Motion Picture Tax Credit application standard is to process applications within 120 days from the date we receive a complete application. Incomplete applications, outstanding information or missing documents can delay the issuing of certificates.
An application can take up to six months—that is, from the day it is submitted to the day Creative BC issues the certificate. The amount of time it takes for an application to be processed can vary depending on several factors, including the type of application it is, the level of complexity of the file, or any unforeseen obstacles that come up during an analyst’s review.
Month 1
Application is submitted and a “fee due” email is issued.
Fee is received and processed, and the file is moved to the queue.
Months 2-3
Pre-Assessment begins; (an analyst verifies that all necessary documents have been submitted).
Months 4-5
First Review begins; (first business analyst does a thorough review of the application and follows up with the applicant regarding any missing information or discrepancies).
Months 5-6:
Second Review begins; (a senior business analyst does a final review of the file and approves it for certification).
The certificate is created, handed off for signatures, and sent to the applicant.
For updates on queue position, time estimates for first review, please contact Creative BC.
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
Currently, under section 79 (1) “accredited qualified BC labour expenditure” of the Income Tax Act of British Columbia, an accredited production corporation claiming the Production Services Tax Credits (PSTC) must give notice (pre-certification) in accordance with section 84.1 to the certifying authority – Creative BC:
#1 – within 60 days after incurring the 1st accredited BC labour expenditure if it occurred on or after July 1, 2020 and prior to February 22, 2022;
#2 – within 120 days after incurring the 1st accredited BC labour expenditure if it occurred on or after February 22, 2022.
Proposed measures for PSTC applicants
As part of Budget 2023, legislative measures will be brought forward which will impact production companies that incurred their first accredited BC labour expenditure after June 30, 2020 and prior to February 22, 2022 (#1). The measures will allow these companies to claim labour expenditures incurred up to 120 days prior to the pre-certification submission date. Production companies will be able to claim accredited BC labour expenditures incurred in the 120 days prior to filing their pre-certification form regardless of how late they originally filed their pre-certification form. Examples of how this will impact companies can be found on the BC Government PSTC webpage.
If a production company has already been denied a portion of their PSTC claim by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) due to late pre-certification filing, the company can request an adjustment to its T2 corporate tax return. For more information, see Requesting a reassessment of your T2 return – Canada.ca
PSTC pre-certification requirements
Note that all productions that have incurred the 1st accredited BC labour expenditure on or after February 22, 2022 (#2) must submit a pre-certification form to Creative BC within 120 days after the 1st accredited BC labour expenditure is incurred. If a pre-certification form is not submitted within 120 days, production companies are unable to claim any labour expenditures incurred prior to the filing date of the pre-certification form. For more information, please visit BC government FAQ webpage and read our previous newsletter here.
Creative BC encourages corporations to submit a pre-certification registration form as soon as the 1st BC labour expenditure is solidified, to avoid a reduction of the estimated tax credits. Please contact us for any questions.
For any questions, please contact the Motion Picture Tax Credit Programs department at taxteam (at) creativebc.com.
To find out more, visit:
Film Incentive BC (FIBC) is an economic initiative designed to encourage film, television, digital animation and visual effects production in British Columbia. Eligible applicants are film, television and animation production corporations with a permanent establishment in BC that are owned and controlled by Canadians and have incurred qualifying BC labour expenses.
For privately held companies, over 50% of the voting shares need to be held by Canadians. We do a look-through to the individual shareholders of the production corporation and any parent corporations (including parent corporations of parent corporations!). To do this, we need the Schedule B: Certificate of an Officer, Corporate Share Register and Certificate of Incorporation for the production corporation and all parent corporations.
For publicly-held corporations, 2/3 of board of directors must be Canadian. For these corporations, please use our Public Corporation Affidavit.
Creative BC: FIBC Application Checklists
Refer to section B “Eligible Production Corporation” in the application checklists below to ensure that you are providing the initially required support documents that confirm the production company is Canadian-controlled. During the analyst review of your application, you may be asked to provide further information for permanent residence.
More information and resources for FIBC tax credits are available at www.creativebc.com/fibc.
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
Under section 85(1) of the Income Tax Act of British Columbia, corporations filing a claim for the British Columbia film and television tax credit (BCFTTC – FIBC) must submit a Completion Certificate with their T2 corporation income tax return if the production was completed in the related tax year. To make sure that claimants receive the tax credit to which they are entitled, an Eligibility Certificate alone will no longer be accepted for the tax year a production is completed.
