HST FACTS REBUTTAL

My paycheque, (my sole source of income for the last 15 years) is directly related to the film industry. When the number of productions in this province is up, which it is from 15 years ago, and when it is down, which it is from 6 years ago, my yearly income is, in direct relationship, up or down.

When I say film industry, I speak of what we had built it up to in the early 2000s, from the early 1900s. When I say we have lost the film industry I mean it has reverted to the equivalent of the mid 1900s. as compared to the mid 2000s. Obviously it has not gone away completely. However, because it died so badly, because of the Liberal Gov’t., in the late 2000s, it will take many, many years to recuperate, if ever.

That fact that the streets of downtown were busy with film crews after the installation of HST was only because of the removal of the Olympic ban on downtown filming which happened at the same time and the Liberal Party used this as propaganda to praise the HST.

This is the axe that I have to grind, the Liberal Party, though everyone pointed their finger at Gordon Campbell, as if he was the sole decision maker, used the rebirth of all the visual film making to praise the HST.

Unfortunately many of the public believed the propaganda.

When you sight features such as MI4, you are mistaken. MI4, filmed under the name of `Tank’, never started filming until well after the HST came into effect. That is to say started filming in Vancouver. They had actually started filming in other countries and were late filming in Vancouver because the film studios that they had leased, many months before HST was ever thought of, were being used for the filming of `Little Red Riding Hood’ which ran over budget and way past the end of their shooting schedule. It actually got to the point where MI4 was building sets in the same studio in which LRRH was filming.

We have lost shows to Toronto lately, we always lose shows to Toronto, and we will always do so.

However the reverse happens more frequently, Toronto loses shows to us.

There are many reason for this, none of which have anything to do with the HST. The biggest reason, the biggest reason that any film crew goes anywhere, is location. `LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION’

Just like the Real Estate industry, `LOCATION’, is the key. The one most important key. The second is studio space, the third is trained and efficient crews, and another major attraction that Vancouver had is film editing facilities.

Vancouver still has the locations but because of Gordon Campbell, and here I say Campbell, rather than the liberal Party, because it was his personal hatred of unions, although people blame it on Vince Ready, but he was only acting on Campbell’s orders, we no longer have the; studio space, crews, or editing houses.

We still have most of the supply houses, such as yours, though I have never had the opportunity to deal with you as I have all the major suppliers, because, though most of them have had to downsize, they have managed to survive by laying off staff and sending stock back to their head offices in L.A.

And speaking of Real Estate, ask them what they think of the HST. Ask them, or any home buyer, how many sales have been lost because of the HST.

HST hurts every citizen in this country.

How many tax payers’ dollars have been wasted, and will continue to be wasted, in the Liberals fight to retain ST.

This referendum is nothing but an expensive smoke screen and is a perfect example of why the citizens of this fair province are sick and tired of the Liberals and their high handed attitude.

The citizens do not have bottomless pockets and can no longer afford the Liberals or their tax increases.

When the people ousted Gord Campbell it was to get rid of the HST. We never once mentioned reverting to GST. Nor did we want Campbell to leave by himself, We wanted the entire party gone.

With no ST Canadians will stay home to shop rather than spending their weekends shopping South of the border. No ST will attract customers from other countries.

Doing away with ST will mean lower taxes because the Gov’t. can close all the offices that are used to calculate all the STs and their rebates.

The lack of St is a win win situation for all concerned except, for some obscure reason, the liberal party. Why they are trying so hard to hang on to it, in spite of their electorates’ desire to get rid of it is beyond me.

HST FACTS

Here are the facts from the set decorators we speak to everyday:

The film industry never left BC. Even during the Olympics. We saw business all the way through the recession. It may have slowed down but it was always there. Permits were only halted but production studios were operating business as usual in Vancouver and Burnaby. We had trucks here every day during the Olympics picking up or dropping off props.

Once the HST was in place, it brought lots of new shows and movies that have yet to air. Mission impossible being one of them that saw a $7 million dollar benefit from filming in Canada, purely from the HST.

We have lost shows to Toronto in the past month because of the uncertainty of the HST here. Shows that if popular could have multiple seasons and provide years of work for dozens of productions staff and vendors alike.

To say you are mis-informed is an understatement. Vancouver no longer has a film industry? The film business is 10 times as busy in Vancouver as it has ever been. The HST , vendor infrastructure, and the US-CDN dollar exchange all play an important part in the equation.

I’m not sure why you have an axe to grind but you should get your facts straight before you start writing articles in municipal publications in municipalities that benefit from the movie business.

Kevin B. Vancouver, B. C. Canada