Canadian Production Company To Convert Former Mining Site Into Studio

Canadian production entity North Star Productions has funneled a $26 million investment into a 100,000 sq ft lot previously owned by Epiroc, a large mining supply company.

Their goal is to convert the space into a film and television production studio with five sound stages and to help make the northern Ontario city a production hub in its own right.

The current building is on 4.8 hectares of land. Talking to CBC, current North Star company president Mitch Ouimette believes there’s plenty of room for expansion even after the initial studio is erected.

“Ultimately, when we’re done, we should see somewhere around a half a million square feet of new stages built across the North Bay area,” Ouimette said. “Now we’re talking over somewhere between five, six, seven, eight years.”

There’s a vision amongst the company for North Bay to become a hub similar to areas around the world that created infrastructure and coupled it with strong tax incentives.

“At some point in time, a person in Atlanta thought, ‘Geez, this would make a great film hub.’ And they did it,” he said.

“At some point in time, somebody in London had a similar thought and they accomplished it. Now my team and I are standing here saying, ‘Why can’t North Bay be the next film hub in the entertainment world?‘”

Key insight

Talking to construction, real estate and investment expert, Carlos Jardino, revitalizing an area around film and TV or any specific industry is a strong way to attract people and generate opportunities.

“Myself and my family have quite a lengthy history in construction in numerous continents and countries around the world,” he said

“Whether we’re renovating or building commercial or residential projects in an area some type of impact will be created. I think in regards to North Bay, on a global scale, it’s not specifically known for anything. If this team can bring in a standout production facility there and attract A-list stars, major productions, and more people, whilst growing jobs imagine what the possibilities are.”

Jardino’s companies include iErmitage – which pumps investment into people-focused initiatives to help drive social impact as well as create opportunities and improve quality of life, My Rental Pad which builds large swathes of affordable housing, and award-winning Project And Construction Management (PCM) a one-stop-shop for construction projects.

“Post the pandemic projects like North Star’s are increasingly important. We need to be able to create momentum in places like North Bay so there is hope for the future. The pandemic hit so many of us very hard. Projects like these give people hope for a better future through infrastructure and vision.” He stated.

North Star Studios has now signed a $150-million deal, across two years, with the film production company, ORWO Group. The deal will include three films that reportedly already feature recognized names.

Alongside the films, there are also plans for the collaboration to produce several TV shows as well.