lands are part of the city’s economic development strategy, and Coquitlam is well positioned geographically for the filming.
Coun. Craig Hodge said he toured studios in Burbank, Cali., last year with the city’s former economic development manager to find out what movie makers are wanting.
He was told, “If you build it, we will come” as long as there’s plenty of studio space and parking that’s away from residential homes, and electricity. “It comes down to power.”
Metro Vancouver is the third largest full-service motion picture production centre in North America after New York and Los Angeles.
Over the past 10 years, film spending has more than doubled in the province and has grown by an average of 13.6 per cent.
Coquitlam Filming Revenues and Permits
- 2018: $147,697; 138 permits issued
- 2019: $151,298; 169 permits issued
- 2020: $82,882; 58 permits issued
- 2021: $83,989; 109 permits issued
- 2022: $175,589; 102 permits issued
- 2023 YTD: $82,544; 37 permits issued
