Lights, camera, policy.
Squamish may soon have an official policy on filming in the district.
At its corporate policy committee meeting Tuesday, councillors discussed a District of Squamish filming policy that will be up for approval at next week’s council meeting.
The Squamish document is based on that of the City of Burnaby, which has had an active policy for 12 years, according to the draft.
Currently the only consistent fee for filming in Squamish has been a $125 business license fee, said Vanessa Carrington, film and event manager for the district, as she presented the draft on Tuesday.
The new policy includes, among other fees, a $150 film application processing fee, a daily filming charge of $50 and a new park fee of $250 per day.
Three separate fees would cover street use: to close a street would be $200 per block, per day; for lock-ups, meaning stopping traffic for a short period of time, would be $50 per location, per day; use of parking spots would be $50 per 50 metres per day.
Filming security deposits that range from $5,000 to $10,000 are also proposed, up from the current flat $5,000 security deposit currently in effect.
No fee or security deposit will be required for student film projects.
Carrington said stakeholders, including Creative BC, the Locations Caucus of the Directors Guild of Canada and film producers who have recently worked in Squamish were receptive to the new policy and found it “fair.”
In drafting the proposed policy, district staff also reviewed the filming policies and fees of 32 other B.C. communities.
To date, 28 productions have come to Squamish this year for a total 160 days of filming, Carrington said. She said Squamish is a popular location for lower-budget films in particular.
Five of the productions this year account for 30 days of the filming equaling about $350,000 spent in the district. That figure includes hotels and services but does not include location fees or compensation to residents or businesses, Carrington said.
Based on rough calculations, about $12,000 is spent per day of filming in Squamish, she said.
The catalyst behind developing a policy is the desire to recover district costs in supporting filming such as costs for location assistance, filming oversight and park maintenance, according to Carrington.
While Councillor Susan Chapelle liked the idea of a district policy for productions, she said the requirements of the film industry should be stiffer.
“I am always interested in why film is separated out from other businesses. It is a private industry, makes a lot of money yet we give them huge leniencies,” she said.
“In the downtown, our business community is impacted greatly by the films… It is incredibly inconvenient.”
Chapelle said the productions should be charged more.
She also questioned why the district has a film and event manager to aid the crew of the productions while there isn’t currently an economic development officer.
“It is not an equal opportunity,” she said.
The district’s manager of film and events position was created in 2013 to attract more productions in the district.
Glenne Campbell of the Squamish Film Collective agreed that inconvenience to businesses is an issue, but she said the situation is improving.
“One of the elephants in the room is about how local businesses are paid out, or compensated… that has been an issue in Squamish right from day one,” she said.
“It is wonderful that we have taken the steps to have a film person and to see the development of the program and policies.”
Campbell proposed the policy consider the tier level of the productions coming to town; big-budget films could be charged more and lesser films a lower amount.
“I think that is really important,” she said.
Councillor Peter Kent, who has acted in about 100 films in his career as a stuntman, said that he was happy to see a policy proposed for Squamish.
“I like the fact that it is leaner and a little more tailored to production,” he said.
“I don’t see it as a huge cost to incur for those productions that are coming here.”
The policy, which would take effect Nov. 1, will come before council next Tuesday, Oct. 6.
