BC Film and CG Industry

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by agrant

• Video Link

fixed your video link

[officedweller]

Notice circulated around the office:

ATTENTION: All Office Tenants – Pacific Centre

WHAT: Film Notification

WHEN: Friday, June 1, 2012 to Sunday, June 3, 2012

IMPACT: Please be advised that RSA Films will be filming a Lexus TV Commercial on Dunsmuir Street between Seymour and Burrard. As a result Howe Street will be closed between West Pender and West Georgia Street which will affect the entrances to the Pacific Centre parkade overnight.

The filming will take place over the following schedule:
• Friday, June 1, 2012 from 9:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.
• Saturday, June 2, 2012 from 9:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.

In order to accommodate essential film vehicles, the City of Vancouver will post temporary no stopping signs in the following areas from Friday, June 1 from 11:00 p.m. to Sunday, June 3 to 7:00 a.m.:
• Both sides of the 600-900 Dunsmuir from Seymour to Burrard
• East side of 500 Howe from West Pender to Dunsmuir

If you have any questions or concerns related to this filming, please contact Cole Maclachalan, RSA Films at 778.708.7255. Thank you.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

Pixar Canada studio in Vancouver to produce short films


Dylan Brown, creative director, speaks at the official opening of Pixar Animation Studios' first Canadian location, Pixar Canada, in Gastown on April 20.
Photograph by: Glenn Baglo, PNG

Mater — the toothy rust-bucket tow truck from the hit animated film Cars — will be flying straight out of Vancouver’s new Pixar Canada studio to audiences around the world.

That was the scoop at the official opening of Pixar Canada’s hip new office in Gastown on Tuesday. At the exclusive event, attended by Premier Gordon Campbell and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, Pixar executives briefly drew the veil off “top secret” sketches of a winged Mater flying with his bucktoothed grin.

They wouldn’t allow photos of the sketches but confirmed that Mater will star in the new studio’s first production, with film work starting in August.

Dylan Brown, Pixar Canada’s creative director, said putting popular “legacy” characters like Mater, or Toy Story’s Buzz Lightyear, in funny new situations is the exclusive role of the new studio, a satellite of award-winning Hollywood animation studio Pixar.

Pixar Canada will create three- to five-minute short films to be seen on cable and possibly aired before feature films.

The studio also revealed a few of the Canadian-content tricks up its sleeve with clips of Pixar characters frolicking in iconic Vancouver locales.

,,,

http://www.theprovince.com/entertain...589/story.html

And they're gone.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...ticle14762346/

Perfect illustration of the folly of those politicians who trumpet "green jobs" and fight against the natural resource industry and the transport involved therein. Play to your strengths.

[WarrenC12]

So we should have cowed to the BC Film Industry demands and given them millions more in subsidies?

What does this have to do with resources? They are totally unrelated.

[GMasterAres]

My guess is that he is pointing out the notion that we are a resource economy and the "green" industry across the globe tends to be fickle and move around all the time if your city in North America doesn't have the name San Francisco, Los Angeles, or New York.

Regardless though I am more on the side that this happens everywhere "satellite" offices are located and the film/animation industry is the most subject to fluctuating US$ vs other currency issues, and tax incentives. At the end of the day they look to make as much money as is possible and it is a non-fixed industry meaning it can be done anywhere unlike natural resources.

You can't outsource your lumber production for example. A mine can't up and say "we're consolidating our mining to California" because the stuff they are mining is in the Earth so they have to stay where the resources are. In the "green" world outside of manufacturing, jobs are transient. Even in my job in technology, I could actually do 95% of my entire job from my home or even from a beach in Mexico (as long as I had Internet and a laptop). Same deal here. The only reason you would be in Vancouver is if it is a) cost effective and b) the talent pool is great. If either of those starts to become a negative, they up and move.

I don't think 1 office though should point that helping "green" business is a huge negative though. I mean while Pixar is closing this 100 person office which isn't huge in the grand scheme of a company with over 2200 employees, Hootsuite is hiring 100 + people. That's the computer industry. And yes I know Pixar != Hootsuite and some of the jobs are non-transferable between their specific industries, but the overall tech industry which Pixar is largely a part of, is all transient and somewhat unstable.

For 3D animation specifically, it's always been that way. One of my friends graduated with a degree in 3D animation and bounced several jobs before giving it up as he didn't want to move to California and this was 8 years ago now. This isn't anything new.

