Toronto’s booming film, video and digital production industry, limited only by the availability of studio space and crews, is getting a boost.

As stars and moguls land downtown for the Toronto International Film Festival, Mayor John Tory and Cinespace Film Studios executives will be in Etobicoke on Thursday breaking ground on two new studios and connecting space totalling 50,000 square feet.

Cinespace, home to the Hulu hit “The Handmaid’s Tale”, recently wrapped period drama “Reign” and many other productions, says the addition will allow concurrent filming at its Kipling Studio Campus of seven big productions, up from six. The expansion will also include a large, permanent underwater filming tank.

Cinespace vice-president Jim Mirkopoulos told the Star the new space will help alleviate — but not eliminate — the studio space “crisis” that has cost Toronto big bucks in lost filming opportunities.

“My company has had to turn away at least 10 projects in calendar year 2017 so far because of lack of studio space in Toronto,” Mirkopoulos said.

“Some of those projects went to other jurisdictions — they weren’t able to find studio space in Toronto. We are doing our part to ensure that happens less often in Toronto.”

Cinespace opened the Kipling campus in 2009 after more than 20 years in the neighbourhood of Eastern and Carlaw Aves. The homegrown family firm has more than 2 million square feet of studio space in Toronto and Chicago.

Plans for its new “Titan Studios,” part of a multi-year, multi-million-dollar expansion of the Kipling site, come after rival Pinewood Studios, home to the “Star Trek: Discovery” television series, broke ground on a 30,000-square-foot Port Lands studio complex with advanced special effects stage.

In an interview Wednesday, Tory said he expects yet more good news for the production industry.

“This is huge, I’m delighted,” he said of the Cinespace commitment. “This is going to help, I believe — given both the (studio space) need and the competitive nature of the business — trigger other investments that I know people are thinking and talking about in different parts of the cities.

“There are a significant number of expansion plans out there,” Tory said. “People just need the trigger, and I think this will help.”

After sagging in 2012, filming investment in Toronto soared to $1.55 billion in 2015 and last year topped $2 billion for the first time. Much of the record investment was in successful episodic shows that kept crews busy but also tied up studio space held for the next season’s filming.

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Mirkopoulos says factors in the ongoing success are stability in provincial tax credits; the low Canadian dollar; the success and proven quality of Toronto-made productions; and a city hall welcome wagon driven by staff in the film office as well as Tory and Councillor Paula Fletcher.

Efforts with film unions to get more crew members trained is helping address that problem, he said, while agencies including the Toronto District School Board are stepping up with filming locations and, in the summer months, school parking spaces for those ubiquitous white trucks.

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