British Columbia is rolling out the red carpet to celebrate the wide range of screen-based entertainment that is created in B.C. by proclaiming Monday, July 27, 2015, as “Screen in BC Day”.

As part of Screen in BC Day, the Okanagan Film Commission hosted a regional tour visiting Bardel Animation, Yeti farm Creative and The Film Factory Creative House.

Regional Film Offices receive operational funding from the Province of B.C. through Creative BC’s Regional Film Funding Program, which helps support the growth of the film and television industry throughout B.C. For the current fiscal year, Creative BC will contribute $213,000 toward the regional film offices. This includes $30,000 to the Okanagan Film Commission.

Known for excellence in physical production, post production, VFX and animation, interactive games as well as original content by B.C. based production companies for world markets, British Columbia is one of the top centres for screen-production excellence in North America. British Columbia’s motion-picture industry supports approximately 20,000 direct and indirect quality jobs that make up a talented, highly experienced and knowledge-driven workforce.

Quotes:

Premier Christy Clark, MLA, Westside-Kelowna –

“British Columbia is almost impossibly diverse. That diversity is reflected in our international population and lively cities. A North American leader in business development across the spectrum of digital media enterprises, we are home to world-leading film and television companies and a burgeoning digital media and visual f/x hub. Along with competitive tax credits and a favourable exchange rate, our industry makes British Columbia one of the world’s best locations for film and television production.”

Jon Summerland, film commissioner, Okanagan Film Commission –

"The Okanagan Region is having a strong year with several high-profile feature films and movies of the week shot so far and a busy slate of productions planned for the fall. We offer a diverse range of locations for filmmakers, which includes Canada's only desert as well as a strong infrastructure which includes its own crew base who can service not only major productions but also the many international car commercials that are filmed here. In addition, our talented animation industry continues to expand which further contributes to the diversification and growth our creative economy."

Norm Letnick, MLA, Kelowna-Lake Country –

“We’re seeing a lot of activity in the creative industries in B.C., and this is just the beginning. As a North America leader in business development across the spectrum of digital media enterprises, B.C. is home to world-leading film and television companies and a burgeoning digital media and visual f/x hub. Our government maintains strong support for the creative sector and is delivering on our commitments to industry.”

Steve Thomson, MLA, Kelowna-Mission –

“We want to highlight how critical the film industry is to Kelowna’s and B.C.’s economy. With more than 20,000 British Columbians working either directly or indirectly in this industry, government is ensuring we are doing everything we can to protect their jobs and grow the sector.”

Robert Wong, interim CEO and acting film commissioner, Creative BC –

“B.C. has become one of North America’s leading creative hubs for screen based entertainment with a talented group of B.C. companies who are creating and selling their content to audiences around the world. At the same time, we have grown to become of the world’s largest cluster for visual effects and digital animation, which has given us a competitive advantage as a global centre capable of performing the complete spectrum of services required for major productions.”

Quick Facts:

• The Okanagan is headed for another good year with new productions on the burner coming to shoot in Canada's equivalent of Bella Italia.
• Recent feature film productions include the George Clooney-starring film Tomorrowland which filmed in Enderby and Armstrong, the Anthony Hopkins-film Go With Me, which filmed in Enderby, Armstrong, Vernon and Lumby, and Vic Sarin's Nightmare Movie of the Week for Lifetime as well as recent shooting of Tomato Red and starting Aug. 10, The Orchard.
• The B.C. indie thriller, The Unseen, was shot in a small town location in West Kelowna and in the back country.
• The region is a popular location for shooting car commercials.
• Bardel is one of the world’s leading animation studios, with two studios in Vancouver and one in Kelowna. The company has nine shows in production.
• YetiFarms creates world-class creative for all platforms: interactive, web, mobile, advertising, explainer vids, TV, and viral campaigns.
• B.C. production expenditures reached an estimated $2 billion in fiscal year 2014/2015 compared to $1.45 billion in fiscal 2013-14.

Links:

To learn more about the Okanagan Commission, visit: http://okanaganfilm.com/

To learn more about Creative BC, visit: http://www.creativebc.com/

To learn more about BC Creates, visit: http://bccreates.com/