Ottawa is ending 2022 with another record-breaking production year, bolstered by holiday movies.

Live-action production generated $57 million in local economic activity in 2022 — a 37% increase over 2021’s record year amount of $41.4 million, according to the Ottawa Film Office (OFO). It’s also more than double that of 2020, when the live-action sector saw more than $26 million in local production spending.

The local not-for-profit organization said the money was directly spent in Ottawa communities on local labour, talent, hotels, equipment and vehicle rentals, locations, restaurants and catering, casting, and other small businesses.

With the inclusion of in-house productions and animation, the screen-based production industry generated more than $130 million for the local economy in 2022, according to a news release.

The number of filming days tallied collectively between all productions also increased, from at least 830 in 2021, to more than 950 in 2022.

A total of 30 feature-length films were shot in and around Ottawa in the year, including 16 holiday movies, such as Holiday Heritage (pictured) directed by Alfons Adetuyi for Hallmark in the U.S. and CTV Life. The holiday movies contributed $28.5 million to Ottawa’s economy.

More than 15 television series were filmed in the region during 2022, including French-language TFO series Gang de hockey (ATO Media), season two of Radio-Canada’s Eaux turbulentes (Bliktv, KOTV) and season three of Club Illico’s La vie compliquée de Léa Olivier (Slalom, Encore Television), which are all expected to premiere in early 2023.

Sphere partnered with the OFO and Invest Ottawa to open a new office in Ottawa in May, citing the city as “an important market.”

In a statement, Ottawa film commissioner Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos — who was appointed in March — touted the city’s “stable tax incentives and a highly-skilled and bilingual workforce,” along with its “great, easily-accessible filming locations and a streamlined permitting process.”

She is dedicated to supporting local filmmakers and “continuing to make Ottawa a prime affordable boutique destination, and developing much-needed infrastructure,” she added.

Photo credit: Albert Camicioli