Lights! Camera! Action!

LUMIERE MOVIES’ expertise in movie studio development.

Movie and TV producers have seized approximately 28.9% of all the industrial space leased in Metro Vancouver in the past year, often outbidding traditional tenants to become the dominant player in a tight market. The unprecedented demand from the $3.6 billion film industry in British Columbia, which has leased more than 1.5 million square feet since mid-2015, has helped to drive the Metro Vancouver industrial vacancy rate to 1.4% — even tighter, compared to the rate of 1.7% last year. Buoyed by high demand but low supply, industrial rental rates increased by 16% in 2018 to $11.86/sq-ft, marking the highest market average rate on record in the region.

The rate to lease industrial and logistics space in Vancouver saw an increase of 29.1% in the first quarter of 2018, making it the largest increase in the world for these type of spaces. CBRE’s Global Industrial and Logistics Prime Rents report notes that a lack of vacant supply and high demand is behind the high year-over-year growth, which was an all-time high for the city. In contrast, the global average increase was just 3.2% year-over-year. Neighbouring Seattle and Oakland also saw significant growth at 13.4% and 14%, respectively, for reasons like Vancouver’s market, with limited supply and strong demand for third-party logistics, food distribution, building supplies, and consumer goods.

In Vancouver’s case, the shortage is further exacerbated by the booming film industry’s need for large production studios in warehouse-like spaces.

LUMIERE MOVIES provides professional film location and studio management services for the film and media industry.