The Ovaltine Cafe is in the Downtown Eastside, but there was a time when it was a diner in Nazi-occupied America. And another time when it was a diner in a Chicago of 2035, run by robots.
“Customers will come in and tell us, ‘We saw you on TV!’” said Rachel Chen, who owns the cafe with her mother, Grace.
As Metro Vancouver’s reputation as Hollywood North continues to grow, many small businesses are getting their time in the limelight.
2015 was a record year for film and television productions for the City of Vancouver, which reported hosting 353 productions, up 40 per cent from the previous year, and gained $710,000 in revenue from street-use permits alone.
Recently in BC, productions such as Star Trek Beyond spent more than $69 million, Deadpool more than $40 million and the latest season of Supernatural $38.6 million, according to the Motion Picture Association of Canada (MPA-Canada).
Supernatural also used the 73-year-old Ovaltine Cafe, whose retro look and classic neon signs make it a favourite for Vancouver productions. Will Smith and Ben Affleck have sat in its seats.
“I really wanted to keep this an old diner,” said Grace Chen.
She has an affinity for diners; she ran the Save On Meats diner between 1999 and 2010.
The Chens charge productions a minimum of $5,000 a day. The entire cafe closes and designers come in to redo it as distant locale. Recently, it became a diner in 1965 San Francisco for Bruce Lee biopic Birth of the Dragon.
Aside from locations, small businesses also offer many props for productions.
Heather Baker, who owns 43-year-old antique store Baker’s Dozen Antiques on Main Street, said the street is a popular destination for production staff. Main Street’s eclectic mix of shops that sell antiques, furniture and knick-knacks makes looking for props convenient.
At Baker’s, items are rented out at approximately 20 per cent of their cost, usually calculated by the week. A damage deposit is required; some of Baker’s items are worth thousands of dollars.
“I’ve rented everything from a human skull to little pieces for a mad lab,” said Baker.
Movie rentals have been part of her business since the beginning, and it’s grown over the years.
“It’s a very important part of the Vancouver economy,” said Baker. “It covers an enormous group of Vancouver people — hairdressers, caterers — self-employed, for the most part.”
One reason why Vancouver is so popular for screens is its visual diversity, said Kirk Adamson, a location scout and manager of 17 years who has worked on The Revenant and Man of Steel.
“Vancouver’s got multiple looks,” said Adamson. “Everything is sought after, modern and old. You can duplicate Hong Kong, you can duplicate New York, you can duplicate L.A. and Seattle.”
Aside from look, tax credits and a low Canadian dollar have helped draw Hollywood productions to BC.
In fact, the tax credits were so good for productions that Finance Minister Mike de Jong said in May that the province could no longer afford them at their current level. The basic production services tax credit will consequently be cut to 28 per cent from 33 per cent, if approved by legislature in October.
The tax credits cost BC taxpayers $491 million in the last fiscal year, up from an average of $313 million in each of the previous three years.
Courtesy of Business in Vancouver. Original story here.
