March Entertainment in Sudbury has received $2.5 million in funding from the provincial government to go towards three animated productions targeted to children.
The new productions include Dex Hamilton, Alien Entomologist; Mia and Me; and Tossed in Space. Funding for their production comes from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp.'s Emerging Technology Program.
“March Entertainment continues to be one of the pillars of Northern Ontario's film and television sector, and our government is very pleased to help the company build careers in the North for our young people and create local jobs in Sudbury,” Bartolucci said in a news release.
The funding, which was announced by Northern Development Minister Rick Bartolucci on Dec. 2, is expected to boost the local economy by creating up to 120 jobs.
March Entertainment's state-of-the-art 13,000-square-foot production facility, located in downtown Sudbury, is capable of handling everything from pre-production to post-production.
“We're very excited about these projects,” Dan Hawes, president of March Entertainment, said in a news release. “Mia and Me in particular has been sold to most major territories around the world and begins to air in France, Italy and Germany over the next few months. This investment has allowed us to increase the quality of our CGI 3D animation to be able to truly compete on a global level.”
The provincial government estimates film and television production contributes close to $2 billion annually to the economy, while supporting more than 23,000 direct and indirect jobs.