Trump's film tariff threats put local industry in wait-and-see mode

Andrew Lupton · CBC News

· Posted: May 06, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

Those moving successful the section movie manufacture reacted with a premix of interest and disbelief astatine news President Donald Trump is readying caller tariffs connected movies made extracurricular the United States.

Trump announced the program successful a societal media station connected Sunday, saying he has authorized the Department of Commerce and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to use a 100 per cent tariff "on immoderate and each Movies coming into our Country that are produced successful Foreign Lands."

That drew a beardown effect from Canada's movie industry, with 1 actors' national calling Trump's pronouncement "very troubling." 

About fractional of each Canadian movie and tv accumulation involves projects from companies based extracurricular of Canada. It's thing London has seen the benefits of. Last spring, Blackfriars Bridge was utilized for an Amazon Prime television bid called Motorheads. 

Also past year, Labatt Memorial Park was utilized successful the shooting of You Gotta Believe, a shot movie staring Luke Wilson and Greg Kinnear. Some section younker shot players adjacent earned roles arsenic extras successful that film

So however could Trump's tariffs impact films changeable successful Canada? 

Dorothy Downs, executive director and laminitis of the Forest City Film Festival, said Trump's comments suggest he's retired of his extent erstwhile it comes to knowing a complex, integrated industry.

She pointed retired that dissimilar a car portion or a plank of lumber, a movie isn't rather the aforesaid arsenic different products than tin beryllium taxable to commercialized tariffs erstwhile they transverse the border.

"He has nary idea how the movie manufacture works, " said Downs. "I don't cognize however you enactment a tariff connected intelligence property, truthful there's a batch of question marks. True to form, helium talks earlier helium adjacent consults oregon thinks." 

Andrew Dodd manages Film London, which works to enactment each movie accumulation successful London, some overseas oregon domestic. 

Dodd said overseas productions bash play a relation successful supporting grown-in-Canada productions. 

"Part of supporting section manufacture is attracting overseas productions," said Dodd.. 

Dodd said if U.S. producers person a bully acquisition moving here, and locations specified arsenic the Blackfriars Bridge look bully connected film, it tin person a affirmative trickle-down effect, adjacent successful an epoch of tariffs. 

"It helps with connection of mouth," said Dodd. "[Foreign producers] they spell backmost to wherever they're from and accidental 'We had a large clip oregon these sites look great.' Other manufacture radical volition spot the movie and accidental 'Where is that from?'"

Like Downs, Dodd isn't definite however a tariff connected a movie would work. It's hard to representation a script wherever a movie goer successful Seattle, for example, would beryllium charged much for a movie due to the fact that it was shot successful London oregon immoderate different Canadian city. 

Dodd said the champion happening the manufacture tin bash is absorption connected its strengths and enactment a affable situation for each movie productions. 

"We person the endowment here, large locations and unit supports," helium said. 

Christopher Evans is a London-based producer, manager and proprietor of Sevens Studio, a institution that focuses chiefly connected euphony videos and commercialized work. 

He sees the Trump menace arsenic an indicator Canada needs to fortify its home movie industry, alternatively that interest astir wooing the latest Hollywood movie oregon TV accumulation to London. He precocious returned to London from moving successful the United States. He said having film, TV and video shoots hap extracurricular of the U.S. is portion of the caller world successful the industry.

"The satellite is shifting successful a absorption that is making immoderate radical uneasy, but astatine the aforesaid clip it hopefully doesn't alteration the producers and directors that are conscionable wanting to marque bully art," helium said.

"It's forcing america to look within," helium said of the Trump threats. "We person the imaginable to beryllium our ain ecosystem and archer our ain stories."