After the consecutive strikes by actors and screenwriters which paralyzed Hollywood for several months in 2023, American filming has resumed with a vengeance in the Quebec metropolis. Prepare for certain streets of Montreal to be transformed into a New York jungle, Californian towns or European cities.
Several productions are currently filming, including the action film Mayday produced by Apple, which will star Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds. A short walk on Sainte-Catherine Street transports us to San Diego, thanks to the palm trees that line the new storefront.
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The American film “Mayday” is filmed in the streets of Montreal at the beginning of May.
Photo: Radio-Canada
Currently, there are a lot of American shoots [à Montréal]. Last year, there were strikes by writers and actors, so productions had to stop. But here, we are catching up. So, it’s a big start to the season
says Bernard Larivière, president of the Quebec Association of Image and Sound Technicians, local section 514 IATSE, on ICI RDI.
The next movie Karate Kid, who will bring together Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio on screen in their respective roles of Mr. Han and Daniel LaRusso, is also filming in Montreal from the beginning of April until the end of June.
In addition, the team of the series Ghosts will be present in July to finish filming the third season, whileObsessiona new series produced by Amazon, will be added to filming in the metropolis this year.
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Bernard Larivière, president of the Quebec Association of Image and Sound Technicians (AQTIS), local section 514 IATSE
Photo: Radio-Canada
At Grandé Studios, a Montreal studio that hosts the blockbuster Karate Kid, the year 2024 promises to be lucrative.
Our studios are full until the end of August
said the vice-president, Andrew Lapierre, on the line. It’s a good start, but it’s only at the end of the year that we will be able to say if the year was good.
Furthermore, the American film industry is an important Source of income for the local workforce. For example, each blockbuster hires between 500 and 800 technicians, estimates Mr. Larivière.
That’s a lot of jobs for people here, as the vast majority of staff are hired locally
specifies the one which represents 8,000 audiovisual professionals in the province.
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For the filming of the film “Mayday”, workers are busy transforming a Montreal street so that it resembles San Diego, May 4, 2024.
Photo: Radio-Canada
Fierce competition
Montreal is attractive [pour les productions américaines], because we can imitate several cities. Also, since there are four seasons, it is possible to have winter filming. So, we become a favorite destination
explains Mr. Larivière.
The latter specifies, however, that there is a fierce competition
with other provinces as well as different cities around the world to attract foreign blockbusters.
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The Quebec government recently increased the tax credit for film productions to 25%. Even if he applauds this increase, Mr. Lapierre believes that it remains difficult to compete with cities like London or Atlanta, where tax credits are around 40% and where several direct flights from and to Los Angeles are offered every day. These are small details that don’t help Montreal
recognizes the vice-president of Grandé Studios.
Montreal is not the first choice [pour les productions américaines]. When other towns are full, they come to us.
In addition, in the country, the metropolis is not only in competition with Toronto and Vancouver, but Winnipeg and Calgary are now part of the equation, he notes.
Mr. Lapierre would also like there to be more studios in Montreal to attract more foreign productions. He cites as examples the cities of New York and Vancouver, where governments have offered financial assistance to entrepreneurs.
There are regions in the world where governments are investing heavily in infrastructure because they are aware of the economic benefits of the industry
he explains, while adding that he is in discussion with the municipal and provincial levels of government.
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The American film “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” was filmed in Montreal in the summer of 2021.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Courtesy of Bilodeau Canada
According to the Bureau du Cinéma et de la Télévision du Québec (BCTQ), the province broke a record in 2021 by welcoming 12 American feature film or television series productions which generated economic benefits estimated at $470 million.
That year included, among other things, the megaproduction transformers : the awakening of the beasts in filming in Quebec.
