A petition calling for the Saskatchewan government to bring back the film tax credit has gone viral with over 4,000 signatures.

The voice behind the petition, filmmaker Alyson Ford says that now is the time to lure big film projects back to Saskatchewan.

“When we lost the tax credit, it was a huge incentive for people to film in our province, and unfortunately, when we did lose it, we found out the hard way that it was a huge incentive,” said Ford. “We’ve lost millions and millions of dollars over the years because we don’t have that incentive to entice the film industry.”

Before the tax credit was abolished in 2012, Ford says it enticed productions like “Corner Gas”, “Little Mosque on the Prairie”, and the Ryan Reynolds movie “Just Friends” to film in the province.

She says that film projects like that, provide a lot of jobs for people, and contribute money to the economy, she adds that with the economic hit of the pandemic, the province could use that boost right now.

“Our poor hospitality industry is struggling, our tourism is struggling,” said Ford. “It is proven over and over again that film, and these large productions, support all of these areas.”

Ford says that one of the reasons she is so passionate about the film tax credit is because she doesn’t her children to have to leave the province just to find work in film.

She says that the fight for the film tax credit is a fight for the future.

“I want my daughter to stay working here, I want my son to be able to have a future in film,” said Ford. “We’re not just fighting, right now, for having this benefit of us working again in the film industry, but this is a future for our kids.”

Ford says that the petition will remain open for anyone who wants to sign it or leave a comment. The petition can be found here.