News
December 13, 2013
Weekly Update from Film Ontario, December 13, 2013
TORONTO ONTARIO film office - A partnership of the Ontario Media Development Corporation, City of Toronto and FilmOntario.
WEEKLY UPDATE December 13, 2013
from Kelly Graham-Scherer, Los Angeles Representative - torontoontariofilm@gmail.com
Last week I presented news that the U.K. has boosted incentives for feature films and expanded them to include VFX work.This week I encourage you to read the article from Screen Daily below which details the changes and notes they are part of the U.K.'s international strategy to boost export and inward investment. http://www.screendaily.com/territories/uk-ireland/uk-government-boosts-co-production-opportunities-in-tax-credit/5064356.article
The state Republican Party in New York this week came out swinging against tax credits it deems "corporate welfare". As detailed in a Syracuse newspaper below, many consider film incentives "the poster child for tax credits gone bad" and say that an end to them will be part of the party's 2014 legislative agenda. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/12/ny_gops_call_for_scaling_back_business_tax_breaks_marks_shift.htm
The Los Angeles Times this week had a story confirming the trend we see all around us. As detailed below, CBS network says online viewing of its programming grew by 40% this season, further proof that more people are embracing watching content platforms other than the television set. http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-cbs-big-bang-online-20131209,0,7428301.story#axzz2n5lSkwCY
As as eyeballs go, so too do advertising dollars: the Times also reports that according to a new analysis from researcher EMarketer, advertisers are projected to spend about $5.6 billion on YouTube
And finally this week, film and television industry stakeholders in Ontario are sadly saying goodbye to a visionary friend and supporter, Cinespace founder Nick Mirkopoulos. He died December 7th and is eulogized in Variety below. http://variety.com/2013/film/people-news/nick-mirkopoulos-developer-of-film-studios-in-toronto-chicago-dies-at-71-1200938316/
Please feel free to distribute this e-mail widely and to get in touch with me with comments or links for inclusion.
Warmest regards,
Kelly Graham-Scherer
Los Angeles Representative
Toronto/ Ontario Film Office