War and pestilence haven’t yet had an apocalyptic impact on Canada’s film and television production volumes – U.S. producers are more interested in the ongoing ACTRA contract negotiations – but protracted assaults on both Iraq and the killer pneumonia SARS could curb the long-term production trends.

So far, however, it’s business as usual, says Don Cott, the Canadian VP for the U.S.-based Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers, with little or no impact on the flow of production into Canada. ‘It’s certainly a topic of conversation,’ he says of his daily confabs with U.S. studios. ‘But it’s hard to say how it will evolve.’

He says his U.S. colleagues have questions about Toronto and its concentration of SARS cases, but pneumonia cases are starting to emerge in the U.S. Still, Cott hasn’t heard of any production cancellations or any locations switching to Vancouver, which is less impacted so far by SARS.

As for the Persian Gulf War or critical comments by United States Ambassador to Canada Paul Cellucci about Canada’s lack of support for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, Cott says there is no backlash.

In fact, he says, Canada’s war stance may complement Hollywood’s politics. ‘Certainly, the entertainment industry is opposed to the war, in general,’ he says. ‘Up to this point, there is no impact, but that depends on how long the war is going to go. Uncertainty could affect production, but that’s a remote possibility.’

On the prairies, meanwhile, some U.S.-based television productions are asking not to be identified as American due to security concerns.

But that’s not typical, says B.C. Film Commissioner Susan Croome, explaining that it’s all good on the Western Front.

‘We’re dealing with big corporate clients here,’ she says. ‘These are corporate decisions rather than personal decisions and cooler heads prevail.’

For U.S. producers – skittish about world events or otherwise – Canada offers an insurance haven, says Vancouver-based insurance agent David Hamilton, managing partner of Jones Brown.

‘We’re seeing a lot more volume [for Canada] this year, but we can’t attribute it to U.S. shows relocating specifically because of fears of terrorism,’ he says.

However, the basic insurance package in Canada includes protection for acts of terrorism, while in the U.S. acts of terrorism are now excluded. Already, insurance is cheaper in Canada – 1% of a budget on average compared to 1.5% in the U.S. – and the added terrorism rider in U.S. can double the basic insurance cost south of the border, he says.

Insurance rates, overall, have crept up 25% due to the poor performance of the stock market, says Hamilton.

AMPTP representative Cott says there is more concern about labor stability in Canada, with the U.S. studios beginning early negotiations with ACTRA for a new three-year Independent Production Agreement to begin Jan. 1, 2004.

Representatives from ACTRA could not respond to questions by press time.