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Five things you need to know about Filmport’s mega-stage
Posted: February 10, 2009, 10:24 PM by Barry Hertz

Six months after Filmport opened for business, its star attraction is finally out of makeup and ready to face the camera. Crews have finished construction on the biggest film studio in the lakefront project east of downtown Toronto. Michael McKiernan has five things you should know about the new mega-stage.

1. They don’t call it “mega†for nothing. Its 45,000 square feet of space make it the largest purpose-built soundstage in North America. The largest of the six other studios on the site is 18,000 square feet. Inside the studio, the emptiness of the six-storey room accentuates its size. A couple of empty hydraulic platforms are the only items on the floor and the slight dusty haze in the air supports Filmport’s claim that construction finished on Tuesday, just hours before reporters were allowed in for a look.

2. For Ken Ferguson, the president of Filmport, filling this vast expanse of nothing means everything. He says directors could build a full-size replica of the Parthenon and still have room for all the lighting and camera equipment. The quicker they do, the better, as far as he is concerned. “This is $12-million worth of building,†he said. “That’s a lot of money to put up and then wait for people to come and use it. It’s not a business for the faint of heart.â€

3. Mega-stage equals mega movies, Filmport hopes. When the Toronto Economic Development Corp. leased the land for the project, it demanded a large soundstage to fill a gap in Toronto’s film industry it believed was costing the city blockbuster film-shoots. The X-Men franchise decamped to Vancouver after filming the original in Toronto because the converted warehouses that form most Toronto studios couldn’t accommodate them. It may be too late for X-Men, but there are plenty more superhero fish in the sea. “The aim was to create something unique and that would draw big features that might not come otherwise. It’s already having that impact,†Mr. Ferguson said.

4. Filmport will take all the help it can get. There are still no big-money takers for the mega-stage and the slow Toronto film market has made it difficult to drum up business. Since its peak in 2000, the industry in Toronto has had to battle SARS, strikes, tax incentives south of the border and a strong dollar north of it. Earlier this month, Mayor David Miller went to Los Angeles to promote the city, with Filmport one of his main selling points. Mr. Ferguson is confident the tide is about to turn. “2008 was the worst year for film and television for I don’t know how long, but the Canadian dollar is weakening and the Screen Actor’s Guild looks like it will avoid a strike,†he said. “I think we’ll have someone using [the mega-stage] by the summer.â€

5. Mr. Ferguson is open to all offers. Although the mega-stage is designed for a big-budget film to use for six to nine months at a time, smaller productions are welcome on a short-term basis, just as long as they’re willing to pay for the privilege. “A buck is a buck and if someone wants it for a day and it’s not being used, then certainly we would listen,†Mr. Ferguson said. Naming rights could also be an option for someone with a more creative or more lucrative moniker than the “mega-stageâ€: “If someone wants their corporate name attached, we wouldn’t shy away from that either.â€

source: http://network.nationalpost.com/np/...e-things-you-need-to-know-about-filmport.aspx
 
We should have the Alsop building in a separate topic on it's own. Not all of Filmport is designed by Alsop, including this "mega" stage.

They seem really desperate to get money. I'm sure they will in time.
 
Toronto Star

Bruce DeMara said:
Filmport Studios, the newest and largest film and television production space in Toronto, is booked nearly to capacity, a sign that 2009 will be a much better year for the battered industry in the city.

Ken Ferguson, president of Toronto Film Studios, said six of the studio's seven state-of-the-art sound stages are booked, with only the site's 4,270-square-metre "mega-stage" lying fallow.

"Right now, all of our stages, other than the mega-stage, are occupied. There's no place to park. So this is good news for us," he said.

Filmport opened last year at a truly dismal time, with the Canadian dollar relatively close to par with the U.S. dollar and producers there taking advantage of enhanced tax credits being offered by many U.S. jurisdictions, particularly New York.

But in 2009, New York's tax credit program has run out of cash and the Canadian dollar has dipped significantly against its U.S. counterpart, making Toronto and other Canadian locales good value.

More than 35,000 Torontonians are estimated to work in the local film industry.

Filmport has attracted a number of pilots being produced for the major U.S. television networks – work that went to New York in 2008 – as well as a couple of feature films, including Atom Egoyan's Chloe, starring Julianne Moore and Liam Neeson, and Love Child, starring Donald Sutherland.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, starring Brampton native Michael Cera, is expected to start filming next month.

Pilots include Happy Town for ABC/Disney, Battle of Maggie Hill for Fox and two CBS/Paramount pilots, Back and U.S. Attorney.

Ferguson is also hopeful the major U.S. studios will be green-lighting some big-money feature film projects despite an ongoing dispute with U.S.-based Screen Actors Guild.

"We're definitely looking at 2009 being a better year in film and television production than it was in 2008. Notwithstanding the horrible recession that's going on in the world, this is one sector in Toronto that's going to be better off," Ferguson added.

Rhonda Silverstone, manager of the Toronto Film and Television Office, said 2009 is already shaping up to be a better year.

"It's great to see trucks on the street and people working. We're optimistic that this year will be better than last," she said.
Click to expand...

On another note, has there been any news on Alsop's building?
 
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Toronto to take stake in Filmport

Toronto city council has voted to buy a minority stake in the Filmport studio complex, the massive film studio that opened last year on the waterfront.

Filmport, a public-private partnership managed by Toronto Film Studios, has been hard hit by the downturn in the film industry.

Filmport, built at a cost of $60-$65 million, has been in talks with Hollywood moviemakers on several film projects, but its huge, high-tech sound stage has had very little business.

On Monday, Toronto city council voted 31-7 to approve a loan for the city to purchase minority ownership in Filmport.

The stake was said to be in the region of 20 per cent, though the city has not yet released dollar figures or full details of the deal.

It does guarantee Toronto a place on the board of Filmport and is being hailed by Mayor David Miller as good for the city's film industry.

The Toronto Economic Development Corp. is scheduled to make details of the deal public once they are confirmed.

However, trade magazine Variety is reporting that the deal may also involve Britain's Pinewood Studios Group.

Pinewood is reported to be interested in assuming control of Filmport in partnership with another Toronto development company.

The British studio lost out in its bid to build the original project.

The original Filmport project, which has rights to 18 hectares of land on the waterfront, was backed by Sam Reisman and Paul Bronfman.

The high Canadian dollar, the troubled economy and the effects of labour unrest, including the Hollywood writers strike and a threatened actors' strike have hurt prospects for film shoots in Canada.


Source
 
It's a shame that the "mega" stage is the only one not being used :(

It's the big Hollywood blockbusters that FilmPort was supposed to be luring with it, and it's failed in its main goal. Hopefully they'll get some bookings soon.
 
It might make a good sports venue. Ultimate, anyone? As old buildings go, the megastage would certainly be easier to restore than the Hearn.
 
I love the use of colour here. It manages to transform even the most basic of industrial shed into something interesting.
 
cronenberg said he would go to that studio to "worship."

i hope he keeps his promise, because that thing is empty.
 
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