You Oughta be in Pictures

Using the title of an old Rudy Vallee song may have readers asking questions like: “He’s that old that he remembers songs from 1934?”, OR “A 1934 song in a tourism blog?”, OR “Has he lost his mind?”. My answers? No. Yes. and No Comment.

Anyone living in or near or visiting Selkirk in the last half-dozen years has seen streets blocked off, bevvies of large trucks, crews of people rushing around with lighting equipment and camera tripods, and temporary structures being built at various locations. Yes, Selkirk has become a kind of “Hollywood North”.

I believe that the first such film shoot took place in Selkirk in 2005 with some scenes from the crime drama Capote. Others in that era were New in Town (2009), The End of the World (2005), The Plague (2006), Niagara Motel (2005), and Evil of the Beast (2007). Activity really picked up around 2016 and 2017, and some 45 productions have been filmed in the Selkirk area since then.

The film and television industry in Manitoba has grown steadily in the past 20 years, from $7 million in production expenditure around the turn of the century, to a projected $330 million in 2022. In particular, except for the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, the past five years have been phenomenal. Recent high-volume productions that have chosen to shoot in Winnipeg, and Selkirk, include Champion (2021) featuring Woody Harrelson, Sean Penn’s Flag Day (2021), and that same year The Ice Road starring Liam Neeson. Of course, the production drawing the greatest amount of attention was the four-season series Burden of Truth, starring Kristin Kreuk.

Why the movie industry in a tourism blog, you may ask? Worldwide, in the past ten years, there has been a rise in the phenomenon known as screen tourism, or film tourism. This is the name given to a location (city, town, geographical area) becoming more popular with visitors because it has appeared in a film or television series. A very early example of this was the tourism boom in Salzburg, Austria, following the release of The Sound of Music back in 1965. More recently, the Hobbiton set built in New Zealand for The Lord of the Rings 20 years ago, increased annual visitor numbers from 25,000 to 600,000. And the association of the HBO series Game of Thrones with Northern Ireland also brought an increase in tourism.

Although the effect of filming on tourism in Manitoba, and Selkirk in particular, has been more modest, it has had an impact on the number of visitors nevertheless, and with some promotion, could increase significantly.

In addition to the increase in visitors, the positive effects on the local economy have been noteworthy. Various sectors have benefited from the industry: hospitality and catering, travel and transport, construction, music and performing arts, and health and medicine, have all seen the ripple effect of filming here.

And in addition to economic effects, a growing film industry has many positive intangible effects, such as enhancing media literacy, promoting diversity and an improved understanding of different communities and cultures, instilling a sense of pride and loyalty in communities appearing in films. There is an increased opportunity for talent development in all areas of the film industry too.

Why has Selkirk become a popular location for film companies? There are several reasons:

• For starters, Manitoba’s strong, stable, flexible tax credit is one of the best in Canada, and Selkirk qualifies for a 5% rural filming bonus.

• The city offers easy access to adaptive film locations like the Recreation Centre, the old Selkirk General Hospital, the old Selkirk Arena, Manitoba Avenue, as well as a plethora of several century and older buildings and homes, plus numerous parks.                                             

• A critical strength is that Selkirk is very film friendly; citizens have actively supportive and shown interest in the film industry’s success. The foresight of the City to hire a Film Liaison has been widely praised. Businesses and citizens have accommodated production inconveniences, and City agencies have been supportive of the Film Liaison in supplying quality service to clients. In addition, the Mayor and his office have been very vocal in promoting the benefits of the industry to Selkirk.                                                     

• The City of Selkirk also has effective partnerships with the City of Winnipeg and the Manitoba Film and Music industry.

All these features have made Selkirk popular with film producers, and in addition to expressing strong support for the area as a desirable location, they have made donations to local charities, left permanent infrastructures or improved buildings after production, and made repeat business and tourism visits.

The future of the film industry in Selkirk?

The City has been very proactive about attracting the industry, and an indication of its commitment can be found in its commissioning of a consultant to perform a study on maximizing the number of film productions in Selkirk. In commenting on the report this study produced, Mayor Larry Johannson said: “We are committed to bringing more film, media and entertainment to Selkirk and this report identifies our strong performance to date and the potential for growth and job creation in our area. We will prioritize film in our future growth plans.”

So next time you think you think you see Renee Zellweger, or Woody Harrelson, or Sean Penn in the Selkirk area, you may be right!

And that crowd of people watching that personality rush into a building or hurriedly get into a car? Movie tourists.

Whether they are stars, or star-struck fans, they all know one thing: