filming in north bay, ontario

OUR COMMUNITY AT A GLANCE…

North Bay is a vibrant city of 54,000 people and has a regional population of 112,000. The city is

centrally located at the junction of highways 11 and 17, i s a 3.5 hour drive from both Toronto and

Ottawa and is only an hour drive North of Huntsville.

North Bay is well connected by land, air, rail and telecommunication infrastructure. North Bay’s Jack

Garland Airport provides regularly scheduled passenger and air cargo service to and from the city.

LOCATION DIVERSITY

With numerous rural communities close by and nearby

access points to Algonquin Park, urban film sequences

can easily be combined within a short distance from

countryside landscapes.

Unique attractions such as the Heritage Railway &

Carousel Company and the Chief Commanda II cruise

vessel provide unique seasonal backdrops for filming.

Features within city limits include: Duchesnay Falls, the

Laurentian Ski Hill, St. Joseph’s Mother House (featured

left), 2 large lakes with uninhibited vistas (Lake Nipissing &

Trout Lake), vacant islands and Otter Lake - a municipally

owned, pristine lake property of 350 acres.

North Bay’s natural environment lends itself to a variety

of four season recreational activities including cross

country and down hill skiing, access to 3,400 km of

groomed snowmobile trails, close proximity to 8 golf

courses, 6 marinas, 42 beaches, 74 park areas and

access to 100+ km of multi-use trails.

North Bay is also home to the Underground Complex of

the former North American Aerospace Defense

Command (NORAD), known as “the hole”, and one of

only two former Bomarc Missile sites in Canada.

ARTS, CULTURE & HERITAGE

North Bay has a variety of amenities and events

throughout the year that contribute to the community’s

cultural fabric.

Area museums include the original homestead of the

Dionne Quintuplets and the former Canadian Pacific

Railway Station.

The community features numerous art galleries, a 1,000

seat Arts Centre and a number of historical buildings.

North Bay also borders the Nipissing First Nation

reserve.

North Bay takes advantage of the Northern Ontario talent pool to support multimedia projects. Locally,

Nipissing University & Canadore College offer a variety of programs to support film and digital media

productions.

Canadore College offers seven Communication Arts programs including:

Broadcasting

Television & Video Production

Theatre Arts

Rep-21 Theatre Company

Nipissing University offers a wide range of programs and courses including:

Bachelor of Fine Arts

Creative Writing

Theatre Production

The Director’s Cinema

Women in Cinema

Nipissing Stage Company

TALENT POOL

INFRASTRUCTURE

North Bay’s Jack Garland Airport is municipally owned, has a 10,000 foot runway - one of only 4

in Ontario, and can accommodate all types of aircraft.

North Bay is at the cross roads of the national fibre network, supporting various ICT operations

including the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). With access to high

speed Internet and full cell coverage from all major carriers, working in remote areas is possible

and convenient.

Fully serviced business parks offer a variety of industrial and commercial space.

Comprehensive medical services in North Bay are provided by a fully-accredited medical

hospital and a psychiatric facility. A new $550 million North Bay Regional Health Centre opened

in January 2011, amalgamating two North Bay General Hospital sites and the Northeast Mental

Health Centre.

Originally established as a transportation hub, North Bay has maintained active rail lines that

are accessible for filming purposes.

INCENTIVES

NO film permit fees!

The Economic Development Department’s Film & Television Division provides assistance by:

Supplying a Film Production Handbook with application templates

Streamlining all necessary municipal permits and approvals through an established

Project Review Team—includes representatives from relevant municipal

departments (i.e. fire, police and emergency services)

Scouting for appropriate site locations

Arrangements for accommodations and ground transportation

Arrangements for facilities

Arrangements for accessing regional talent pool

Liaison with community partners and utilities

Assisting with Public Funding Applications (Grant Accessing Program Officer)

Funding Specific to Northern Ontario:

Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC)

Northern Ontario Media Fund

FACTS

Land Area: 77 815 acres

Elevation: 197m

Average Seasonal Temperatures

Average Precipitation

Sunlight

Lakes

Lake Nipissing has a surface area of more than 21,000 acres with an average depth of 4.5m.

Trout Lake is long and narrow, approx. 11km long and has a dept of approx. 60m.

Otter Lake is a pristine and undeveloped natural area owned by the City of North Bay. Otter

Lake has a total park area of 350 acres and a total lake area of 190 acres.

The Region

Rural communities located a short distance from the City of North Bay include: Powassan, West

Nipissing, Callander and Mattawa.

Recently Filmed in North Bay

- Algonquin - Backcountry

- Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town - Oliver Sherman

- Dark Rising 2: Summer Strikes Back - About the Girl

- Dark Rising: The Savage Tales of Summer Vale - That Beautiful Somewhere

- The Discovery Channel: How Machines Work - That was Easy

Winter

(Dec.21-March 19)

Spring

(March 20-June 20)

Summer

(June 21-Sept.21)

Fall

(Sept.22-Dec.20)

Celsius -25 12 25 10

May June July August September

Sunlight

(hours/month) 240 249 278 230 150

May June July August September October

Rain (mm) 78 92 97 102 109 82

November December January February March April

Snow (cm) 35 62 59 50 37 17

Economic Development Department

Film and Television Division

City of North Bay

1.800.465.1882 x 2417

investinnorthbay.ca