As an industry worker and business owner with more than 20 years of experience in Ontario’s film and television industry, I am witnessing an unprecedented slowdown in work, while production surges in jurisdictions like British Columbia and Alberta.

Many years of stable tax credits helped Ontario become a global production hub, but recent changes in competing jurisdictions now threaten to erode that position. Ontario’s incentives are no longer competitive with leading jurisdictions such as British Columbia and New Jersey, which offer materially higher rates—including a 36% service production credit in British Columbia and 30–40% transferable credits in New Jersey—compared to Ontario’s 21.5% service production rate.

As service productions drive the majority of foreign investment, studio spending, and crew employment, this gap is the primary cause of lost work. Per Ontario Creates, in 2024 alone, film and television production contributed approximately $2.6 billion to Ontario’s economy; without competitive incentives, this could translate to potentially over $1 billion in production spending at risk in the near term.

Without immediate action to raise Ontario’s service production tax credit and restore competitiveness, the province risks losing tens of thousands of jobs and billions in economic activity.

We call on the Government of Ontario to take immediate action and increase film and television tax credit rates to competitive levels and protect this vital industry.