Incentives

The City of North Bay Economic Development Department is here to support your filming journey in our beautiful region. At every stage of your development from pre to post-production, we are here to offer support through our one on one concierge services that include:

• Funding and incentive application support 
• Filming application processing with NO permit fees
• Connections to neighbouring communities 
• Liaison services with all necessary City departments to streamline permits and approvals
• Facilitated connections to neighbouring communities local service providers and community partners

The Film and Television Stream is designed to increase film and television industry jobs and investment and to increase quality, original film and television productions produced in Northern Ontario, while showcasing its culture, geography, stories and talent. Funding decisions are based on the project’s Northern Ontario Benefits and Production Strength.

NOHFC funding is based on the project’s total level of spending in Northern Ontario. NOHFC provides assistance in the form of a conditional contribution up to 50% of eligible costs to a maximum capped on a tiered basis according to the total northern spend.

The OFTTC is a refundable tax credit of up to 35% based upon eligible Ontario labour expenditures incurred by a qualifying production company with respect to an eligible Ontario production. Productions that are shot in Ontario entirely outside of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), receive a 10% bonus on all Ontario labour expenditures incurred for the production.

The Ontario Production Services Tax Credit (OPSTC) is a refundable tax credit of up to 21.5% based upon Ontario qualifying production expenditures (labour, service contracts and tangible property expenditures) incurred by a qualifying corporation with respect to an eligible film or television production.

The OCASE Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit of up to 18% based on eligible Ontario labour expenditures incurred by a qualifying corporation during a taxation year with respect to eligible computer animation and special effects activities.

The Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit (OIDMTC) is a refundable tax credit of up to 40% based on eligible Ontario labour expenditures and eligible marketing and distribution expenses claimed by a qualifying corporation with respect to interactive digital media products.

The Ontario Creates Film Fund is intended to increase the level of domestic feature film production in Ontario. It provides support to Ontario producers for feature film projects with development and production financing. Marketing and Distribution support is also available for films that have been supported via Film Fund-Production.

A production assistance fund, designed to help film and television producers provide on-the-job training to Northern Ontario residents looking to work in the industry. With funding from FedNor, MAPPED seeks to supplement existing funding sources to hire and train emerging film and television workers by providing partial funding for Northern Ontario crew trainees to a maximum of $10,000 per production.

This fund consists of 5 programs:

• Development 
  • The Development Program finances Canadian feature films at the development stage.
  • The Development Program has four streams:
    • Prequalified Stream
    • General Stream
    • Indigenous Stream
    • Stream for Black and People of Colour 
• Production
  • The Production Program finances Canadian feature films at the production or post-production stage.
• Talent to Watch
  • The Talent to Watch Program supports emerging filmmakers looking to finance the production stage of their first feature film project(s). 
  • The Talent to Watch Program has three streams: 
    • Industry Partner Stream: For projects that are recommended by a Designated Industry Partner.
    • Festival Selection Stream: For emerging filmmakers who have directed a short film that was selected at a recognized film festival.
    • Filmmaker Apply-Direct Stream: All Key Members of the Creative Team must be:
      • Indigenous;
      • Black;
      • People of Colour;
      • Women;
      • Gender-diverse individuals;
      • 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals;
      • Persons with disabilities; and/or
      • Members of an Official Language Minority Community
• Theatrical Documentary
  • The Theatrical Documentary Program finances feature-length documentary projects in production and post-production.
• Marketing Programs
  • The Marketing Program supports the marketing, promotion and distribution of Canadian feature films. 

The Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC) provides eligible productions with a fully refundable tax credit, available at a rate of 25 per cent of the qualified labour expenditure.

The Film or Video Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) provides eligible production corporations with a tax credit at a rate of 16 per cent of the qualified Canadian labour expenditures incurred in respect of an accredited production.

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) supports the creation of popular, innovative Canadian content and software applications. The CMF supports the Canadian television and digital media industries through two funding Streams: The Experimental Stream and The Convergent Stream.

Ontario Creates services include complimentary scouting, image packages, and site visits, and on-the-ground production liaison support.

CION offers no-cost one-on-one consultations for film producers and film makers looking to shoot in Northern Ontario. Consultations range from assisting in applying for relevant funding, maximizing your total available funding options and amounts, locating key crew and locations, identifying the right suppliers for production and post-production depending on the level and budget of your project, and locating hard-to-find resources.