Cinespace Studios announced the expansion of its Marine Terminal Studio Hub with the signing of a second long-term lease with PortsToronto.
Located in Toronto’s Port Lands, the redevelopment of Marine Terminal 52 will create three production stages and support spaces totaling 130,000 square feet to welcome world-class productions in 2023. Global architecture, design and planning firm Gensler has been selected to design the studio.
Cinespace is the largest studio facility in Toronto with 1.3 million square feet of production space totaling 25 stages over three sites. This upcoming expansion in the heart of the city’s Studio District follows Cinespace’s successful development of Marine Terminal 51, which currently hosts Netflix’s production hub and was recently the home to Guillermo Del Toro’s Nightmare Alley. The redevelopment of the site will create over 300 new jobs in Toronto and continues to support the infrastructure in Ontario that generates more than 48,000 jobs per year and $2.88B in direct spend.
“We are proud to continue our investment in Toronto that started over 30 years ago. It’s a privilege to partner with PortsToronto again and be selected to develop Terminal 52 into a second facility that will meet the increased demand for production infrastructure,” said Ashley Rice, President and Co-Managing Partner, Cinespace Studios. “The Marine Terminal Studio Hub is an integral part of the Port Lands’ revitalization and its future as a creative center for the city and the province.”
“Our goal for this development was to identify opportunities to develop the existing land and deliver maximum benefit in the area, including greater support for the growing employment district that has emerged in the Port Lands. Cinespace Studios’ development allow for the area to remain consistent with the activities of a successful and operational port, as this remains PortsToronto’s single priority in the area given the economic impact of the port for both commercial shipping and cruise ship operations,” said RJ Steenstra, President and Chief Executive Officer, PortsToronto.
Mayor John Tory, City of Toronto continued: “The film and television production industry in Toronto is important to the local economy, the creation of jobs, and the culture of our city. I am pleased that PortsToronto and Cinespace will be expanding their already successful infrastructure in the Port Lands by creating a second studio space for productions to use. Toronto’s screen industries have experienced a period of significant growth and investment over the last decade, and we know that there has been a real need for even more studio space. This project will not only help us attract more projects and more people to our city but as a result add more jobs which is good for our city and good for the economy.”
Cinespace is one of the largest sound stage operators globally with locations in Chicago, Toronto, and Studio Babelsberg in Germany.
