There’s been a virtual frenzy of phone activity at the Quebec Film and Television Council, but almost no new deals are inked for service shoots in Quebec, despite the loonie-busting 25% ‘everything counts’ tax incentive introduced by the province in June.

American producers have been calling ‘non-stop,’ but few have signed on the dotted line, says Quebec film commissioner Hans Fraikin. ‘I have never fielded more calls,’ he says. ‘I’ve had to hire another employee.’

After a costly lull in service activity over the past couple of years, big-studio location scouts are again interested in Montreal because the new tax credit for foreign producers allows them to claim 25% of all their production-related expenses, essentially doubling the value of the old Quebec tax credit. (Prior, producers could only claim a rebate for labor costs, which typically comprise half of a production budget.)

Nonetheless, Hollywood producers remain exceedingly choosy about where they decide to set up shop, says Fraikin. ‘The studios are frugal. They are hesitant to green-light a project. They are watching the bottom line much closer now.’

The film commissioner says that in the past, the signing ratio for scouting missions from Hollywood was 1:3; now it’s 1:6.

‘Of the last eight scouting trips we had, one went to eastern Europe, one was put on ice, three were cancelled, one is coming, and two are possibilities,’ says Fraikin. ‘It’s exciting but exhausting.’

In July, Michel Trudel, co-owner of the city’s largest studio facility, Mel’s Cité du Cinéma, said he was negotiating with two American producers to shoot five big-budget projects in the province in September. At press time, Trudel still hadn’t signed any contracts.

‘It’s coming,’ he says. ‘It won’t be long. They told me it would be a wait of about a week and a half.’

Fraikin says business is definitely up over last year.

This past summer, the CBS Films flick Beastly was shot in Montreal. The modern-day spin on Beauty and the Beast co-stars British actor Alex Pettyfer (Stormbreaker) and Mary-Kate Olsen. Varsity Pictures/Lionsgate’s Blue Mountain State football comedy series for Spike TV also filmed in the area.

Fraikin is also encouraged by the fact that Vermont-based public broadcaster PBS has opened an office in Montreal and will likely be making content locally.