In Ottawa, the lights are on, the cameras are focussed and the action is accelerating as evidenced by a recent job fair at Ottawa City Hall that drew some 1,000 hopefuls looking for a place in the growing local film industry.
The growth is also evidenced in $52 million generated for Ottawa’s economy by the local film industry.
But the sector is more than actors on the silver screen. There is a positive ripple effect across multiple sectors, from food services to carpentry, a variety of employers and workers benefit when a film is shot in town.
“Whenever there is a film coming to Ottawa, restaurants, hotels, and catering jobs are being created. This generates a lot of revenue,” says Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos, commissioner of the Ottawa Film Office.
The city has incentives to make Ottawa film-friendly, such as tax credits and the waving of permit fees. Productions made in Ottawa may be eligible for federal and provincial tax credits for labour expenses, too.
Productions shot in Ontario outside the Greater Toronto Area can receive a 10-per-cent bonus on all Ontario labour expenses. The City of Ottawa offers free production permits, if submitted at least five business days in advance of filming.
These incentives are designed to make Ottawa a competitive player in the global film industry, and they’re working.
“We have really good bylaws, regulations and permits,” says Pechels de Saint Sardos. “It’s a great attraction.”
Other cities, including Montreal and Toronto, include a fee for filming permits.
The growth of the film industry in Ottawa was illustrated recently by the massive turnout at the Ottawa Film Office’s 2025 Career Fair.
The annual event held March 22 saw its best-ever level of interest, with 1,500 registered attendees and 18 booths set up by industry players. Booths included a variety of Ottawa-based career opportunities from education programs for film, animation and production, studios, entertainment law, and various other casting and production agencies.
Six panelists along with the event’s keynote speaker — Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe — spoke at the event. The film industry is vibrant and growing, Sutcliffe said: “This is not the same Ottawa I grew up in.”
All six panelists are active in the industry, including careers in entertainment law, podcast and documentary production, animation, filmmaking and location management.
The panelists explained that there is no single route to the film industry. Whether it’s a background in journalism, law, social work or Snapchat, the industry is vast — and opportunities are accessible to people with all kinds of skills and experiences.
“The route is not a straight line,” said panelist Mark Edwards, founder and managing partner of Edwards Creative Law, LLP.
He added that there are many different careers within the film industry beyond filmmaking and casting, including law, accounting, gaming, carpentry, cooking, production and management.
“The key,” Edwards advised, “is to take what you love to do and apply it to the industry.”
Panelist Hoda Elatawi, a journalism graduate from Carleton University, is now a senior producer and president of Ottawa’s GAPC Entertainment. She said the industry is special because “we get to tell stories, by Canadians.”
Her words were met mid-sentence by an enthusiastic round of applause from the audience.
The reaction seems to illustrate how storytelling through film is deeply embedded and integrated within local and global communities.
What is the film industry?
The film industry encapsules more than simply film, TV and animation production. It’s also an ecosystem that supports these productions.
From hotels, restaurants and catering services to local shops, the industry has a broad economic impact, according to the OFO.
In 2024, live action film production generated $52 million for the city, up from $46 million in 2023, though a bit behind the all-time high of $56 million in 2022.
It’s not all rosy news. The animation sector, for example, has seen a decrease in production, says Pechels de Saint Sardos.
“They’ve seen some tough years. The streamers are not commissioning like they used to,” she said.
However, this is not special to Ottawa, she said. It’s a worldwide phenomenon.
This year’s career fair was held in collaboration with the International Film Festival Ottawa, which ran from March 12 through 23.
Sixteen Ottawa filmed or produced projects have been nominated for the 2025 Canadian Screen Awards. That includes two nominations for Netflix’s Geek Girl (Episode 6 shot in Ottawa) and two nominations for Canada’s Ultimate Challenge (Episode 3 was filmed along the Rideau Canal).
“From animation to on-location filming, our city’s talent is making waves nationally,” the OFO said in highlighting the Ottawa-linked productions nominated for the Canadian industry’s top awards. “We couldn’t be prouder!”
