COURTENAY – The BC government has recently announced funding for a new pilot project at North Island College (NIC) that will train North Island residents and First Nations to work in the film and TV industry, and meet the growing labour need for locally trained crews in the region.
British Columbia is one of the top centres for screen-production excellence in North America, with a long history of producing award-winning feature films, television series, documentaries and commercials. Vancouver Island is a key destination for producers who are looking for diverse, spectacular scenery.
The purpose of this new pilot project is to provide innovative, short-term training to tradespeople and Aboriginal residents on Vancouver Island, so they can pursue local jobs in the film and TV industry, which, in turn, will provide the industry with the skilled crews it needs for future productions on the Island.
The project will pilot two separate courses, each with classes offered in Port Alberni and Campbell River. The new specialized trades program will help train carpentry and electrical journeypersons and apprentices to work in the film industry in areas such as set construction. The First Nations production assistant program will train First Nations students to work on productions taking place within the region.
The courses are expected to start in late September 2017, with course completion in early spring 2018 so students can be ready to work on productions planning to come to the Island next spring.
The industry and training partners involved in this project also will evaluate the programs, once complete, for possible expansion into other areas of BC.
The film and TV industry is an important part of BC’s diverse, strong and growing economy and a key part of the BC Jobs Plan. The training project announced today also supports the government’s Creative Economy Strategy, launched last year, which aims to leverage BC’s creative economy advantage to support economic growth, job creation and the resilience of the creative sector.