Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos isn’t quite sure what to make of U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a 100 per cent tariff on films produced outside of the U.S. But while the rhetoric is worrying, she said she sees no reason to panic.
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Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos isn’t quite sure what to make of U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a 100 per cent tariff on films produced outside of the U.S. But while the rhetoric is worrying, she said she sees no reason to panic.
“Canada is very competitive,” she told OBJ on Wednesday. “Mr. Trump’s (post), let’s keep in mind, it’s nothing more than that. It’s not the time for panicking, but it makes me worried for sure.”
Trump announced Sunday that he plans to impose 100 per cent tariffs on all films produced outside the U.S. “I am authorizing the Department of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representative, to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Pechels de Saint Sardos is the film commissioner and CEO of the Ottawa Film Office, a local not-for-profit dedicated to growing the film and television industry in the city. It’s an industry that has faced waves of disruption in recent years, from the streaming boom to the COVID-19 pandemic and multiple labour strikes that put projects on hold for months.
Pechels de Saint Sardos said Ottawa hasn’t been immune to the impacts, especially the Hollywood production slowdown that decreased the number of projects in the city. A few months ago, she told OBJ that the slowdown had forced the film office to downsize its plans for a soundstage facility on a 22-acre plot of land on Woodroffe Avenue. On Wednesday, she said there was no update on the project, but discussions are ongoing.
Still, Pechels de Saint Sardos said things have been looking up locally over the past year. But if Trump is serious, she said it has the potential to knock things off balance again.
“We are having a lot of requests from the U.S. on location scouting, putting together a look-book on Ottawa, for big titles. I don’t want to say too much, but last week I was like, we’re getting there. We’re going back to normal.”
While Ottawa’s film industry has a strong relationship with U.S. companies, Pechels de Saint Sardos said the Ottawa Film Office also continues to look at other international opportunities.
Next week, in addition to connecting with her American counterparts, she’ll be meeting other industry leaders from across the world as she heads to the Cannes Film Festival in France.
“I’m there next week to meet with all our American producers, streamers, European as well, Australia, Asia and Latin America,” she said. “Brazil is the country of honour and we have a great co-production treaty with Brazil.”
For companies that work within the industry, the threat of tariffs is raising alarm bells. But if Trump’s plan does go through, Pechels de Saint Sardos said her organization plans to support local businesses however it can.
“It’s the time to not panic, to have a cool head and be strong,” she said. “I’ll be very strong here to support all of my producers. I want to make sure to take care of them. That’s my job and I’ll be making sure that I do whatever I can to ease the winds of uncertainty.
“It’s important to be aware of our strength, to be aware of what we can offer to our international customers and also to keep the dialogue with our wonderful American co-producers and partners,” she said. “It’s the time of dialogue, diplomacy, kindness, working together and collaboration. Communication is key in this business.”
