61 film productions injected $1.4 million impact to Squamish’s local economy in 2016

Squamish’s unrivaled scenery, small-town charm and city proximity have resulted in a busy year for local film and television productions. In 2016, the District of Squamish hosted 61 productions, a 74 per cent increase over 2015, and resulting in an estimated local economic impact of close to $1.4 million. 

“The District of Squamish has demonstrated a longtime commitment and support to the film industry,” says Mayor Patricia Heintzman. “We wish to express our thanks to the community for accommodating these productions and for helping us to maintain Squamish’s reputation as a film-friendly destination.”

A seven per cent increase was seen in production/filming days  with 352 days in 2016 compared with 328 in 2015, with production types ranging from commercials to feature films to television series and made-for-television movies. Downtown Squamish’s Cleveland Avenue topped the list of most popular filming locations followed by Paradise Valley Road, Brackendale and the Oceanfront Lands.

“Squamish is benefitting from the overall boom in the Lower Mainland’s film industry, and we continue to appeal to productions due to the variety in the types of locations we offer," says the District's Film and Event Manager Devon Guest. "Squamish is getting more productions, but for shorter shoots, and this is demonstrated in the types of productions we saw in 2016. 35 per cent of 2016 productions were commercials."

The increase in productions has benefitted Squamish in the way of permit fees, with $36,000 in film revenue received by the municipality in 2016. Fees were introduced in late 2015 and are charged for application processing, street use and park use to recover some of the costs associated with local filming productions.

Looking beyond the impact of local productions, Creative BC, B.C.'s independent agency responsible for promoting the development of creative industries, reports that 149 film industry employees resided in the Squamish area in 2015, with a combined payroll of $2.5 million. Creative BC also hosts an extensive library of locations for the film industry to source. If you are a property owner and interested in having your property considered as a filming location visit their website.

To learn more about filming in Squamish including locations, fees and sustainable filming practices visit our Filming page

March 3, 2017

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