Three sound stages on 8.35 acres, with a sculpture out front, and the City of Calgary owns the lot. Yes, really.
The Calgary Film Centre opened in May 2016 in southeast Calgary, according to the City of Calgary. It has three purpose-built sound stages plus warehouse and workshop space. Day to day, Calgary Film Centre Ltd. runs it, a subsidiary of Calgary Economic Development, under an independent board. Another series with a Calgary base was Wynonna Earp.
Who designed it
Kasian Architecture got the call from Calgary Economic Development, with a brief to make the city a creative hub for indoor film production. Kasian’s project page lists it at 50,000 square feet, with three big sound stages off a common corridor, a cafe, and an office building for anchor tenant William F. White and centre staff.
The acoustics are the clever bit. Kasian says each stage is acoustically and thermally separate from the outside, thanks to tilt-up precast concrete walls with acoustical lining. The floors were built ultra-flat for camera movement. Nerdy, and we love it.
Near the entrance sits a sculpture called 24P by local artist Bram Timmer. We’d guess it’s a nod to 24 frames per second, though the architect’s page doesn’t say.
How busy it was
Very. In a June 2021 City of Calgary release, the City said the centre contributed $197 million to the economy in 2019 and $90 million in 2020. It also said more than 2,474 jobs were created that year, despite COVID-19.
The City added that the centre had run at 100% capacity since reopening with protocols in June 2020, and was fully booked through summer 2022. That’s a lot of cameras rolling.
Why the City talked about selling
The same release announced the City’s intention to divest. Council had approved exploring a sale on May 10, 2021, and the City retained Ernst & Young Orenda Corporate Finance to manage the process.
The reasoning, in the City’s words, was that the industry is flourishing and demand and competition for studio space are rising, so the time was right. We couldn’t verify from these sources how the sale ended, so check current ownership before you rely on any of this.
The Film Centre and the Film Commission
They’re different things. The Calgary Film Commission is the concierge side. It promotes Calgary as a location and offers scouting, vendor connections and introductions to unions and guilds. The commission lists more than 750,000 square feet of stages and production space across the city.
The Film Centre is one building in that picture, and the one with a sculpture out front.
To see how a prairie city becomes a studio town, start with one City release. It gives you the opening date, the numbers and the reasoning for the sale. Read it, then go spot the sculpture. If you are planning a shoot, our guide to how Calgary film permits and the Calgary Film Commission work is the next stop.
More to read: The Banff Mountain Film Festival Began With Climbers in a Basement, The Werklund Centre build is rolling and it is a good sign and Unforgiven Built a Whole Western Town in the Alberta Foothills.
Quick answers
The Calgary Film Centre opened in May 2016 in southeast Calgary, according to the City of Calgary. The studio has three purpose built sound stages plus warehouse and workshop space, and it started life as a City owned facility meant to draw indoor film production to Alberta.
Kasian Architecture designed it for Calgary Economic Development. Kasian’s project page lists the building at 50,000 square feet, with three sound stages off a common corridor, a cafe and an office building for anchor tenant William F. White and centre staff. Each stage is acoustically and thermally separate from the outside.
The Calgary Film Centre is a studio building with three sound stages in southeast Calgary. The Calgary Film Commission is the concierge side, promoting Calgary as a location and offering scouting, vendor connections and introductions to unions and guilds. The commission lists more than 750,000 square feet of stages and production space across the city.
Calgary Film Centre Ltd. runs it day to day, a subsidiary of Calgary Economic Development, under an independent board. The City announced in 2021 that it intended to sell, but we couldn’t verify how the sale ended, so check current ownership before you rely on this.
Keep going with Legends of the Fall Borrowed Its Montana From Alberta and Not In My City Calgary offers a free 30 minute course and a December concert.
