2020 has been a wild year with lots of upheaval and uncertainty. However, as this unpredictable year draws to a close, one thing we feel certain about is that production in Ontario made a remarkable recovery thanks in large part to our Membership’s commitment to safety and adherence to COVID 19 protocols. With the GTA reaching max capacity by late summer, many productions began to truly embrace the range of stellar locations available in our province.
Did you know some of your favourite TV shows use cities all across the province as their backdrop?
In 2019, a total of 15 productions were filmed in North Bay resulting in 377 filming days, 264 different locations and an estimated 16,000-plus branded hotel overnight stays, altogether generating more than $46 million in local spending, including on wages, construction, rentals, locations and accommodations.
“Film is really specialized and we have it here in North Bay, tt’s a huge industry and they’re back and there’s people working on the sets right now. We built an industry here from scratch and it’s very critical that the province continues to support the film sector.” – Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli
Cardinal
Award-winning Nordic Noir series Cardinal, based on the John Cardinal detective novels, is filmed in author Giles Blunt’s hometown. North Bay’s environment has been one of the signatures of the series, almost another character in the show. “In northern Ontario it’s its own thing and I really enjoyed that, not pretending that it’s someplace else. It’s North Bay — Algonquin Bay in this case — but it’s an actual place.” – Billy Campbell (Detective John Cardinal)
“The relentless freezing temperatures constrain people at every turn. Everyone must don their parkas or hurry between car and truck lest mother nature, rather than a vengeful killer, get them. It adds a sense of scale and an intensity to the (lean, muted) action that US or UK equivalents have to struggle to achieve. The petty vengeances of man play out against the ultimate, implacable, uncaring foe. The unforgiving cold freezes corpses in painful attitudes, fresh snowfall obscures tracks that might have led somewhere or to someone. A weak spot in the ice and you are done for. Nature does not care.” – The Guardian
New Eden
The true crime parody New Eden, Directed by DGC Ontario’s Aleysa Young, used North Bay to create their feminist utopia commune spanning the 1970s, 80s and 90s.
A Christmas Carousel
A Christmas Carousel premieres December 19th on The Hallmark Channel.
A Christmas Carousel airs in Canada on Corus on December 19th