Going forward, a Completion Certificate will be required for productions that are completed in a tax year. To help applicants adjust to the new process, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has implemented a transition period.
Transition period
The CRA is offering the transition period until March 31, 2023, to give BCFTTC (FIBC) claimants time to adapt to this filing requirement. During this period, the CRA will accept either an Eligibility Certificate and/or a Completion Certificate for BCFTTC (FIBC) claims for the tax year a production is completed. However, if a final-year claim is processed with only an Eligibility Certificate, the production must still get a Completion Certificate within the legislated time period that applies:
- 18 months from the tax year when the qualified BC labour expenditure was incurred, or
- 30 months from the end of the tax year in which principal photography of the production began
The CRA encourages corporations to apply for a Completion Certificate with Creative BC as soon as possible to avoid delays and reduce the risk of losing tax credits for which they may otherwise be eligible.
For any questions, please contact the Motion Picture Tax Credit Programs department at taxteam (at) creativebc.com.
To find out more, visit: What’s new – Film and media tax credits
Know the minimum budget requirement for your production to be qualified for PSTC
Under the Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) there are different minimum budget threshold requirements for different types of productions.
The following can help you determine a minimum global budget for your next production.
If your production is intended for television broadcast as an episodic series, the global production budget must be greater than:
- $100,000 for live action episode less than 30 minutes long;
- $200,000 for live action episode that is 30 minutes or longer;
- $0 for digitally animated episode less than 30 minutes long;
- $200,000 for digitally animated episode that is 30 minutes or longer.
In all other cases, the global production budget minimum under PSTC must be greater than $1,000,000:
- single production intended for television broadcast (e.g. one-off, MOW, TV mini-series)
- single production NOT intended for television broadcast (e.g. SVOD program; feature theatrical film),
- episodic production NOT intended for television broadcast (e.g. SVOD series, web and other episodic productions).
See Section 79(1) of Income Tax Act (BC) to learn more about the definition of an “accredited production” and “episode”.
“accredited production” means a film or video production, other than an excluded production, for which the total expenditures included in the cost of producing the production, incurred in the 24 month period beginning when principal photography begins, other than any amounts determined by reference to profits or revenues, are
(a) greater than $100 000, in the case of a production that is an episode, or a pilot for an episode, with a running time of less than 30 minutes,
(a.1) despite paragraph (a), greater than nil, in the case of a production, all or substantially all of which consists of prescribed digital animation or visual effects, that is an episode, or a pilot for an episode, with a running time of less than 30 minutes,
(b) greater than $200 000, in the case of a production that is an episode, or a pilot for an episode, with a running time of 30 minutes or more, or
(c) greater than $1 million, in any other case;
“episode” means an episode of a film or video production intended for television broadcast as a series.
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
If you intend to claim the motion picture tax credits in British Columbia, ensure your corporation has a permanent establishment in BC
Accredited corporation claiming PSTC must be a Canadian taxable corporation primarily engaged in film and video production business and with a permanent establishment in BC during the taxation year, however not necessarily incorporated or registered in BC.
Eligible production corporation claiming FIBC must be a Canadian-controlled taxable corporation primarily engaged in film and video production business and with a permanent establishment in BC during the taxation year.
A valid proof of permanent establishment shows the corporation’s name and the BC address during production. Our preferred documents to verify permanent establishment in BC are a copy of the bank statement, lease agreement with a film studio, utility bill, admin fee cheque, or BC registry documents.
See the Income Tax Act (BC) to learn more about an “accredited corporation”, “eligible production corporation”, and “BC-based corporation”.
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
Did you know that Creative BC now accepts fee payment via e-transfer? Account details and additional instructions can be found in our Payment Options doc which can be requested from the tax team at taxteam@creativebc.com.
Creative BC continues to accept payment via cheque, money order, direct deposit, or wire transfer as well. See PSTC Fee Schedule and FIBC Fee Schedule for more information.
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
In your FIBC tax credits applications, Creative BC is looking to see that there is a written agreement with a Canadian-controlled distributor or broadcaster to have the production shown in Canada within 24 months of completion.
We sometimes receive questions about how online platforms relate to the “shown in Canada” requirement.
