Location Agreements

Here is how the work lines up. Location agreements in Canada split cleanly into four governance tracks, each with its own forms and timing. Parks Canada governs all federal national parks and historic sites. Banff, Jasper, Gros Morne, Pacific Rim, Cape Breton Highlands, the Rideau Canal, the Halifax Citadel — with a permit application process that runs 30-90 days lead time based on park ecological sensitivity, needs a Letter of Authorization, mandates qualified location managers on set and carries strict no-trace restoration clauses.

Here is the breakdown. Heritage UNESCO sites. Quebec City's walled Old Town, Lunenburg's painted-houses harbour, Old Montreal (a national historic district rather than UNESCO-listed but ruled by Ville de Montréal heritage rules) — route through provincial culture ministries (Culture et Communications du Québec, Nova Scotia Communities Culture & Heritage) with extra facade-protection and conservation-easement riders. Provincial parks (Algonquin Ontario, Mont-Tremblant Quebec, Garibaldi BC) have their own ministry permits, and provincial Crown land filming clears through BC Ministry of Forests, OMNR Ontario or Ressources naturelles Quebec. Our team prepares and files all four tiers. This includes the bilingual EN/FR records needed for Quebec, Acadian New Brunswick and federal Parks Canada submissions.

Here is what that looks like on the ground. Indigenous lands operate under a parallel consent framework that has matured a lot since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and which most Hollywood shoots now follow as standard. On First Nations reserve lands, agreements route through the band council via AFN protocols with Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) language adapted from UNDRIP. On Inuit Nunangat area (Nunavut, Nunavik Quebec, Nunatsiavut Labrador, Inuvialuit NWT), agreements clear through ITK Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and the relevant land-claim authority (NTI in Nunavut, Makivik in Nunavik). Métis settlements in Alberta and traditional areas elsewhere route through the MNC Métis National Council provincial bodies.

Here is how the picture comes together. City Film Office agreements for Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Halifax handle the city-street, public-park and city-asset permits and often turn in 5-15 business days. Private property templates cover access dates, restoration obligations, liability under provincial occupiers' liability statutes, $5-10M CGL insurance certificates, and the holdback structures Canadian property owners expect. We also set up ATA carnet customs filings with CBSA for foreign gear crossing borders and IRCC work-permit clearance for non-Canadian crew tied to exact locations.