Ottawa: ‘Blended tax credits’ may sound like a dream cocktail to a Bay Street financial advisor, but the phrase resonates best with the beleaguered production community of Ottawa-Gatineau, where producers are lately seeing renewed interest in the concept from both the Ontario and Quebec governments. That’s encouraging because, while qualified workers live on both sides of this unique cross-border region, employment and tax laws make it difficult or impossible for a production company based in one province to source staff from both and retain their full complement of provincial tax credits.

But now, according to Ken Korrall, head of the fledgling Ottawa-Gatineau Film and Television Development Corporation, and Ottawa producer Neil Bregman, momentum is growing to ‘address the issue and resolve it.’ While both the Ontario Media Development Corporation and SODEC in Quebec are interested, the process is complex and, like the title of a half-hour dance film Bregman’s Sound Venture Productions is currently producing for CBC, it’s also A Delicate Battle. ‘How it plays out is anybody’s guess,’ he says.

Producers have to consider several requirements when they calculate which parts of their budget will qualify for tax credits in Ontario: minimum expenditure rules, number of principal photography days, residence of producer, ‘and of course, the tax credits are based on provincial-based labor, so we’re splitting the labor pool available for our shoots,’ says Bregman. Some of Quebec’s rules are similar and some not, but harmonizing tax credits for the region would be ‘good for the crew, good for the producers, good for Ontario and good for Quebec.’

‘Both provinces are working toward harmonization or blending of tax credits,’ says Korrall, noting that officials from the OMDC and SODEC are exchanging information. He met with OMDC head Michel Frappier in July, while Bregman met with officials from both agencies at Banff in June. Bregman also raised the subject when Ontario Culture Minister Madeleine Meilleur visited the Ottawa set of the political drama miniseries H2O in April. Meantime, Korrall is finalizing survey data for OMDC on the size of the labor pool, to show how many people could benefit from creating a unique tax-credit regime here.

‘It should be one cohesive unit, and that would simplify the process of bringing business in,’ Bregman says, adding he’s long pushed for harmonization and sees it as a priority for the film office, which turns one Sept. 8.

Korrall says production volume will be up in 2003/04 compared with last year, based on the June 30 year-end. Volume was $17.6 million in ’02/03 with 19 productions, down from $23.9 million in ’01/02 but up from $16.5 million in ’00/01 with 24 productions.

Of course, the new film office handles a raft of other services to ease stress before and during shoots. Location manager David Flaherty says the OGFT helped contradict predictions that the $8.5-million H2O, coproduced by Sound Venture Productions and Whizbang Films for CBC, would be straitjacketed in red tape. Shot in Ottawa over three months, H2O’s crews had to plan usage of roads and properties governed by Ottawa, Gatineau and the National Capital Commission. ‘Yes, it’s a government town, but we had a really good experience,’ says Flaherty. ‘A lot of the groundwork had been laid [by OGFT]. Sometimes you did get the feeling that you were testing the limits, but they organized big meetings [to inform] ambulance, fire and police departments, to reroute traffic, erect signage, and advise Public Works. There were up to 30 people at these meetings!’

Louise Rochon, producer for Les Productions Charbonneau on the business-sense-for-teens series C’est d’mes affaires, started shooting 13 half-hours around Ottawa in June. ‘This was a first for me, dealing with the Ottawa-Gatineau film office, and I found it quite useful with them dealing directly with the City of Ottawa – one less worry. Next step is their direct link for archive material that we might require during post-production. I’m hoping that they continue to expand all these little extras that facilitate our work down the line.’