Shown in Canada Online
The agreements for online release in Canada can be structured in either of the two following ways:
1) Agreement between [ production company ] and [ Canadian broadcaster with online platform ]
OR
2) Agreement between [ production company ] and [ Canadian distributor ] and a separate Agreement between [ Canadian distributor ] and [ online platform ]
We can accept agreements between the production company and a Canadian broadcaster for release on its online platform as meeting the 24 months release in Canada requirement because the agreement is still with a Canadian broadcaster which meets the legislative requirements. But for online platforms that are not associated with a Canadian broadcaster, we require an intermediary agreement between the production company and a Canadian distributor that then enters into the agreement with the online platform that will be releasing in Canada within 24 months of completion.
Note that there can be no distribution in Canada by a non-Canadian distributor or broadcaster within 24 months of completion.
If you are still working out your broadcasting / distribution agreements, the following resources may help:
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
PRE-CERTIFICATION: Recent changes to the notice deadline
B.C. Budget 2022 proposes that the deadline for the production services tax credits applicant to file a pre-certification form is extended from 60 to 120 days effective February 22, 2022.
This impacts productions that first incur accredited BC labour expenditures on or after February 22, 2022 and they must give a notice by submitting a pre-certification form through the Creative BC website within 120 days after incurring the first accredited B.C. labour expenditure.
Productions that first incurred accredited B.C. labour expenditures before February 22, 2022 but after June 30, 2020 have 60 days to file a pre-certification form (per Budget 2020).
If a pre-certification form is not submitted within the specified number of days, production companies are unable to claim labour expenditures incurred prior to filing the form.
For example, if a company files their pre-certification form 150 days after their first accredited B.C. labour expenditure, they will not be eligible to claim any labour expenditures that occurred within those 150 days. This in turn would reduce the production services tax credit that the production company would receive.
Once the pre-certification number is issued, the production corporation may apply to Creative BC to receive an accreditation certificate for the production.
To find out more, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/taxes/income-taxes/corporate/credits/production-services
1. PRE-CERTIFICATION
Productions that incur their first BC labour expenditure on or after July 1, 2020 must submit a pre-certification form through the Creative BC website within 60 days after incurring the first accredited BC labour expenditure. Once the pre-certification number is issued, the production corporation may apply to Creative BC to receive an accreditation certificate for the production.
If a production company submits their pre-certification form after the 60-day period, BC labour expenditures incurred prior to submitting the form will not be eligible for the PSTC. For example, if a company files their pre-certification form 75 days after their first accredited BC labour expenditure, they will not be eligible to claim any labour expenditures that occurred within those 75 days. This in turn would reduce the production services tax credit received by the production company.
2. WHEN TO SUBMIT A FULL PSTC APPLICATION
Production companies are encouraged to apply for their tax credit certificates as early as possible. We strongly recommend production companies submit their accreditation certificate application to Creative BC within 12 months of the corporation’s taxation year end. This is because we may require 6 months to process certificate applications. We are unable to guarantee that applications filed later will be processed in time for the production company to file with the CRA before the deadline, which may result in denied claims.
For an eligibility certificate, we strongly recommend that you apply as early as possible in the pre-production or production stage and no later than 12 months from the corporation’s taxation year in which principal photography began.
For a completion certificate, we strongly recommend that production companies submit applications within 12-24 months of the taxation year in which principal photography began.
PSTC General Eligibility Rules are outlined in the PSTC Summary and required support documents are listed in the PSTC Checklist.
Following a tax credit application portal transmission, PSTC applicants receive a pre-assessment email outlining what is required for the pre-assessment stage.
The PSTC application is added to the review queue when the pre-assessment stage is complete, meaning that all items listed in the pre-assessment email have been successfully addressed.
Note: pre-assessment is not the analyst’s review. Further questions, clarifications, and documents may be required for the accreditation certificate review. Please contact us for any questions.
Also Note: pre-assessment is not pre-certification. Applying for a PSTC accreditation certificate requires: 1) pre-certification 2) pre-assessment 3) accreditation. Pre-certification is completed with the online registration form. Pre-assessment and accreditation are completed via the online portal application transmission and any emails that follow from Creative BC. Please contact us for any questions.
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
- The production must be completed within 24 months from the production corporation’s first fiscal year end after the start of principal photography (or the start of key animation for animated productions); and
- A completion certificate must be issued within 30 months from the production corporation’s first fiscal year end after the start of principal photography (or the start of key animation for animated productions).
For example, if principal photography on the production started on June 17, 2021 and the production corporation’s fiscal year end was April 30, the deadlines would be calculated from April 30, 2022. In this case, the production would have to be completed by April 30, 2024 and the completion certificate would have to be issued by October 31, 2024.
