Surrey reels in new film studio
Mayor says Netflix show will be produced at the Newton facility
The City of Surrey is poised to hit the limelight after reeling in the producers of major films like Star Trek and Mission Impossible to create a film and television studio in Newton.
Surrey Mayor Linda Hepner said California-based Skydance Media is converting the former Pacific Newspaper printing press building in Kennedy Heights to a five-stage sound studio that can accommodate a production staff of up to 400 people. The studio is slated to produce programming for Netflix this fall on a show about a city of the future, called Altered Carbon.
“I’m really excited about it. We’ve tried for a long time to get a studio here, and I’m pleased with the cali- bre we got,” Hepner said.
Calling her city “the premier metropolitan centre south of the Fraser,” Hepner told attendees at her state of the city address on Thursday that Surrey is poised to be a centre for smart technology, innovation and economic growth.
Besides the film studio, the city has announced it will move ahead with a new clean-technology global innovation zone at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Cloverdale and a “child safety village,” with child-sized buildings in Newton to educate youngsters on road safety, avoiding drugs and gangs, and “making good life choices.”
The city is also in discussions with private helicopter companies in a bid to create a network of helipads in both north and south Surrey to serve the growing demand for links with cities such as Vancouver, Victoria and Kelowna. Hepner noted these plans should “come as no surprise” for her burgeoning city, which is the second largest in B.C., with 530,000 people. “But what we are doing today is laying down a firm and stable foundation that will shape the so- cial, economic, and environmental requirements of Surrey for years to come.”
A film and television studio will bring Surrey closer to the ranks of other Metro Vancouver areas like Burnaby, the North Shore and Vancouver — the third-largest film production centre in North America — which are already cashing in on the $2-billion film industry sweeping B.C. Although it’s only five months into the year, Hepner noted Surrey has already issued 52 permits, up from the 31 issued during the same time last year, which broke filming records, with 97 permits and 193 days of filming.
The city says Skydance Media estimates it will bring in $100 million per year of regional economic spinoffs at full production; its deal with the Netflix series is slated to run over the next eight years.
Hepner noted a Coca-Cola commercial filmed in Cloverdale a few years ago drew busloads of tourists to the area, and if the Netflix series became popular it could put Surrey on the Hollywood North map.
A Chinese investor has also approached the city, she said, looking to build another studio.
“There’s economic spinoffs in every direction, whether it’s food or hairdressing or rental equipment. The studio will make a big difference, even in the sheer number of people here. That’s a huge economic spinoff industry itself,” Hepner said. “In Vancouver, people can’t even get into the studio space.”
Meanwhile, Hepner said Surrey has also invested $334 million in capital projects, including two new aquatic centres in Guildford and Grandview Heights, expansion of the Surrey Museum, a new Cloverdale ice arena, a second YMCA, a multi-purpose facility in Clayton and flood control improvements in low-lying areas.
“Surrey is a city full of possibilities and is primed to be a centre for technology and innovation for the region,” Hepner said in her speech.
“Our potential for job and economic growth is tremendous. The bottom line Surrey is being recognized both at home and abroad as a city that builds global connections.”