3 Canadian television production
Canadian television production includes the production of television series, mini-series, TV movies, single-episode television programs and television pilots. It consists of productions that are certified as Canadian content by either the Canadian Audio-visual Certification Office (CAVCO) or the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
Television production is carried out across several categories, including fiction (for example drama and comedy), children’s and youth, documentary, lifestyle and human interest, and variety and performing arts (VAPA). This segment excludes broadcaster in-house production, such as news, sports and public affairs programs produced by Canadian broadcasters.[13]
Highlights from 2024/25
- A 1.2% increase in Canadian television series production helped offset decreases in TV movies and other types of television production, however, there was still an overall decrease of 2.0% in Canadian television production in 2024/25.
- Higher volumes of French-language (2.3%) did not offset the decrease in English-language (3.2%) Canadian television production, contributing to the overall decrease in this segment.
- Average hourly budgets were higher for English-language productions in all categories, except for variety and performing arts.
- Conversely, the decrease in the total number of projects was greater in English-language production, to the point where totals are now almost comparable between the two markets (548 in English versus 506 in French).
- The top three provinces for Canadian television production remained Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia, with production volumes exceeding $1 billion in both Ontario and Quebec, and approaching $450 million in British Columbia.
- Fiction production decreased in English (1.3%) but increased in French (12.6%). Children’s and youth television production also experienced a rebound of 3.0% in 2024/25, although total volumes remained below levels observed in prior years. Documentary production declined in both languages, by approximately 8.5%. Lifestyle and human interest differed in that production increased in one language (French) while decreasing in the other (English), while variety and performing arts decreased in both languages
- Fiction continued to hold the largest share of production in both English- and French-language markets. Its share remained significantly higher in English-language production (62% compared to 39%). Conversely, French-language production accounted for a much larger share in other genres, notably lifestyle and human interest (27% compared to 10%) and variety and performing arts (14% compared to 1%).
- After falling to a 10-year low of $167 million in 2023/24, Canadian animation television production rebounded by 43.1% to $239 million in 2024/25, although it remained well below production levels observed in earlier years.