Keep these deadlines in mind to be sure you complete your production and file for your completion certificate in time.
Creative BC Tax Team
Learn more about Film Incentive BC (FIBC)
This post is intended as a general overview. It is not exhaustive and should not be relied upon to determine eligibility or the final amount of an anticipated tax credit. In case of any discrepancies between this post and the Income Tax Act (BC) and Regulations (the “Act”), the provisions of the Act prevail.
Please contact the CRA Film Services Units for information on CRA filing deadlines for PSTC and FIBC.
Additionally, BC Ministry of Finance has announced “As part of our COVID-19 supports, the deadline to claim the tax credit for claims required to be made March 13, 2020 or later is extended to six months from the original due date or to December 31, 2020, whichever is earlier.” (see the BC Ministry of Finance page for FIBC and PSTC information)
June 24, 2020
Please see more information on the CRA website here for any important notices regarding Film + Media Tax Credits.
Film Incentive BC (FIBC) is an economic initiative designed to encourage film, television, digital animation and visual effects production in British Columbia. This labour-based tax credit is available to domestic productions with qualifying levels of Canadian content.
The session provides attendees with an understanding of where to start, how to plan, what is required, and how to apply.
Read more about the Film Incentive BC program on creativebc.com
View the info session here
The Creative BC Tax Credits Team is working from home and this has not impacted our processing of tax credit applications.
However, in response to the COVID-19 crisis, Creative BC has amended some of our usual tax credits procedures and application requirements until further notice, as follows:
- Transmitted applications will be moved to the queue and assessed without receiving the application fee. Note that payment of the application fee will be required before a production is certified.
- Creative BC continues to accept application fees by cheque mailed to our office. Please do not send cheques by courier as we aren’t there to accept delivery. Upon request, Creative BC can now accept electronic payment of application fees. Please contact taxteam@creativebc.com for details.
- Affidavits need to be signed but notarization is not required.
Please note that for PSTC applications, the Pre-Certification registration process is still in place.
If you have general questions, please feel free to reach out to a member of our team.
Stay safe!
With the recent announcement of B.C.’s Budget & Fiscal Plan 2020, one new and two previous announcements should be noted by applicants to B.C. motion picture tax credit programs:
For details, please visit the Tax Credit Program pages on our website. Thank you for your ongoing collaboration, the Creative BC team looks forward to enhancing our services.
2019 PSTC Pre-Certification Process
Motion Picture Tax Credits Application in B.C.
In consultation with government and industry stakeholders, Creative BC is today sharing preliminary information regarding the anticipated implementation of the new PSTC pre-certification and registration process.
The process change will go into effect on September 24, 2019. While the FIBC tax credit process already has two steps, pre-certification for PSTC applicants will now require a simple, new pre-certification form that generates a registration number for every project applicant.
We anticipate that early knowledge of planned production activity across the province will give Creative BC preliminary insight and aggregate information, based on which competitive insight, production volume forecasting and service preparation can be planned. This new step will give Creative BC and its partners across industry and government information with which to collaborate, enhance and sustain value delivery through Creative BC’s tax credit administration and film commission services.
For details, please visit the Tax Credit Program pages on our website. Thank you for your ongoing collaboration, the Creative BC team looks forward to enhancing our services.
British Columbia is world-renowned as a versatile and dependable hub for motion picture production. As a global competitor in visual effects (VFX) and animation, the motion picture industry is estimated to support full time equivalent positions totalling over 71,000 in B.C. [1]
These figures show that production activity levels are holding steady as indicated by the annual total budgeted production spend, which is slightly lower by 6% year-over-year. While the total number of productions certified by Creative BC this year is down by 68 productions year-over-year, the number of productions certified is dependent on certification submissions and timing.
With these production expenditures, direct industry jobs and labour income accounted for approximately $1.67 billion spent in British Columbia. B.C.-based creators accounted for 154 productions, with non-B.C. and foreign companies bringing 230 productions to the province.
