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Filmmaking is a powerful form of cultural and artistic expression, as well as a highly profitable commercial enterprise. From a practical standpoint, filmmaking is a business involving large sums of money and a complex division of labour. This labour is involved, roughly speaking, in three sectors: production, distributionand exhibition. The history of the Canadian film industry has been one of sporadic achievement accomplished in isolation against great odds. Canadian cinema has existed within an environment where access to capital for production, to the marketplace for distribution and to theatres for exhibition has been extremely difficult. The Canadian film industry, particularly in English Canada, has struggled against the Hollywood entertainment monopoly for the attention of an audience that remains largely indifferent toward the domestic industry. The major distribution and exhibition outlets in Canada have been owned and controlled by foreign interests. The lack of domestic production throughout much of the industry’s history can only be understood against this economic backdrop.

This article is one of four that surveys the history of the film industry in Canada. The entire series includes: Canadian Film History: 1896 to 1938; Canadian Film History: 1939 to 1973; Canadian Film History: 1974 to Present; Canadian Film History: Notable Films and Filmmakers 1980 to Present.

In 1841, Britain united the colonies of Upper and Lower Canada into the Province of Canada. This was in response to the violent rebellions of 1837–38. The Durham Report (1839) recommended the guidelines to create the new colony with the Act of Union. The Province of Canada was made up of Canada West (formerly Upper Canada) and Canada East (formerly Lower Canada). The two regions were governed jointly until the Province was dissolved to make way for Confederation in 1867. Canada West then became Ontario and Canada East became Quebec. The Province of Canada was a 26-year experiment in anglophone-francophone political cooperation. During this time, responsible government came to British North America and expanded trade and commerce brought wealth to the region. Leaders such as Sir John A. Macdonald, Sir George-Étienne Cartier and George Brown emerged and Confederation was born.

(This is the full-length entry about the Province of Canada. For a plain language summary, please see Province of Canada (Plain Language Summary).)

The aerospace industry includes the development and production of aircraft, satellites, rockets and their component parts. Aerospace is a major component of Canada’s economy, employs tens of thousands of Canadians, and accounts for a large part of Canadian trade with foreign markets. Canada boasts a diverse aerospace sector and is one of just a few countries that produce airplanes. Through close partnership with the United States space agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Canada has also launched satellites as well as built sophisticated components used on the International Space Station.

The Great Depression of the early 1930s was a worldwide social and economic shock. Few countries were affected as severely as Canada. Millions of Canadians were left unemployed, hungry and often homeless. The decade became known as the Dirty Thirties due to a crippling droughtin the Prairies, as well as Canada’s dependence on raw material and farm exports. Widespread losses of jobs and savings transformed the country. The Depression triggered the birth of social welfare and the rise of populist political movements. It also led the government to take a more activist role in the economy.

The global financial crisis that began in 2007 dragged much of the world economy into recession, and Canada was not spared. Although the effects on Canada were milder than on the United States and in Europe, the Canadian recession of 2008–09 was still severe enough to generate sharp declines in output and employment and to require significant responses by Canadian policy-makers.

De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited, with head offices in Toronto, Ontario, is an aircraft manufacturer incorporated in 1928. It has designed and built iconic Canadian bush planes such as the Beaver, the Otter and the Twin Otter, as well as transport and commuter aircraft. Owned by Longview Aviation Capital, de Havilland currently manufactures the Dash 8 commuter plane.

The Company of New France, or Company of One Hundred Associates (Compagnie des Cent-Associés) as it was more commonly known, was formed in France in 1627. Its purpose was to increase New France’s population while enjoying a monopoly on almost all colonial trade. It took bold steps but suffered many setbacks. The company folded in 1663. It earned little return on its investment, though it helped establish New France as a viable colony.

Shipping is often the least expensive way of moving large quantities of goods over long distances. The existence of reliable water transportation has been a key to the economic and political well-being of most nations throughout history.