I also have a friend who is a computer programmer and has worked for 12 companies in the last 5 years. That's the nature of the business and I think overall the industry is ok but unstable. It's kind of like being an actor/actress. I thought it funny in an interview with a few big actors about why people move to Los Angeles, they said "We move to Los Angeles because that's where you get hired to star in shows. Then when they hire you they ship you off to Vancouver to start filming, because nothing is filmed in Los Angeles anymore..."

I kind of laughed at that.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

So we should have cowed to the BC Film Industry demands and given them millions more in subsidies?

What does this have to do with resources? They are totally unrelated.

jhausner sums up the point I was trying to make. I was thinking particularly of the gentleman on the right, who would go to the opening of an envelope if it was coloured green, yet rails against the hundreds of jobs creating by our natural resource industries and their transportation.


photo: The Province

And no, I'm not in favour of more tax credits for film either. Chasing industries that are only loyal due to tax breaks is a mugs game. Play to your strengths.

[Porfiry]

Play to your strengths.

Liveability and lifestyle are Vancouver's strengths, and those alone attract creative class types to the city. In the tech industry, capital follows talent, so it's more critical to keep talent here than any particular company.

[NetMapel]

B.C. eyes provincial truce on movie subsidies

Finance Minister Mike de Jong says B.C. is seeking a truce in the long-running subsidy war with other provinces over Hollywood movie production in a bid to contain the high cost of film tax credits.

He made the comments Wednesday at a forum on the economy and jobs at the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention, where Vancouver Coun. Adriane Carr asked what the province will do about high unemployment in the Lower Mainland film industry.

"I think we're being played in Canada," de Jong responded. "We're being played one province against another. And the time has come for us to get smart and sit down as provinces and say 'Here's what we agree to do in Canada'."

De Jong said B.C. has already begun exploratory talks with Ontario and Quebec on a reformed approach to film tax credits.

B.C.'s expenditure on film tax credits is nearing $400 million a year.

He said that's paid out as a percentage of a production's costs – no matter whether it makes or loses money – treatment other sectors can only dream about.

"I defy you to find a business in British Columbia that wouldn't like to tally up their labour costs and send it to the government and get a cheque."

De Jong said B.C. will continue to invest in film tax credits to support the industry, but said the province is at its limit.

"We are not either able or inclined to send more British Columbia tax dollars to a production house in Hollywood," he said, to applause from delegates.

Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training Minister Shirley Bond said production numbers in B.C. are up this year, including major shoots involving actor George Clooney.

She said the government is considering opening a film office in Los Angeles to help sell the advantages of shooting in B.C.

I think this may be a good idea for our province. Increasing subsidies continuously just isn't sustainable.

[GeeCee]

Originally Posted by NetMapel

B.C. eyes provincial truce on movie subsidies



I think this may be a good idea for our province. Increasing subsidies continuously just isn't sustainable.

That would be great if it were to happen, but I can't really see it working out considering all the industry work leaving the province. There's a reason why the Eastern provinces raised their tax subsidies over what we offer in BC. What would they stand to gain if they gave that up?

[spm2013]

Tell them we'll go for a nuclear cold winter approach and provide 100% funding for all movies that film in BC if they don't agree.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Porfiry

Liveability and lifestyle are Vancouver's strengths, and those alone attract creative class types to the city. In the tech industry, capital follows talent, so it's more critical to keep talent here than any particular company.

Yes, heaven forfend we should attract the nasty, blue collar, working class to the city. Much better to buy artsy jobs with tax breaks.

[s211]

You can thank Richard Florida for that.

[Porfiry]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Yes, heaven forfend we should attract the nasty, blue collar, working class to the city. Much better to buy artsy jobs with tax breaks.

Yup.

[GeeCee]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Yes, heaven forfend we should attract the nasty, blue collar, working class to the city. Much better to buy artsy jobs with tax breaks.

If we rely too heavily on the natural resource industries then pollution goes to hell.. there goes our quality of life and the tourism industry. Either way, the oil sands are not too far anyways, and I doubt that many willing to work in natural resource industries would be willing to give up on the kind of money that they're offering over there to live in Vancouver.