A breakdown by program of the 384 tax credit certifications approved by Creative BC during fiscal year 2018/19 includes:
- 154 tax credit certifications were issued under the Film Incentive BC Tax Credit Program (FIBC) for Canadian owned and controlled productions, with estimated budgeted expenditures in B.C. of $391M;
- 230 tax credit certifications were issued under the Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) program for international productions, with estimated budgeted expenditures in B.C. of $2.8B;
- The Digital Animation, Visual Effects and Post-Production Tax Credit (DAVE), was leveraged by 152 of the total 154 FIBC claims and 218 of 230 of the PSTC claims respectively;
- 139 productions of the 384 total tax credit certifications, or 36%, leveraged regional tax credits (outside the designated Vancouver area);
- 61 of the 384 total tax credit certifications, or 16%, leveraged distant location regional tax credits (beyond the regional tax credit zone);
- 7 FIBC projects accessed the newly established Scriptwriting Tax Credit.
A breakdown by format of the 384 tax credit certifications is below:
- Feature Films: 95
- Mini-series: 4
- Movies of the Week: 84
- TV Programs: 20
- TV Series: 148
- Web-based/other: 13
- TV pilots: 20
For more information and detailed expenditures by production type, please visit: https://creativebc.com/motion-picture-industry-statistics
Highlights from B.C.’s motion picture industry during fiscal year 2018/19 include:
- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse – Over 80% of the Academy Award-winning animated film was created by animation artists and visual effects teams in the Sony Pictures Imageworks’ Vancouver studios.
- Ironwood & Fraserwood Studios – In April 2018, Whites Studios announced renovations and expansion for two distinct studios: Ironwood and Fraserwood Studios. Ironwood has 177,000 total square footage, including seven sound stages and office facilities and Fraserwood contains 119,000 total square footage, with four sound stages and a mill shop and paint shop.
- A Million Little Things – ABC Studios’ A Million Little Things spent over $27M in B.C. in its first season and engaged more than 779 local businesses from 32 communities across the province. The show also used the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) to stand in for the Boston Garden.[2]
- Last Kids On Earth – This year, Vancouver-based animation studio Atomic Cartoons signed a worldwide licensing deal for their upcoming Netflix series ‘The Last Kids on Earth”, currently in production. The studio has also worked on Hilda, the British-Canadian co-production with Netflix, based on Luke Pearson’s graphic novel.
- Marvel Cinematic Universe – Much of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe has a Vancouver stamp on it with visual effects and post-production companies Industrial Light and Magic, Double Negative (DNEG), Method Studios and Cinesite working on Captain Marvel and Avengers: Infinity War.
- Game of Thrones – Many British Columbians may have caught the Province’s screen credits at the end of episodes of the final season of Game of Thrones. That is due to the creation of the dragons that were visualized by B.C. studio Image Engine. This high-end creative work is supported by the Canadian Film and Video Production Services Tax Credit and the Province of British Columbia Production Services Tax Credit.
- Unspeakable – The CBC drama examines the tragic circumstances in which contaminated blood and blood products infected thousands of Canadian patients with HIV. Unspeakable was created and written by BC-producer Robert Cooper and filmed on Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland.
- Riverdale – Over three seasons, the Warner Bros. Television show Riverdale spent over $103M in BC, creating 1,785 jobs in the province. In season three alone, the show has spent $43M in B.C.[3]
[1] CMPA Profile 2018 estimates of direct and spin-off FTES, Exhibit 2-3
We are pleased to announce that Creative BC is launching a new, improved online tax credit application system for PSTC and FIBC.
This means that effective April 1, 2019, Creative BC will only accept tax credit applications transmitted via the new portal. All clients that have previously submitted an application to Creative BC will be granted access to the new system via e-mail before April 1, 2019.
DO YOU HAVE ANY UN-SUBMITTED APPLICATIONS IN PROGRESS?
If so, they must be transmitted prior to April 1, 2019. If you do not transmit your in-flight applications before April 1, 2019, your application(s) will NOT be available in the new system.
Applications that are not submitted before April 1, 2019 will still be available for viewing in the old system until May 31, 2019 but you will have to manually re-enter the information to the new system in order to transmit your application.
We look forward to serving you with this improved platform and anticipate a smooth transition.
Visit our Tax Credit page here for more information!
Download PDF
BRITISH COLUMBIA’S MOTION PICTURE INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTES $3.4B TO THE PROVINCIAL ECONOMY
VANCOUVER, B.C. (July 16, 2018) – Today Creative BC reports that budgeted motion picture production expenditures of 452 productions qualifying for tax credit certifications during the 2017 – 18 fiscal year contributed $3.4 billion to B.C.’s economy. Within this total budgeted production spend, direct industry jobs and labour income accounted for approximately $1.78 billion. B.C.-based creators accounted for 163 productions, with non-B.C. and foreign companies bringing 289 productions to the province.
