British Columbia has opened a film office in Los Angeles to increase its market presence in the region and promote its production, animation and VFX services.

The office opened in February of this year but was officially launched this week at “Screen in B.C. Day,” an event celebrating screen production in B.C.

The office came together through a collaboration between Creative B.C., the Ministry of International Trade (MIT) and  members of the B.C. film and television industry. Will Fox, managing director of the B.C. Trade and Investment office based in the U.S., has been named managing director of the office, while a special envoy for film and digital arts has been appointed to identify new business opportunities, led by entrepreneur and private equity investor Dr. Steven Funk.

Part of the new office’s goal is to hold familiarization tours for which L.A. production company heads will visit B.C to scout new opportunities and locations. In addition, the office will focus on gathering market intelligence on L.A., establish new outreach programs and hold events to promote the province’s film and TV infrastructure. The province of B.C. will fund the office with a budget of $175,000 annually.

“Increasing B.C.’s presence in the L.A. market will build awareness in Hollywood about B.C.’s beautiful landscape, competitive tax regime and currency, as well as our highly skilled workforce,” the B.C. Jobs, tourism and skills training minister Shirley Bond told Playback Daily. “We want L.A. filmmakers to keep coming to B.C. to film movies and TV programs, to look to B.C. companies for exciting new content, and to access our stellar animation and VFX services,” Bond added.

In the past few years, Vancouver has emerged as a popular location for VFX work, thanks in part to the DAVE tax credit and steadily increasing talent base. Shooting-wise, Vancouver has doubled the number of pilots shot in the city over the last four years, with 16 pilots shot in the 2014-2015 season (one less than the 2013-2014 season). This summer, it is also hosting the shoot for the next Star Trek film. 

Between April 1, 2014 and March 31, 2015, the government of B.C. gave 287 tax credits to productions carried out in the province. According to B.C. tax credit certification statistics, this represents about $2 billion in production spending, compared with $1.45 billion in the previous fiscal year.