Cameras are getting cold for the film industry in Hollywood North, British Columbia

By Zach Vecera, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter The TYEE

David Green began making films at the height of the boom.

It was 2015, and Vancouver’s film industry was riding a wave of demand for new shows, fueled by the rise of streaming platforms. Yellowjackets, The Good Doctor and the TV series A Series of Unfortunate Events were all filmed here.

The rush created thousands of jobs, including that of Green, who worked as a clothing designer and prepared clothing collections.

And then they stopped.

Vancouver’s film boom had now turned into a bust, and workers like Green were collateral damage in the Hollywood strikes that had crippled business in North Hollywood.

The second of those strikes — a dispute between actors and producers — was resolved last week, bringing hope that Vancouver’s industry will soon bounce back.

But most expect work will not return for weeks or months. Meanwhile, most of the city’s 16,000 film workers have spent months without working on set, and many have resorted to accepting other jobs, mortgaged homes or drained savings to make ends meet.

Greene worries about a second, related impact: decreased mental health among his colleagues as financial stress piles up.

There’s a message he says he saw online: “Check out your friends in the movie.”

“It seems like an informal way of saying that people are really suffering existentially,” Green said. “This entire demographic of workers is struggling.”

Local union residents in Vancouver say they are receiving calls from members about to lose their homes. Many have exhausted existing financial support.

“I get calls every week from people who need help,” said Crystal Brownworth, business representative for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 891, which represents about 10,000 film workers in the Vancouver area. “I direct them in every direction I can. And it’s not enough.”

Union leaders are happy the strikes are over. But many say the turmoil has led to some soul-searching in British Columbia, a province where the film industry relies almost entirely on serving American customers.

“It’s sad, because we’re a victim of a labor movement that’s not ours,” said Wendy Newton, commercial agent for the International Cinematographers Union Local 669.

“We’re a little stuck in the middle.”

Newton began working in the film industry in Vancouver before it became known as Hollywood North.

In the 1990s and early years of this century, workers knew the sector went through booms and busts, Newton said.

Then came 2015. A streaming gold rush led by companies like Netflix fueled rapid growth in British Columbia’s film and television industry, creating ample work for everyone from stunt professionals to makeup artists to actors and creative designers.

Studios were drawn to British Columbia in part because of its green landscape and proximity to Los Angeles. But the big attraction has been tax incentives, which have been offered over the years in hopes of attracting more work north.

In just six years, the Brownworth union’s membership doubled from 5,000 to more than 10,000. The Newton union, which represents camera operators, has seen similar growth. There were tens of thousands of casual jobs too, in everything from renting toilets to catering, decorating and creating props.

Creative BC, an industry group supported by the provincial government, estimates the industry supports 88,000 jobs in British Columbia and is worth $3.6 billion.

Business saw a brief slump when the coronavirus came, but even that couldn’t stop the thirst for new shows. “People couldn’t get enough content,” Newton said. “It was really unmanageable. We were so busy.”

Then, in May, the Writers Guild of America went on strike. A few months later, American actors represented by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, or SAG-AFTRA, followed suit.

None of the Canadian unions were actually on strike. They did not vote for it, and their members cannot legally refuse to act.

But the vast majority of BC film productions are financed by American producers, meaning they often star American talent and are produced by American writers.

In 2022, for example, Creative BC estimated that 88 per cent of total film spending in British Columbia came from the United States.

That means U.S. strikes have all but froze work in British Columbia, even after the WGA ended its strike in September.

In an interview earlier this month, before the actors’ strike ended, Brownworth estimated that only 5 to 10 percent of her union members actually worked in the film industry. She said many productions halted production early last winter as fears of unrest spread.

Film jobs cannot be easily replaced. Workers may work 12 hours a day or more during production, followed by weeks of downtime. The jobs pay well and often require specific skills that are not easily transferable to other industries.

Green found work helping set up and destroy concerts and other events. But many of their industry peers work as general laborers or pick up temporary jobs to pay the bills. “Everyone close to him has resorted to doing this or that,” Green said.

For many, this is not enough. Hundreds have applied for financial assistance to the Canadian Actors Fund, a non-profit organization that provides short-term financial support to entertainment professionals of all professions.