British Columbia possesses a reputation for excellence and innovation in screen-based media production globally, and motion picture contributes to a strong and sustainable economy for the province. Spanning physical production, animation, visual effects and post-production, B.C’s full-service industry is a major private sector employer supporting an estimated 60,000 skilled workers across technology, trades, business and the arts with higher than average incomes.
Additionally, the province is home to well over 200 B.C.-based producers and more than 250 local businesses that service motion picture production including 65 film studios, 30 post-production companies and 100 animation and visual effects companies, making B.C. the world’s largest visual effects cluster. Additional highlights, facts and impacts of B.C.’s motion picture industry during fiscal year 2017-18 included:
- Eagle Creek Studios of Burnaby expanded to Kelowna, building a new purpose-built sound stage for production in the Okanagan;
- Vancouver Island Film Studio opened in Parksville with five purpose built sound stages servicing production on the Island;
- The most-watched, most-successful series in Hallmark Channel’s history, Chesapeake Shores renewed for a third season of filming on Vancouver Island and employed graduates of the North Island College Regional Film Crew Training pilot program, which was created in partnership with the North Island Film Commission;
- B.C. independent filmmaker Mina Shum’s Meditation Park opened the Vancouver Film Festival and has been acquired by Netflix in the U.S., U.K. and Australia;
- Sony Pictures Animation’s Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation was released this weekend earning the top spot at the box office and receiving much critical acclaim. Sony Pictures Imageworks created the film using the talents of B.C.’s exceptional artists.
- 20th Century Fox’s War for the Planet of the Apes filmed in Vancouver and Tofino, earned Special Effects Supervisor Joel Whist of Kamloops an Oscar nomination, and contributed $81 million to the B.C. economy in just 180 days of production, including $45 million on cast and crew, $3.6 million on construction supplies, $1.6 million to municipalities on location fees and $1.2 million on local hotels;
- 20th Century Fox’s Deadpool 2, starring Ryan Reynolds, filmed in B.C. in several communities including Vancouver, Coquitlam and at Victoria’s Royal Roads University and contributed over $100 million to the economy in just 80 days of filming, creating 3,000 local jobs and leveraging Method Studios’ VFX expertise.
- The Reel Thanksgiving Challenge, a collaboration between B.C.’s industry partners and spearheaded by the Director’s Guild of Canada, BC Chapter, raised $205,831 for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, including more than $30,000 raised by the cast and crew of The Man in the High Castle, a TV series filming since 2015 at Eagle Creek Studios and various Metro Vancouver locations. Over four years the initiative has raised $565,000 for this charity alone.
A breakdown by program of the 452 tax credit certifications approved by Creative BC during fiscal year 2017-18 include:
- 163 issued under the Film Incentive BC Tax Credit Program (FIBC) for Canadian owned and controlled productions, with estimated budgeted expenditures in B.C. of close to $404 million;
- 289 issued under the Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) program for international productions, with estimated budgeted expenditures in B.C. of $3 billion; and
- The Digital Animation, Visual Effects and Post Production Tax Credit (DAVE), was leveraged by 144 of the total 163 FIBC claims and 276 of 289 the PSTC claims respectively.
- 187 productions of the 452, or 41%, leveraged regional tax credits (outside the designated Vancouver area); 86 of the 452, or 19%, leveraged distant location regional tax credits (beyond the regional tax credit zone).
A breakdown by format of the 452 tax credit certifications includes:
- Direct to DVD – 6
- Feature Films – 110
- Mini Series – 6
- Movies of the Week – 112
- Pilots – 21
- TV Programs – 22
- Series – 164
- Web-based/other – 11
Creative BC is the independent agency responsible for promotion and growth of the creative industries in British Columbia, providing a single point of access for industry programming, provincial film commission production support services and tax credit administration, international marketing and policy development. For more information and detailed expenditures by production type, please visit https://creativebc.com/motion-picture-industry-statistics
Quotes:
Prem Gill, Chief Executive Officer, Creative BC
“The people working in B.C.’s motion picture industry have earned this province a global reputation for innovation and full-service excellence in the highly competitive screen-based industries. From physical production to VFX, animation and post-production, the positive economic and labour income footprints of motion picture in B.C. are expanding due to industry and government collaboration, incredible talent, world-leading industry expertise and robust infrastructure. Together we are delivering the world’s highest quality content.”
