The 20,0000-square-foot White Owl Film Studios facility, located in the Wahnapitae First Nation, has officially opened its doors for film and television productions.

Located about a 45-minute drive from Sudbury, Ont., the studio is led by Sudbury-based CEO Roy Roque, an Indigenous businessman and entrepreneur.

While the studio had a “soft launch” in January, the original plan was to open last fall in partnership with Volume Global. The launch was delayed after parting ways with the Topanga, Calif.-based company, Axel Green, White Owl’s public relations and acquisitions manager, tells Playback Daily.

The facility, which has 64-foot ceilings, also offers rigging and logistics support via Etobicoke, Ont.’s Up Right Services. Eligible productions may also access funding from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation.

While he says the studio does not yet have productions scheduled for shooting, “we’re confident that this much-needed infrastructure in Sudbury will generate significant interest from producers. Our discussions with industry figures have confirmed that our new business model fills a critical gap in the northern Ontario and Sudbury markets.”

Producer, actor and key grip Green was brought on to the role in December due to his experience in the film industry, and his familiarity with northern Ontario, having worked in the region for the past decade.

According to Green, the market in the region is for films between $2 and $10 million, but the studio is also focused on local support. Along with Sunbelt Rentals, White Owl sponsors Sudbury’s annual Script Fest, where four 15-minute shorts are developed from local pitches.

“There’s a lack of young creatives in northern Ontario,” he says. “So there’s also a facet of our new business model where we want to encourage local voices and local creators, Indigenous, French, any culture, [to] try and create some of those voices.”

Image courtesy of White Owl Film Studios