From the breathtaking mountain scenery featured in Can This Love Be Translated? to the sweeping foothills seen in My Life with the Walter Boys, Alberta’s landscapes are capturing the attention of millions of viewers around the world. As major streaming platforms highlight Canadian filming locations, the province is gaining recognition as a premier destination for film, television, and tourism.
Every production filmed in Alberta does more than entertain audiences — it introduces global viewers to the province’s unique landscapes, vibrant communities, and tourism opportunities. This exposure helps attract visitors, support local businesses, and create meaningful employment across the province, while encouraging travellers to experience Alberta firsthand.
Recent research from Netflix suggests that screen content plays a powerful role in influencing travel decisions. Viewers who watch Canadian content on the platform are significantly more likely to consider Canada as a top travel destination. This growing trend of “screen tourism” presents a valuable opportunity for Alberta.
To help visitors explore these iconic filming locations, Travel Alberta has developed curated travel itineraries and guides highlighting where popular productions were filmed. These resources allow visitors to experience the same stunning locations they’ve seen on screen.
Alberta’s film and television industry also delivers strong economic benefits. Film productions generate immediate spending in local communities during filming and create lasting tourism interest long after production ends. The province continues to build on this momentum as part of its long-term goal of reaching $25 billion in annual visitor spending by 2035.
In 2023 alone, Alberta’s cultural film and television sector contributed approximately $1.25 billion to the provincial economy and supported more than 9,000 jobs. Productions are increasingly choosing locations across the province — from major cities to small towns and rural communities — ensuring the economic benefits are widely shared.
Alberta continues to attract production companies because of its combination of experienced film crews, diverse locations, and competitive production supports. From modern urban settings to dramatic mountain ranges and wide open prairies, the province offers filmmakers an unmatched range of backdrops.
Film production is also helping revitalize smaller communities. More than 60 percent of Alberta-based productions are filmed or planned for smaller cities and rural areas, bringing new business to local vendors, hospitality providers, and service industries. Government support for the sector continues to show strong returns, with every dollar invested generating approximately four dollars in economic activity.
Quick Facts
Every dollar of government support for film and television production generates about four dollars in investment in Alberta. Since 2020, rural productions have invested close to $600 million in local communities. Since 2020, Alberta has supported 380 productions that have spent more than $1.6 billion across multiple industries. These productions have contributed roughly $933 million to Alberta’s GDP and supported more than 15,000 jobs. Film and television production continues to strengthen Alberta’s visitor economy, creating jobs and generating more than $500 million in spending in rural communities.