Peter Leitch, President, North Shore Studios and Chair of the Motion Picture Production Industry Association of B.C.
“Together, British Columbia’s motion picture industry continues its leadership position as North America’s third largest motion picture hub. We are proud of our industry’s global reputation for expertise and innovation, and of the contribution we are making to this province’s economy.”
Liz Shorten, Senior Vice-President, Operations & Member Services, Canadian Media Producers Association, Vancouver Branch
“B.C.’s thriving motion picture production industry presents excellent strategic opportunity for our province’s own producers and creators. British Columbia’s industry is in the global spotlight, and as demand for screen-based content grows, we can leverage our international reputation to increase our domestic creators’ presence at home, nationally and around the globe.”
Joan Miller, Film Commissioner, Vancouver Island North Film Commission and President, Association of Regional Film Commissioners of BC
“The regions of B.C. are much more than a destination for unique locations, thanks to Governments strategic investments focused on growing the creative industries throughout B.C. The current successes can be credited to labour-based tax credits and grass roots rural training programs. Combined with years of hard work and dedication by B.C.’s regional film commissions, job opportunities and private infrastructure investment in motion picture, game and animation is on the rise.”
David Shepheard, Director, Vancouver Film Commission and Board Member of Association of Film Commissioners International
“Vancouver is proud to be the anchor of the region’s film & TV industry. Thousands of professionals form the bedrock of Vancouver’s world-leading VFX and animation sector, and thousands more comprise the celebrated crews and talent that built global confidence in our city’s capacity to deliver world-class productions. These numbers show that Vancouver and the region remains firmly established as North America’s third largest film & TV production centre, and the largest and busiest production hub in Canada. This success is set to continue playing a fundamental role in Vancouver’s economic future.”
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About Creative BC Creative BC is an independent agency created and supported by the Province of B.C. to sustain and help grow B.C.’s creative sector (film and television, digital and interactive media, music, and magazine and book publishing industries). The agency delivers a wide range of programs and services to expand B.C.’s creative economy. These include the administration of the provincial government’s tax credit programs for film and television; development funding and export marketing support; and motion picture production services to attract inward investment and market B.C. as a destination for domestic and international production. The agency acts as an industry catalyst and ambassador to help B.C.’s creative sector reach its economic and creative potential both at home and globally.
Stay up to date with initiatives from Creative BC:
- Twitter, Facebook, Instagram: @creativebcs
- Website: www.creativebc.com
Media Contact:
Kyla Humphreys, Content + Communications Specialist
media@creativebc.com | 604-730-2240
The government announced with Budget 2016 its intention to work with the film and television industry to address the rising cost of the province’s production services tax credit for film and television.
Under the current rates, the subsidy was forecast to cost nearly $500 million in 2015-16, up from an average of $313 million over the past three years, and an average of $182 million over the five years prior to 2012-13.
The Province announced in the February budget it would establish an industry-government working group with representatives from the film and television industry. These meetings helped the Province understand the industry’s perspectives and provided an opportunity to discuss potential options.
Subject to the approval of the legislature and the implementation of the necessary regulations, for principal photography beginning on or after Oct 1, 2016, the basic production services tax credit rate will be set at 28%, down from 33%, and the digital animation or visual effects (DAVE) tax credit rate will be set at 16%, down from 17.5%.
The Province is providing a transitional period to recognize the investments already planned for British Columbia. For example, the amendments will allow all episodes in one season of a television series to continue at the current tax credit rates if principal photography for the first episode begins prior to Oct 1, 2016.
To read the full press release.
For information on the transitional provisions regarding these tax credit changes, click here.
As part of BC Budget 2015, the Province of British Columbia expanded the DAVE tax credit to include post-production activities. This enhancement applies to productions which began principal photography after February 28, 2015.
Creative BC has received the new regulations concerning which post-production activities are eligible and not eligible under the enhanced DAVE tax credit. According to the amended BC Film and Television Tax Credit Regulation, prescribed digital post-production activities are post-production activities carried out primarily with digital technology, but DO NOT include the following:
(a) prescribed digital animation or visual effects activities referred to in section 10 (2) of this regulation;
(b) re-shooting of scenes;
(c) mass duplication of video recordings;
(d) activities relating to promotional material for the production
Please find attached links to the relevant sections of the BC Income Tax Act that pertain to these new regulations.
View More Tax Credit Info