[NetMapel]

Been a while. Here's another update for Sony Imageworks moving its HQ to Vancouver.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/britis...uver-1.2659431

Rumour has it that Double Negative will be coming here as well. Maybe even later this year

[quobobo]

Originally Posted by jhausner

I also have a friend who is a computer programmer and has worked for 12 companies in the last 5 years. That's the nature of the business and I think overall the industry is ok but unstable.

I don't think your friend is representative of tech jobs in Vancouver.

I have a CS degree from UBC and have been in the industry for a while. Nobody I went to school with, and nobody I've worked with has had a career like that. Stays of 3 or 4 years (at least) are more common by far.

Also, there isn't much overlap between the CG industry and the rest of the tech industry. They employ some infrastructure people, but very few developers.

[Klazu]

12 companies in the last 5 years sounds like a consultant/contractor, going around different companies working on individual projects. Otherwise that is a very unusual career in IT and I would be careful to hire someone with that unstable career history.

[GMasterAres]

Originally Posted by quobobo

I don't think your friend is representative of tech jobs in Vancouver.

I have a CS degree from UBC and have been in the industry for a while. Nobody I went to school with, and nobody I've worked with has had a career like that. Stays of 3 or 4 years (at least) are more common by far.

Also, there isn't much overlap between the CG industry and the rest of the tech industry. They employ some infrastructure people, but very few developers.

Stays of 3 or 4 years is still more rapid than many other industries. That is 5 jobs in 15 years on average. I work with a lot of engineers and the vast majority of them have had either 1 job in 15 years or 2 and that is covering all aspects of Engineering. My wife also works in the mining industry with mining consultants most of which have held only 2 to 3 positions in 15+ years.

You're right though that IT doesn't have a lot of overlap with the CG industry which is closer to the film industry. But even that isn't a direct compare because the film industry itself is quite volatile in Vancouver and you can still have a CG industry here even if filming moves around from place to place.

Yes my friend is a bit of an exception to the rule and he did do a lot of contract work which is actually how a lot of IT are hired these days. Just flip through linkedin looking down the IT jobs list and you'll find 80% of the positions posted are term contracts for 6 months to 1 year. Many many companies do that now.

They need a system admin for a big project coming up, they hire him/her for 6 months to a year until the major project is done, then g'bye. Most of his career has been things like that, being hired by a company to implement Exchange. Takes 6 months to do then when he is done the company has very basic support needs and don't need him anymore. He then moved onto another company to set up Active Directory or implement a new Citrix environment.

Could that be considered consulting? Maybe. But he is an employee of each company for the duration of the term so it technically isn't. Regardless he makes six figures and has a lot of experience so has no issue bouncing when and if a contract is up.

[Bcasey25raptor]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Perfect illustration of the folly of those politicians who trumpet "green jobs" and fight against the natural resource industry and the transport involved therein. Play to your strengths.

Ugh Canada is so pathetic, if this country wasn't filled with so many backwards thinkers we'd have a REAL economy instead of just being hewers of wood and drawers of water.

Why you advocate Canada continue taking the third world lazy way to run an economy I don't understand, BC is trying it's damnedest to diversify it's economy.

Some days I feel like this country is filled with lazy people who refuse to innovate, but than again, why innovate when theres trees to be cut down and tar sands to sell for 50% off to the US?

[casper]

Originally Posted by jhausner

.....
Yes my friend is a bit of an exception to the rule and he did do a lot of contract work which is actually how a lot of IT are hired these days. Just flip through linkedin looking down the IT jobs list and you'll find 80% of the positions posted are term contracts for 6 months to 1 year. Many many companies do that now.

They need a system admin for a big project coming up, they hire him/her for 6 months to a year until the major project is done, then g'bye. Most of his career has been things like that, being hired by a company to implement Exchange. Takes 6 months to do then when he is done the company has very basic support needs and don't need him anymore. He then moved onto another company to set up Active Directory or implement a new Citrix environment.

Could that be considered consulting? Maybe. But he is an employee of each company for the duration of the term so it technically isn't. Regardless he makes six figures and has a lot of experience so has no issue bouncing when and if a contract is up.

Those are consulting or project assignments.

I think most companies are moving to using IT consulting or managed services firms for projects like those instead of brining someone in as an employee. The IBM, CGI and HP (EDS) of the world handle those types of assignments for large enterprises. Smaller and medium size business tend to go to smaller firms (Mighty Oaks www.mightyoaks.com) for that kind of thing.