'It's disconcerting': Proposed Trump tariffs prompt worry for N.S. film industry
Industry contributes about $150M to $200M to the provincial economy each year, says producer
A film producer and former chair of Screen Nova Scotia says U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed 100 per cent tariff on foreign movies could cause chaos for the film industry in Nova Scotia.
"I have to say that it's disconcerting," Marc Almon told CBC's Maritime Noon on Monday.
"We're not really sure what the impact is going to be, but it's not looking good for foreign service production that takes place here in Nova Scotia and beyond."
Trump announced Sunday night in a Truth Social post that he wants to impose a 100 per cent tariff on all movies made outside the United States.
He said he directed the Department of Commerce and the U.S. Trade Representative to "immediately begin the process" of imposing the tariff. He hasn't signed an executive order, and the White House said on Monday that no final decisions had been made.
But it has caused considerable worry for the Canadian film industry.
Almon said tariffs could deter foreign producers from making films in Nova Scotia.
"It's going to be difficult to counter these tariffs. I mean, the film industry really relies on certainty. They want to know that they can have a reliable support network for the creation of their content," he said.
"And what I'm worried about is that this is going to send a chill through foreign producers who would normally come here to Nova Scotia or to Canada."
Almon said the industry contributes about $150 million to $200 million to the provincial economy each year, with half of that from foreign service production.
Trump's announcement comes after the province added $38 million to the Nova Scotia Film and Television Production Incentive Fund in December to enhance the local industry. That brought the fund's total to $77 million for the 2024-25 budget period.
The fund offers economic incentives for screen-based content in two streams — one for productions with majority Nova Scotian ownership and another for international or out-of-province ownership.
Barry Hertz, deputy arts editor and film editor for the Globe and Mail, told CBC's Information Morning that not only would Trump's plan negatively impact the Canadian film industry, but it's also unrealistic.
"It's just impractical. The plan, or the notion of a plan that was put forward in his Truth Social post on Sunday evening doesn't address thousands of tiny details that go into how a production like a feature film is made," said Hertz.
It's unclear whether tariffs would apply to the full cost of a film, box office ticket sales or streaming subscriptions. Major U.S. studios and the Motion Picture Association have yet to comment.
In his social media post, Trump accused other countries of hurting the U.S. film industry by luring productions away with incentives.
Hertz acknowledged that while fewer people are working in the film industry in the U.S., there have been suggestions brought forward that could be utilized instead of tariffs.
"A lot of people have proposed more reasonable solutions to that, whether it's on the state level of tax incentives or some kind of subsidy on the federal level, which a lot of people are pushing for that would do it," said Hertz.
Amid the uncertainty, Almon said the Canadian industry needs to become less reliant on the U.S.
"We need to look at making changes to our domestic film industry and how Canadians consume content. We need to make sure that that changes with the times and I think that we need to really focus on building that industry so that it's more resilient," he said.
Almon suggested these changes should include taxing foreign streaming services that are operating in Canada and creating intellectual property within the country.
"The Canadian government needs to step in and take control of the situation so that our industry can survive threats like this one," he said.
With files from Maritime Noon and Information Morning