David Hope, the fund’s executive director, said they typically distribute about $1 million in financial aid a year. In 2023, they distributed $1.7 million to nearly 900 people affected by US strikes – not counting another 500 people whose applications are still on the waiting list. Hope said 41 per cent of those orders come from British Columbia.

“People who are at risk of homelessness, who are experiencing food insecurity call us,” Hope said.

Hope said unions and business partners have stepped up donations to keep the charity going. But he said the charity’s one-time support of $1,800 is no substitute for a steady income.

“This is just a small part of the great need that is out there,” Hope said.

Many unions donated money to the fund. Others helped their members in different ways. Brownworth and Newton say their unions lobbied Prime Minister David Eby to push the federal government to extend unemployment benefits to laid-off movie workers, an extension that never happened.

The Prime Minister’s Office has not confirmed the claim, and Eby’s office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

IATSE 891 has also deferred the payment of dues to all its members. It provides mortgage restructuring assistance to members who cannot pay their bills. It has reached an agreement with producers that allows film workers to benefit from up to $3,000 in employer contributions to their retirement funds.

That union was also trying to launch a partnership with BC Building Trades that would have allowed laid-off film workers to take on jobs normally reserved for those unions, provided they had the appropriate certifications. BC Building Trades members will later be able to take IATSE jobs once work returns, Braunwarth said.

But many — such as those in hair, makeup or special effects — are having a harder time finding jobs that pay the same as film work during long downturns.

Some professionals have skills that are easily transferable to other jobs, said Lori Stewart, a professional businesswoman and health and safety advocate. Some older, more established workers may have had the opportunity to save more cash. But few expected or prepared for the prolonged business disruption. Thousands of new workers have never known the industry’s boom-and-bust cycle, Stewart said.

“Over the last 10 years, it’s been really consistent,” said Stewart, who works for the British Columbia chapter of the Alliance of Canadian Film, Television and Radio Artists, or ACTRA. “Suddenly, this giant hammer fell, and there was nothing left.”

With these financial challenges come anxiety, stress, and in some cases, mental health issues. IATSE 891 has extended its health benefits through April, so members can get counseling, Brownwarth said.

“They’re experiencing various mental health crises of not being able to pay their rent, not being able to feed their families,” said Lisa Huggett, mental health and addictions committee chair for ACTRA’s BC chapter.

Beyond finances, many film workers interviewed for this story were concerned about their colleagues who had lost routine, motivation and connection.

“That’s what was really missing, is those connections,” Stewart said. “I know there are people struggling with their mental health.”

The news came during heavy rain on a rainy Thursday night in Vancouver, where the actors’ union had reached an agreement.

“They’re very excited. They’re saying, ‘Let’s go, let’s go,'” Huggett said. “People are really hungry to get back to work.”

In a written statement, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sports Lana Popham said she is “optimistic that British Columbia will remain the top destination for American productions once the labor dispute is fully resolved.” There is a slim chance that Canadian film unions here will voluntarily extend their agreement with American producers this spring, sending a clear signal that their members want to work.

But Brownwarth warns that the lead time needed to prepare for filming means not all jobs will come back at once.

She added that producers made it clear that global spending would decrease. The WGA won important reforms in its deal with U.S. producers, including protections from artificial intelligence and wage reform, Brownwarth said. But the inevitable result will be that American shows will be more expensive, and fewer will be produced.

Newton and Bronwarth hope the Canadian film market can fill this gap.

Currently, British Columbia ranks a distant third behind Ontario and Quebec when it comes to funding from the Canadian Film Board, tax credits and other local supports.

Canadian Heritage spokesman David LaRose said this is largely because British Columbia filmmakers are applying for much less funding and the provincial industry is more focused on the American market.

But Brownwarth believes the federal government could play a more active role in encouraging domestic film production that is less vulnerable to labor shocks in the United States.

“They need to invest in content producers, in creators who live in the West, who film in the West, who produce in the West,” she said.

Huget said BC’s focus on the US market was important. But she believes the province should seek to diversify its film business, in case the industry turns around or gets shocked again.

“I would never say we should not have tempted Americans to come, because that built the industry we have now,” Huggett said. “But within that, we need to use the skill set we have here… and provide more BC content on top of that, so if things slow down on the US side, at least we have something here.”

Brownwarth believes the industry will never be the same after the strikes.

“We expect things to go back to more of a cyclical industry, or not quite as booming,” Brownworth said. “The boom times are over.”

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