Vancouver or Toronto?

cuterob

Hi me and the missus are applying for the Canadian visa like many others I'm sure.. We're looking at leaving this country as soon as we hopefully are accepted for the visas!

We both have qualifications in TV production and ops.. and also good cv's of video work done etc

Just wondering which city when it comes to media(specifically TV and Film Production) would have the better opportunities do people think?

I've asked people who are currently in both cities and both say to come to whichever city they are in cause it's better.. accomodation looks to be the same in either city.. would I be right in thinking it is easier to get around in vancouver as it is a smaller city with better(apparently) public transport?

also is the cost of living in both city both quite similar cause I've asked these people and they both said it's not so bad as it is made out to be.

Gonna try find any kind of job to settle down first off cause I don't expect to walk into a media job the minute I show up.

Any help is much appreciated cause my head is wrecked thinking which one would be better but just coming to the conclusion it is much of a muchness tbh!

ciaran67

cuterob wrote: »

Hi me and the missus are applying for the Canadian visa like many others I'm sure.. We're looking at leaving this country as soon as we hopefully are accepted for the visas!

We both have qualifications in TV production and ops.. and also good cv's of video work done etc

Just wondering which city when it comes to media(specifically TV and Film Production) would have the better opportunities do people think?

I've asked people who are currently in both cities and both say to come to whichever city they are in cause it's better.. accomodation looks to be the same in either city.. would I be right in thinking it is easier to get around in vancouver as it is a smaller city with better(apparently) public transport?

also is the cost of living in both city both quite similar cause I've asked these people and they both said it's not so bad as it is made out to be.

Gonna try find any kind of job to settle down first off cause I don't expect to walk into a media job the minute I show up.

Any help is much appreciated cause my head is wrecked thinking which one would be better but just coming to the conclusion it is much of a muchness tbh!

Funny you say that. On the news last night here in Vancouver.

Clicky me

As someone said in the comments. Vancouver's boom time was when the C$ was 65c to US$1. Hence why the greedy production companies moved up here from California. Now there's parity they're off to find pastures new, like Toronto who are offering large tax credits.

InTheTrees

I believe according to TomTom (the GPS maker) after Los Angeles, Vancouver has the worst traffic in North America.

And I'm witness to that as a frequent visitor from Seattle. Absolutely horrible. Its an unpleasant experience getting into Vancouver every time I do it. Can you believe that a city that so consistently scores in the top five of great places to live in the entire world doesn't even have a freeway into the city from the south? Nuts. And no left turn lanes (or lights) so every intersection gets blocked if one person wants to turn.

Add that to about the lowest driving standards in north america and it casts a dark cloud over the place.

Its a beautiful city though, highly recommended if you can live close to work.

ciaran67

InTheTrees wrote: »

I believe according to TomTom (the GPS maker) after Los Angeles, Vancouver has the worst traffic in North America.

And I'm witness to that as a frequent visitor from Seattle. Absolutely horrible. Its an unpleasant experience getting into Vancouver every time I do it. Can you believe that a city that so consistently scores in the top five of great places to live in the entire world doesn't even have a freeway into the city from the south? Nuts. And no left turn lanes (or lights) so every intersection gets blocked if one person wants to turn.

Add that to about the lowest driving standards in north america and it casts a dark cloud over the place.

Its a beautiful city though, highly recommended if you can live close to work.

As a Londoner, i think the bad traffic rep is a bit over blown. It is really only is a rush hour morning and evening and mostly thats from the south, as you say ITT they all come in from Slurrey and Langley on two roads. I drive a Handy Dart bus so im all over the city all hours.

And yes they are even worse than the drivers in Ireland! I had a cab in North Wicklow/Dublin... and that was some seriously bad driving.

InTheTrees

ciaran67 wrote: »

As a Londoner, i think the bad traffic rep is a bit over blown. It is really only is a rush hour morning and evening and mostly thats from the south, as you say ITT they all come in from Slurrey and Langley on two roads. I drive a Handy Dart bus so im all over the city all hours.

And yes they are even worse than the drivers in Ireland! I had a cab in North Wicklow/Dublin... and that was some seriously bad driving.

It took me six hours to get into the city center once.

But it was at "rush hour" or as its called there; The Evening. And it was from the south.

ciaran67

InTheTrees wrote: »

It took me six hours to get into the city center once.

But it was at "rush hour" or as its called there; The Evening. And it was from the south.

Sorry i'll bow to your once over my every day.

Tiddlers

ciaran67 wrote: »

Sorry i'll bow to your once over my every day.

