Region’s first commercial film studio opens
As Erik O’Neill circles his finger on a tablet screen, the region’s first commercial film studio is immersed in changing colours — red, green, blue and white.
“It is called a cyclorama, or ‘cyc’ for short,” said O’Neill, as he uses his finger to control the lights inside Tiny Horse Film Studios on Bathurst Drive in Waterloo.
Lights hanging on racks seven metres above the floor illuminate the cyclorama wall that is more than 10 metres wide and seven metres high.
“All of the lighting is totally controlled here,” said O’Neill. “There is a colour chip in here and you can make the cyc any colour you could possibly want.”
O’Neill and his partner Matt Hortobagyi opened Tiny Horse Studios after working together for more than 10 years in video production, making countless trips into Toronto, Mississauga or Hamilton to rent studio space.
“Until you hit Mississauga or Hamilton, there is no turnkey, video-oriented studio,” said O’Neill.
“The region doesn’t have anything like this,” said Hortobagyi.
“We always thought it would be handy to have something local, but the timing was never right,” added Hortobagyi.
But the market has changed a lot in recent years.
There is more video production happening now in Waterloo Region than ever before, there are tax breaks for independent producers in Toronto when they take a production outside the GTA, and some experienced filmmakers have moved to this region for the lower cost of living compared to Toronto, he said.
In Toronto, studio space for independent video production companies runs from $1,500-a-day to more than $4,000 depending on how much of their equipment they bring, and how much they rent from the studio.
“Crazy demand, it is very hard to get studio space now in Toronto,” said O’Neill.
The pair leased the 2,100-squarefoot space on Bathurst Drive last November.
The former photography studio needed a lot of work — removing partitions, building the cyclorama wall and stage, installing light racks, adding a green room, a makeup room, a lounge and storage shelves.
Commercials, corporate videos, interviews and TV shows can be shot in the studio. The stage and cyclorama wall are easily big enough for a car or pickup truck.
The cyclorama lighting is a defining feature of a contemporary film studio.
In the past, the stage and backdrops had to be painted.
Light settings can be easily saved on the computer, and recalled instantly when clients return for more shooting.
And for non-union, independent productions in Toronto there are tax breaks available if they move to locations outside the GTA, say a place like Waterloo and Tiny Horse Film Studios, said O’Neill.
“We had our first rental last Wednesday, they wanted a blue wash, so they came in, set the lights to blue, and they were shooting within 90 minutes, like nothing,” said O’Neill.