60+ provincial, national and marine parks, and wildlife refuges

Larger than the state of California, spanning 569,000 km2 of terrain

Home to globally unique ecosystems and priceless cultural heritage treasures.

Weather and seasonality

Summers in Northern BC tend to be milder than other parts of BC, averaging less than 30 degrees Celsius in interior communities and between 18-25 degrees Celsius along the coast. Some coastal communities, like Prince Rupert and Kitimat, are subject to high rainfall and inclement days, even in the dry season, can quickly feel like autumn. It also means the region’s coniferous forests stay verdant throughout the year. Communities with northern coordinates experience long hours of daylight in summer, with sunset falling just before midnight in some areas.

Winter can range from mild to severe, depending on where you plan to shoot. Northwest interior communities from Prince George to Smithers and Terrace, and Northeast communities, including Mackenzie, Fort St. John, Chetwynd, Tumbler Ridge, Dawson Creek, and Fort Nelson, all experience long, snowy winters. Temperatures dip well into the minuses, and the snowfall runs deep—some parts of the region can receive up to 12 metres. Coastal communities like Prince Rupert, Kitimat, and Haida Gwaii occasionally receive snowfall but tend to stay green and lush throughout the coldest months.

Unique film locations and assets that tell a story

Want to recapture the nostalgia of “Hot Tub Time Machine” or the creepy mood of “Yellowjackets? Looking to shoot an ominous gold rush-era drama like”There Will Be Blood” or a wilderness thriller like “Insomnia”? Northern BC has thousands of diverse film locations and assets that can recreate any set. Period pieces can draw on the region’s heritage buildings and memorabilia, including the frontier-style downtowns of Stewart, Old Hazelton, and Atlin, as well as dozens of rural post offices and general stores. Scattered across the region are hundreds of remote outposts and wilderness cabins that can serve as backdrops to your next thriller, crime drama, or wilderness story. Smithers’ Alpine-themed downtown can be swapped for a classic European mountain village, while the coastal communities of Kitimat and Prince Rupert can stand in for nondescript fishing villages set in any era. Old-school ski resorts like Powder King Resort, Shames Mountain, and Hudson Bay Mountain offer nostalgic charm in spades. Explore Northern BC’s film locations.

Capture city scenes and nature shots from the same location

One of Northern BC’s strengths as a film location lies in its proximity to nature. Every town and city in the region is surrounded by pristine wilderness, with mountains, parks, lakes, rivers, and green spaces a stone’s throw from downtown areas. Productions balancing a tight shooting schedule benefit from the ease of access between city settings and natural landscapes. Even the most populated city in the region—Prince George—is home to less than 100,000 people meaning productions will find ample room to shoot urban scenes, and with less roadblocks to encounter.