British Columbia already has "Hollywood North." Vancouver doubles for every American city on television. You've watched Seattle, San Francisco, New York, and Chicago — but you were actually watching Vancouver with different street signs.
This is our superpower. And it's about to get significantly more powerful.
The Current Landscape:
British Columbia:
- $4.5+ billion annual film production
- Major studios: Vancouver Film Studios, Bridge Studios, Mammoth Studios
- Productions: Deadpool, The Adam Project, Supernatural (15 seasons), countless Hallmark movies (we're not proud, but we're profitable)
- Tax credits: Competitive, well-established
Oregon:
- Smaller but scrappy industry
- Portland's indie film scene is legendary
- Productions: Portlandia (duh), Wild, The Goonies, Twilight (they're not proud either)
- Laika Animation Studios (Coraline, Kubo) — stop-motion excellence
- Tax credits: Oregon has them, less generous than BC
Hawaii:
- Stunning locations, obviously
- Productions: Jurassic Park franchise, Lost, Hawaii Five-0, Moana (animated, but spiritually Hawaiian)
- Limited studio infrastructure
- High production costs (everything shipped in)
- Tax credits: Yes, but complicated
The Combined Vision:
Imagine a unified Pacific film jurisdiction:
| Location Type | Best Option |
| Urban/any city | Vancouver |
| Weird/indie/quirky | Portland |
| Forest/Pacific Northwest | Oregon/BC |
| Tropical/beach/paradise | Hawaii |
| Apocalyptic wasteland | Also Vancouver (we're versatile) |
A production could seamlessly move between jurisdictions:
- Principal photography: Vancouver (studios, crews, infrastructure)
- Location shoots: Oregon coast, Hawaiian beaches, BC mountains
- Post-production: Consolidated facilities
- Animation: Laika (Oregon) + BC animation studios
The Laika Question:
Laika Animation Studios in Hillsboro, Oregon is a gem. Stop-motion animation at the highest level. Coraline, ParaNorman, Kubo and the Two Strings, Missing Link.
Under this partnership:
- Laika remains in Oregon
- Co-production agreements with BC animation industry
- Shared talent pipeline
- Joint training programs
We don't want to absorb Laika. We want to be worthy of Laika.
Hawaii's Role:
Hawaii has been "Location, Hawaii" for decades — beautiful backdrops but limited local industry development.
Partnership opportunity:
- Develop Hawaiian studio infrastructure — not everything needs to ship from LA
- Train local crews — Hawaiian film industry jobs for Hawaiians
- Indigenous storytelling — Hawaiian stories told by Hawaiian creators, supported by provincial resources
- Sustainable production practices — Hawaii is ecologically fragile; film production must respect that
The Tax Credit Harmonization Challenge:
Three different tax credit systems. Three different qualifying criteria. This is a mess.
Options:
- BC system dominates — Oregon and Hawaii adopt BC's framework
- Best of all three — Create new unified system taking strongest elements
- Regional variation — Different credits for different location types
This needs negotiation. We welcome input from industry professionals.
Discussion Questions:
- How do we prevent Vancouver from cannibalizing Oregon/Hawaii production, vs. developing each region's strengths?
- Should there be a "local content" requirement ensuring each region's stories get told?
- How do we address the environmental impact of film production, especially in Hawaii?
- Is there a future in joint BC-Oregon-Hawaii original content? A "Cascadia Studios" brand?
- The Hallmark movie industrial complex: blessing or curse?