'Living in Canada is simply better': Vancouver pushes for immigration pathway for movie/TV creatives
Film director Osgood Perkins would really like to call B.C. home.
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The director of the Vancouver-shot, top-grossing independent films Longlegs and The Monkey, as well as the upcoming Keeper (out Nov. 14), has been working here since 2022. And, for the last year and a half, he has been trying to gain residency status in Canada.
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But getting that status greenlit has proven to be a challenge.
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Last week, the issue was brought in front of Vancouver City Council and on July 23, the council unanimously approved the motion Building B.C.'s Creative Advantage: A New Immigration Pathway for Cultural Entrepreneurs. This basically means council will be requesting that the province develop a pilot Creative Talent Stream under the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (B.C. PNP), similar to what already exists for the tech and medical industries.
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'At this point, the living in Canada is simply better than it is in the United States,' Perkins told Postmedia in a text. 'The people are kind and permissive, the skies bluer, and the governing powers really do seem to care for its citizens. Canada strikes me as essentially unafraid, and not interested in threats; there is a peace in the oxygen here and it is a most welcome relief to breathe it in.
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'Working in Canada has changed my career entirely; the support from local artists and creative collaborators has made all the difference. I have not experienced the industry fatigue and resistance often present in Hollywood, and the freedom to work economically and quickly in Canada fosters a unique form of inspiration.'
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According to 2022 figures from Creative B.C., the B.C. TV/film industry amounted to about $4.4 billion in direct spending and employed 90,000 people, with 40,000 of those being full-time jobs. It is well established as an international industry force.
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Hollywood North, with its 36 per cent tax credit and the very low Canadian dollar, is a very attractive destination for shooting. But about 85 per cent of that work is service/manufacturing, which essentially means a Canadian company produces an American project. Ferguson believes, if the pathway to residency is made easier, many people will move here and set up production businesses.
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'We're like the factory overseas that makes the product for the American headquarters. And if we can start bringing some of these people here, it changes that whole model. Suddenly, we're making stuff for ourselves, and we're building companies,' said Ferguson, who got the ball rolling with Vancouver City Council and spoke at the recent council meeting.
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