B.C. FILM INSIDERS HOPEFUL FOR INDUSTRY UPSWING, DESPITE GROWING CALLS TO #STAYINLA
Hollywood North industry players cautiously optimistic over TV/film production numbers picking back up.
https://vancouversun.com/entertainment/bc-film-hopeful-industry-upswing-hollywood-north
UBCP/ACTRA ISSUES NOTICE TO MEMBERS NOT TO WORK ON NON-UNION PRODUCTIONS
On January 29, UBCP/ACTRA released a Do Not Work
notice for Sparkland Pictures noting that "none of their productions are produced under the terms and conditions of a UBCP/ACTRA or ACTRA collective agreement." UBCP/ACTRA full, apprentice, and background members are subject to consequences if found to be auditioning for, or working on, a non-union production.
https://ubcpactra.ca/blog/2025/01/29/dnw-sparkland-pictures/
ACTOR KEIRA JANG IS DEDICATED TO BRINGING STORIES TO LIFE
Keira Jang’s star is rising, and for good reason. Last year, the Vancouver-based actor turned heads with her first-ever film performance in Can I
Get a Witness—an apocalyptic science-fiction drama in which the world is so resource-strapped that technology and travel are essentially banned.
https://www.straight.com/city-culture/breakouts-2025-actor-keira-jang-is-dedicated-to-bringing-stories-to-life
WANT TO 'WATCH CANADIAN' IN THE TRADE WAR? HERE'S WHY THAT'S SO HARD
While other countries crafted homegrown film industries, Canada 'gave that up willingly,' says film historian.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/watch-canadian-trade-war-1.7457879
TOO QUIET ON SET? HOLLYWOOD PUSHES FOR MORE LA PRODUCTIONS POST WILDFIRES
Cheaper labour and better tax breaks have lured producers away from the City of Angels for years. The wildfires have only added to this existential crisis. Now,
many here are calling on the state - and studios and streaming services - to boost local production.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8d9z68grn3o
WHY CALIFORNIA IS LOSING MOVIE AND TV PRODUCTION TO NON-US RIVALS
Canada, UK outpace Hollywood's home state
as Los Angeles invests in soundstages.
https://www.costar.com/article/665511693/why-california-is-losing-movie-and-tv-production-to-non-us-rivals
CALGARY'S DISABILITY ARTS COMMUNITY CELEBRATES HISTORIC MILESTONE WITH
ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW CENTRE
The project will see the overhaul of Scouts Hall in northwest Calgary into Canada's largest dedicated visual arts learning facility for artists living with disabilities.
https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/calgary-disability-arts-community-new-centre
FILM FESTIVAL CEO WARNS OF 'NATIONALISTIC' SHIFT IN MEDIA AMID CANADA-US TRADE TENSION
'The Canadian screen industry and the U.S. screen industry should always be collegial and not adversarial.'
https://financialpost.com/news/tiff-ceo-warns-about-nationalistic-shift
KOREAN STUDIO SLL, CANADA’S RESO TEAM FOR CO-PRODUCTION ACCELERATOR PROGRAM
Canada’s Racial Equity Screen Office (RESO) and leading Korean drama producer SLL are teaming up to launch an accelerator program to
encourage co-production between Canadian and Asian producers.
https://deadline.com/2025/02/korean-studio-sll-canada-reso-co-production-accelerator-1236283922/
POST-APOCALYPTIC FARMERS, LIVE-STREAMING TOMBS? TIFF'S TOP CANADIAN FILMS OF 2024 HONOURS
'RISK-TAKING' CINEMA
These were some of the boldest and most memorable cinematic visions brought to the screen by Canadian filmmakers in 2024.
https://www.cbc.ca/arts/post-apocalyptic-farmers-live-streaming-tombs-tiff-s-top-canadian-films-of-2024-honours-risk-taking-cinema-1.7458574
“INSTITUTIONS HAVE COLLAPSED”: UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE TEAM ON IRANIAN CINEMA, INDIVIDUALISM, AND CANADIAN HISTORY
Filmmaker Matthew Rankin has fun imagining Canada blended with Iran, but that imagination is also used to flesh out his
character’s sadder tendencies. With a sense of humor closer to Aki Kaurismaki and Roy Andersson than Panahi, it dreams up a liminal space that could only exist in fiction.
https://thefilmstage.com/institutions-have-collapsed-universal-language-team-on-iranian-cinema-individualism-and-canadian-history/
FEMALE PROTAGONISTS REACH PARITY WITH MEN IN TOP-GROSSING FILMS OF 2024
For the first time in recent history, the percentage of top-grossing films featuring female protagonists equaled the percentage of films with male
protagonists.
https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/female-protagonists-reach-parity-with-men-in-top-grossing-films-of-2024/article_8d994906-3c10-54b1-b997-c16c3814452f.html
THINK INSIDE THE BOX: THE MAGIC OF BLACK BOX THEATER
Imagine a stage with no limits, just a blank space waiting for creativity to take over: That’s the magic of a black box theater. These minimalist structures may look simple, but they offer endless possibilities. Let’s break down what makes a black box stage so special and why it’s a favorite among theater professionals.
https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/black-box-theater-acting-advice-78329/
