OTTAWA, May 20, 2021 — A new report, released today by the CMPA, provides a detailed look at the state of the Canadian film and television production sector for the period ending just prior to the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings outlined in Profile 2020: Economic Report on the Screen-based Media Production Industry in Canada show that the Canadian production sector generated $9.32 billion in production volume, $12.24 billion in GDP and created 224,500 jobs across Canada between April 1, 2019, and March 31, 2020. A summary of Profile 2020 findings is available here:

“These numbers are an important reminder of the boundless economic potential of Canada’s film and television production sector,” said CMPA President and CEO Reynolds Mastin. “With a proven track record as an economic driver and potent job creator, our industry will undoubtedly play a key role in leading Canada’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Data from Profile 2020 also shows that foreign location and service production continued to rise in 2019/20, reaching an all-time high volume of $5.25 billion. Over the past decade alone, foreign location and service production saw an increase of 180 per cent in Canada, while Canadian content production volume has increased by only 20 per cent. The production volume for Canadian content was $2.92 billion, a 12.4 per cent year-over-year decrease, which drove an overall 1.1 per cent decline in total production volume in Canada in 2019/20.

“While the capacity of Canada’s screen-based production sector has grown tremendously over the past decade, Canadian content production has not been able to keep pace due to our dated broadcasting system,” added Mastin. “Ongoing efforts to modernize our sector’s legislative and regulatory framework for the digital age through Bill C-10 will help address these issues and bring more great Canadian stories to screens around the world.”

Profile 2020 can be downloaded here. This latest edition of CMPA’s annual economic report is compiled by Nordicity, and developed in collaboration with the Department of Canadian Heritage, Telefilm Canada and the Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM).

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ABOUT THE CMPA
The Canadian Media Producers Association is the national advocacy organization for independent producers, representing hundreds of companies engaged in the development, production, and distribution of English-language content made for television, cinema, and digital media channels. We work to promote the continued success of the Canadian production sector and to ensure a bright future for the diverse content made by our members for both domestic and international audiences.  cmpa.ca

For more information:

Kyle O’Byrne
Manager, Media Relations & Communications, CMPA
kyle.obyrne@cmpa.ca