Netflix giving Ottawa film, TV producers chance to shine

Netflix, the media streaming giant with a global reach of 194 countries and growing, is increasingly focused on presenting original programming to its subscribers, and that's giving local producers a new and lucrative outlet for their work.

"Netflix is really changing the game for independent producers. It gives you direct access to a broadcaster. You can get your movies made a lot easier,"  said producer Rob Menzies, owner of Zed Filmworks, a local production company. 

"Regular TV networks like the CBC have a limited space of what they can take, while something like Netflix has no limit on what it can take."

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Earlier this year Zed Filmworks produced the Netflix original movie  I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House, starring Ruth Wilson. The atmospheric horror film was shot in Ottawa, employing local actors and crew. The movie debuted on Netflix on Oct. 28 to rave reviews from industry bibles such as Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.

"A small movie like this one can be seen by Netflix viewers around the world," said Menzies. "And every success leads to the next project."

Academy Award-winner and industry analyst Tom Nunan says Netflix is striving to be the go-to content provider for everyone in every household around the world, fuelling its search for unique, locally made productions.

"The biggest difference that Netflix is making for independent producers outside of the United States is that it is actually buying and financing content that is locally produced," said Nunan from Los Angeles.

"Rarely if ever do producers outside the United States, outside of Hollywood in particular, have the opportunity to reach a global content provider." 

On a drizzly October afternoon in Ottawa, the cameras were rolling on a scene for Frontier, an upcoming series about the 19th-century fur trade that will air on Netflix and Discovery Channel Canada. 

On the set, producer Alex Patrick said he's working in Ottawa for the first time, and he's impressed.

"We think it's great. What's nice about it is it's accessible and we can do it on short time lines. We put this together in the course of a week and it went smoothly."

Bruce Harvey of Invest Ottawa's film office says that kind of positive experience can lead to ongoing relationships between Netflix and Ottawa producers.

"It allows the acquisition team at Netflix to see what the city looks like, allows them to work with the local filmmaker here, allowing him to show them what skills he has, what kind of team he can bring to the table. Those are all kinds of good things Netflix can see."