VANCOUVER — The B.C. production industry plans to have a tax credit proposal before the provincial government next week in hope of leveling the playing field with Ontario and Quebec’s lucrative 25% all-spend incentives.

‘I am hoping we will have this resolved by the end of the month,’ says Peter Leitch, chair of the Motion Picture Production Industry Association of B.C., which is leading the lobby effort. ‘Time is of the essence… We are losing projects to Ontario and we are being asked by our clients [American studios] what the government is going to do.’

A meeting is set with Kevin Krueger, the minister of tourism, culture and the arts. A provincial budget comes down Sept. 1 and the B.C. industry says it’s critical that it includes a beefed-up tax credit.

Several options are being analyzed, including asking the government to implement a 25% all-spend credit on an interim basis (for one year to 18 months) to deal with the immediate issue, while setting up a task force to explore long-term solutions.

‘We may look at some shorter-term measures to defend the business right now, but we’d like to look at it in the context of what’s sustainable over the longer term,’ says Leitch, noting that at this point the group has not made a final decision on what it will propose to the minister.

‘It’s easy to say we have to match Ontario, that’s the only option. And maybe that is the best solution. But if there’s something else we can do that is more sustainable over the long term, I’d prefer that to an incentive that will expire in a year or two.’

If the B.C. government refuses to go the all-spend route, another option is increasing the 25% labor tax credit in hope of offsetting some of the loss, while the province’s other advantages — experienced crews, large studios and locations — make up the difference. Some suggest that the labor rebate would have to be at least 40% to come close to parity with Ontario.

Liz Shorten of the B.C. producers branch of the CFTPA says whatever the scenario, the industry has to work with the government to come up with a solution quickly.

‘Our message to government is, whatever it takes, whatever options will work within their fiscal realities, to ensure this industry continues to be one of the bright lights of the creative economy in B.C.,’ says Shorten.

Some producers are skeptical that the government has an appetite for increasing the credit. Brightlight Pictures, for example, is opening a Toronto office and moving production because it doesn’t expect B.C. to match the Ontario incentive.

But Leitch remains optimistic.

‘I think the government recognizes we can’t afford to let another province get so aggressive that it destroys the infrastructure that we’ve built up over the past 20 years — that just doesn’t make any sense,’ he says. ‘They just want to be very careful that the decision they make provides solutions for the long term.’