MONTREAL – Quebecor is urging all of Quebec's political parties to formally commit to maintaining the province’s film or video production services tax credit and to support the local production industry.
With the Quebec general election now days away, Quebecor president and CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau said his company is seeking “fiscal predictability” in order to move forward with a $40 million investment to build new MELS studios to keep up with demand for production space.
Noting that the 23 foreign films shot in Quebec last year generated direct expenditures of $383 million, up 28.5% from 2016 and 440% from 2009, Péladeau said that Quebec currently accounts for only 11% of foreign film productions in Canada, compared with 62% for British Columbia and 23% for Ontario.
"Given the significant positive economic impact of foreign film productions, including on Quebec's trade balance, and the cultural importance of having a vibrant film and video production industry to provide work for our creative talents, actors, technicians and other workers, there is an urgent need for action”, he said in a statement. “We can't just sit on our hands while our Canadian and foreign competitors eat our lunch.”
