As the U.S. writers' strike continues, thousands of Canadian filmmakers are concerned about their own careers.
Many productions in Canada are on hold as a result of the strike, costing workers income and creating concerns about the entire industry.
U.S. writers are striking over, among other things, compensation for Internet distribution of films.
Bridge Studios, one of British Columbia's biggest, is one of those affected. It is where the television series the Stargate series is shot, and right now its props are covered and its sets lie empty.
"A lot of people are taking courses, thinking about changing careers and worried about making house payments," the show's producer, John Smith, told 麻豆影视.
Without writers generating scripts, there are of course no shows to shoot, and no need for Vancouver's nearly 40,000 film professionals. And it isn't only television production that is affected.
Although the multi-Oscar-nominated feature 'Juno' was shot in what remains a major production centre, fewer films are being made in Vancouver.
Don Ramsden, a business agent for the International Photographer's Guild said that he has never seen the film industry in a worse state.
"Never in my career. And I've been doing it since 1982," he said.
The strike is one of several threats to the country's filmmakers. The high Canadian dollar and more intense competition are also factors that threaten the industry.
"This is what our craftspeople and our artisans do," he said. "Without the business, my big fear is that many of our key players will actually drift and B.C. is at risk of losing its human resource capital."
The tax credits and incentives that once made B.C. attractive to Hollywood are being copied and in some cases bettered by locations like Louisiana, Boston and New Mexico.
"New Mexico is actually a real likely strong competitor for B.C.," Ramsden said. "They're in the west, they're building stages in Alberquerque, they have a very good tax credit, it's a good place to live."
The picture could become even bleaker before it improves as the powerful Screen Actors Guild is poised to go on strike this summer over the same issues as the writers.
With a report by CTV's Todd Battis in Vancouver
