It’s awards season, and the big winner may be Nova Scotia’s ability to attract television and film productions to the province. Indeed, the government intends to keep kicking butt — it has just announced the country’s most aggressive film tax credit.

In the latest round of Gemini nominations — Canada’s equivalent to the Emmy Awards, but nothing at all like the Emmys — Nova Scotia production companies and shows filmed here sashayed away with an armload of nominations. Headlining the credits is the Halifax Film Co. Ltd.’s This Hour Has 22 Minutes, which has four nominations, including Best Comedy Program or Series.

Cottonland, co-written and directed by local photographer Nance Ackerman, picked up three nods, including Best Direction in a Documentary Program. Also walking the red carpet will be Geoff D’Eon, nominated for Best Director of a Comedy for Stand Up in Kandahar; Elvira Kurt, Best Individual Performance nominee for her stand-up routine at the 2006 Halifax Comedy Festival; and Joseph Sherman, director of Johnny Test, a children’s show animated by Collideascope Digital Productions Inc. in Halifax.

It’s a time for celebration. “Recognition like this shows that audiences and industry professionals are aware of the incredible talent Nova Scotia has to offer,” says Ann MacKenzie, CEO of Nova Scotia Film Development Corp.

They are also aware of the tax credit the province has put in place to attract film productions and build an entertainment industry here. At one time, that tax credit — among the first in the country — was a big draw. But its lustre was fading. Until now.

Nova Scotia had been offering a 35% rebate on wages paid to Nova Scotians working on a production in Halifax (more outside the city). That figure was lower than the 40% Newfoundland and Labrador and New Brunswick offer — and lower than the 45% Manitoba and Saskatchewan offer. Now the Nova Scotia government has upped the ante.

The provincial government announced it will now pay a 50% tax credit. That comes on the heels of some dismal results for the film and TV sector. In 2006, the industry, including new media, experienced a 12% increase in growth. The current season is not looking so lucrative. Although official numbers have not been released by the film corporation, productions are down and there is no blockbuster lined up to start shooting. Even Tom Selleck, back in town to film his third Jesse Stone movie, will probably be a scarce commodity in the future. (He’s replacing James Caan on the set of Las Vegas. )

One harbinger of things that might have come — without an enhanced tax credit — may be the revelation by Halifax-based DHX Media Ltd. that, although it currently has about 1,000 people on payroll, only 20% are based in Nova Scotia. The firm, one of just two publicly traded production companies in Canada, is an industry golden boy.

An equity research paper prepared by Citadel Securities Corp. in Halifax notes DHX’s management is experienced, award-winning and well connected in the industry. DHX’s primary focus — production and distribution of children’s and family shows — is also a sound business strategy. But as Beste Alpargun, Citadel’s vice president of equity research, notes in her analysis, the firm “also benefits from the various project financing opportunities provided by the federal and/or provincial governments.”

The key now is to keep production rolling. If the industry, with additional help from government, is able to do that, there is no question who the winners will be. IE