Ottawa's growing film and television production scene may be getting a much-needed home base — even if it's a temporary one. The Ottawa Film Office has confirmed it's exploring short-term soundstage options around the city, including the possibility of repurposing former Hudson's Bay store locations, as it works toward establishing a permanent production facility.
Why Ottawa Needs a Soundstage
For years, Ottawa has punched below its weight when it comes to attracting major film and TV productions, largely because the city lacks a dedicated, purpose-built soundstage. Productions looking to shoot indoor scenes — everything from period dramas to sci-fi thrillers — often have to bring in costly temporary rigging or simply pass Ottawa over in favour of cities like Toronto, Montreal, or Hamilton, which already have established studio infrastructure.
A soundstage would change that equation. It gives location scouts and producers a controlled, reliable environment to shoot in year-round, regardless of Ottawa's notoriously unpredictable weather. It also signals to the broader industry that the city is serious about competing for productions that bring jobs, spending, and visibility to the region.
The Hudson's Bay Connection
With Hudson's Bay's collapse and store closures across the country, Ottawa has been left with a handful of large, vacant retail spaces — including its downtown Rideau Street location and others in the region. These massive, open-concept buildings, originally designed to house department store floors, happen to check a lot of boxes for what a temporary soundstage needs: high ceilings, wide open floor plans, loading access, and enough square footage to build out sets.
Rather than let these buildings sit empty and continue to be an eyesore for the local economy, the Ottawa Film Office sees an opportunity to put them to productive, if temporary, use while longer-term plans for a purpose-built facility take shape.
What This Means for Local Ottawa Talent
For Ottawa's community of camera operators, set builders, costume designers, and other crew, a functioning soundstage — even a stopgap one — could mean steadier work closer to home instead of chasing gigs in other cities. It could also make Ottawa a more attractive stop for streaming platforms and studios currently scouting Canadian cities for cost-effective production hubs.
City officials and the Film Office have made a permanent soundstage a top priority, viewing it as key infrastructure for growing Ottawa's creative economy alongside its tech sector in Kanata North. A temporary solution using former Bay stores would let productions start rolling sooner, rather than waiting years for a new building to be designed and constructed from scratch.
What's Next
No formal agreement has been announced yet, and the Film Office is still weighing its options among several temporary sites. But the fact that former Hudson's Bay real estate is even on the table shows how creatively the city is thinking about turning a retail downturn into an opportunity for its screen industry.
Ottawa residents interested in the local film scene can expect more updates as the Film Office finalizes its temporary soundstage plans in the coming months.
Source: Ottawa Business Journal