Bias means supporting or opposing something or someone in an unfair way, regardless of the evidence. Media bias is when information spread by media or a news outlet reflects the interests and biases of ownership or individuals of that media company. Corporations may have a clear bias for one political party or issue and may influence its media outlets to reflect that bias. Individual journalists or news outlets may favour one side of an issue and reflect that bias — consciously or unconsciously — in the way they cover stories. The fact that a majority of journalists in Canada are White can also lead to biased reporting on minority groups. People can overcome unconscious bias by thinking and talking about it, and especially by listening to people from less privileged backgrounds.

Bombardier Inc. is a manufacturer of private airplanes that was once among the world’s largest manufacturers of trains and commercial airplanes. Headquartered in Montreal, the company was originally incorporated as L’Auto-Neige Bombardier Limitée in 1942. Its founder, Joseph-Armand Bombardier, was a Québécois mechanical engineer who invented one of the first commercially viable snowmobiles. Bombardier Inc. grew considerably from its beginnings as a snowmobile manufacturer into an iconic Canadian company, known for its public transportation vehicles and jetliners. Facing financial troubles in the 21st century, however, it began to sell off parts of its business. In 2020, it made deals to sell the last of its assets outside its private-jet business, including its commercial plane and rail divisions.

The hotel was developed as part of the CPR’s (Canadian Pacific Railway) network of hotels, which built landmark hotels in young cities across Canada in order to encourage the use of its transcontinental lines. The Banff Springs Hotel is in the lineage of hotels such as the Chateau Lake Louise in Alberta, Le Chateau Frontenac in Québec City and the Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. Known as the “Castle in the Rockies,” the Banff Springs Hotel is predominantly in the Scottish Baronial style, featuring an Arts-and-Crafts interior.

Fowler Bauld & Mitchell Ltd. (FBM) is an architectural firm in practice since 1917, making it one of the oldest in Canada.

​Canada didn’t invent icewine but in the space of a couple of decades it has become the Canadian product that is most sought after by the international wine community.

5468796 is an architecture firm from Winnipeg, Manitoba founded by partners Johanna Hurme and Sasa Radulovic in 2007. The firm’s name is taken from its registration number.

The digital economy is the economic activity conducted through digital technologies such as the Internet. It is also called the Internet economy, the new economy or the web economy. Many scholars see the digital economy as the fourth industrial revolution. As of 2013, it consumed approximately 10 per cent of the world’s electricity. Many of the world’s biggest companies operate in the digital economy. A growing number of Canadians depend on it for their livelihood. In 2017, nearly 5 per cent of all jobs in Canada were in the digital economy. The gross domestic product (GDP) connected to it represented 5.5 per cent of Canada’s total economy — a bigger percentage than mining or oil and gas extraction. However, the often-hidden infrastructure of the digital economy brings new threats to the environment. The rise of cryptocurrencies could also dramatically change how people buy and sell things.

People did not start drilling for buried petroleum until the middle of the 19th century, though its existence had been known for centuries.

SNC-Lavalin is a global engineering and construction firm based in Montreal, Quebec. It works in several industries including oil and gas, mining, cybersecurity and nuclear power. It also builds public and private infrastructure around the world.

The company began in 1911 as an engineering consultant for power projects. In 1991, the original company, called SNC, merged with competitor Lavalin to become SNC-Lavalin. Today it employs some 50,000 people in more than 50 countries. In 2018, it registered $10.1 billion in revenue.

In Canada, the company has received contracts to build major transit projects in cities including Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Worldwide, SNC-Lavalin oversees resource-extraction and infrastructure projects in North America, the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and the Middle East.

Since 2011, allegations of fraud and corruption on the part of SNC-Lavalin and several of its executives have plagued the company with scandal.

Canopy Growth Corporation was the first cannabis company in North America to be federally regulated and publicly traded. The Canadian company, headquartered in Smiths Falls, Ontario, produces a large portion of Canada’s legal cannabis flower, oils and edibles under its various brands. Its products are sold in all 13 Canadian provinces and territories. With more than two dozen subsidiaries and operations on five continents, Canopy is one of the world’s largest cannabis and hemp corporations. It employs 2,700 people full-time and is worth more than $20 billion.