Montreal: Covitec Group president and ceo Claude Gagnon says the 60,000-square-foot Studio Lasalle complex, a 50:50 joint venture with Moli-Flex/White, will have a staggered opening following a shopping trip to nab this month. The $2.5 million facility opens its doors to film shoots mid-April and to tv productions mid-June.

Gagnon says in-house production cutbacks by broadcasters and more export-oriented production should lead to an increase in independent producer demand for studio time.

‘We’ve always had to compete against broadcasters who tie services to licences, but some of that equipment is starting to age,’ he says.

The president of the new facility is Emmanuel Lepine.

Moli-flex/White’s 82-foot-by-50-foot studio will continue to operate, as will the 2,500-square-foot children’s and commercial soundstage at Covitec Eclair. Moli-Flex/White is a joint venture with Wm. F. White, an operation in the Toronto-based Comweb group.

Studio Lasalle consists of three soundstages, two of 10,500 square feet and one of 14,000 square feet, and includes production offices, control and sound rooms, and areas for set assembly and storage.

The studios’ soundstages will include a cyclorama and multiple ccu camera setups. Processing and recording will be digital.

Covitec had revenues of $3.6 million in 1993/94, reporting a loss of $25,000 due to the cost of acquisitions and going public in September 1993, says Gagnon. This year, revenues are up 34% to $2.3 million for the six-month period ending Feb. 28, 1995, while net earnings were pegged at $146,382. Gagnon is projecting revenues of between $4.5 million and $5 million in 1995.