Canada’s total production volume hit a record high of $11.7 billion in 2021-22, according to the Canadian Media Producers Association’s (CMPA) latest Profile report.

Profile 2022: Economic Report on the Screen-based Media Production Industry, published Wednesday (May 3), tracked production volume between April 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022, highlighting how Canada’s screen sector has rebounded from shutdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

The report said the 12-month period was a “record year,” with both domestic and foreign location and service (FLS) production hitting “unprecedented” figures. Domestic film and TV production volume came to $3.9 billion, while FLS production volume hit $6.7 billion.

The figures are a sharp increase from the 2021 Profile report, which captured the months-long production shutdowns and showed overall production volume falling to $9.09 billion — down 5% from $9.52 billion in 2019/20. However, the figures also exceed pre-pandemic production volume levels.

Canadian television production increased by 38.9% to $3.51 billion — the first year-over-year increase for the domestic industry since the 2018/19 period, according to a news release from the CMPA.

While broadcaster in-house production saw a 2% increase in production volume at $1.09 billion, compared to $1.07 billion in the previous period, the figure did not exceed pre-pandemic levels.

The increase in domestic and FLS production volume was attributed to the impact of government initiatives to aid screen sector recovery, and an increase in commissions as broadcasters sought to catch up with their Canadian programming expenditures, as required by the CRTC, according to the release. “The increased production activity indicated in the report will be tested by ongoing inflationary pressures and the prospect of economic headwinds,” read the release.

The record production levels for the period generated a total gross domestic product (GDP) of more than $13.7 billion and 240,760 jobs.

FLS production volume accounted for roughly 57% of production volume, down slightly compared to 58% in the previous period. Domestic production accounted for 33%, up slightly from 31%, and broadcaster in-house production accounted for 9%, down from 12% in 2020-21.

The majority of production in Canada for 2021-22 took place in Ontario (33%) and British Columbia (32%), followed by Quebec (26%). Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Yukon, Nunavut and Northwest Territories jointly accounted for 7% of production, while Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island accounted for the remaining 2%.

For domestic production volume, Ontario led with 42%, followed by Quebec (34%) and B.C. (16%). The Prairies and territories came to 5%, while the Atlantic provinces hit 3%.

B.C. accounted for the highest volume of FLS production at 44%, followed by Ontario (25%), Quebec (21%), Alberta (7%), Manitoba (2%) and Nova Scotia (1%).

The report warns that a potential recession and “inflationary pressures” may present a challenge in sustaining this level of production volume. It also points to Bill C-11 – which became law last week – as a significant factor, as it will “trigger a structural examination of the Canadian broadcasting system.”

The full 100-page report is available on the CMPA website.

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