I have to agree with Ciaran on this. I think traffic issues are, for the most part, blown out of proportion here! Things can get congested at times but it's a very easy city to navigate, public transport is plentiful, clean and timely. However, I have seen some of the worst and scariest driving by folks here!

ciaran67

Tiddlers wrote: »

I have to agree with Ciaran on this. I think traffic issues are, for the most part, blown out of proportion here! Things can get congested at times but it's a very easy city to navigate, public transport is plentiful, clean and timely. However, I have seen some of the worst and scariest driving by folks here!

I find it so tiring driving cos you're constantly driving defencelessly. You honestly never know what they are going to do.

InTheTrees

I'll concede that apart from trying to get into or out of the city my experiences havent been too negative as regards gridlock.

And I agree about the driving standards. Down here in washington state its just as bad really.

ciaran67

InTheTrees wrote: »

I'll concede that apart from trying to get into or out of the city my experiences havent been too negative as regards gridlock.

And I agree about the driving standards. Down here in washington state its just as bad really.

The multi lane i5 going into Seattle - you look in the mirror and seem them zoom up and around you. Almost got clipped a couple of weeks back from some twat doing 110.

Seattle is so much more fun than Vancouver. We spend weekends down there a lot.

InTheTrees

ciaran67 wrote: »

Seattle is so much more fun than Vancouver. We spend weekends down there a lot.

:eek:

LOL. We go up to Canada as much as we can to get away...

Had a blast watching the US election results in Victoria.

ciaran67

InTheTrees wrote: »

:eek:

LOL. We go up to Canada as much as we can to get away...

Had a blast watching the US election results in Victoria.

Victoria... wasn't it shut?

No accounting for taste eh... i'd be in Dublin or London tonight if there was work!

Right off to my bus and downtown/south Vancouver driving today

InTheTrees

ciaran67 wrote: »

i'd be in Dublin or London tonight if there was work!

+1

Have a good day at work.

tinycanadian

Torontonian here!

I have a few friends who just finished college studying radio/TV production. Lots of opportunities for that field in Toronto. I've heard they call us "Hollywood North"?

In terms of public transit...I haven't been to Dublin yet (moving there next week!) but Toronto's is thorough if not always the most reliable. You can get anywhere in the city on a bus, train, or streetcar. And there are a LOT of additions being made to our transit system in the next 2-3 years. Pan Am games are to be hosted in Toronto in 2015, so they're really working hard to get everything done by then.

Traffic is ugly if you live in the suburbs and you're commuting from one end of the city to another, but it's really not unreasonable. Nothing close to London traffic, I'd say. Parking is a b*tch though; almost anywhere you go (except shopping malls) cost money to park: universities, downtown streets, hospitals, doctor's office, etc.

It's a big city with a lot of different cultural "pockets": Little Italy, Little Portugal, Chinatown, Koreatown (which is also Persian-town, believe it or not...) etc, but most neighbourhoods have a healthy mix of different ethnicities. Accommodation is easy to find and 90% of places are easily accessible by public transit. Lots of homeowners even rent out their basements which are fully furnished, separate apartments. I used to live in one, and my mum rented out her basement for a couple years too. Comfortable. And there are ALWAYS condos being built here, so if your move is more permanent that's a great option too.

I love Toronto. It's charming, friendly, eclectic, open-minded, and always changing for the better. Of course it has its downsides, but the good more than makes up for it.
I moved here with my family 15 years ago, and I can't imagine myself living in any other city in Canada.

If you have any other questions, I'd be glad to answer them for you!

cuterob

tinycanadian wrote: »

Torontonian here!

I have a few friends who just finished college studying radio/TV production. Lots of opportunities for that field in Toronto. I've heard they call us "Hollywood North"?

thanks very much for the reply.. I think it's Canada in general which is being called hollywood north!.. yea see I think when it comes down to it in this field of work both cities aren't going to be too far removed from each other because Toronto has a lot of people in it compared to Vancouver so even if there is more jobs in Toronto I'd be up against more people.. Toronto is producing more films while Vancouver is shooting more TV shows and seeing as I have credentials in TV production I think I will be heading west!

Saying all of that I still haven't completely decided yet but gonna send a few resume's over to companies there and see if I get any feedback !

beks101

It's all about contacts. Try to establish some and have set up a few meetings before you get over here.

Google some of the big production companies & networks, what shows they develop, who the execs are and send them an email introducing yourself & outlining your TV background.

I've been producing for one of the big networks for 2 years over here & that's how I got my job. Decent experience, persistence & luck of the Irish will get you in!

krudler

is there much tv/film extras work in Toronto? I'd love something like that as a little earner, best of both worlds then, not stuck in a 9-5 and around something I'm interested in, I know extra work is hit and miss and you might go ages without it and for small paydays but I kinda like the non-routine aspect of it.

jgh_

Toronto's got a pretty big film industry. I know Vancouver was once "Hollywood North" (ie. back when they were still making episodes of the X-Files) but Toronto seems to be used a lot, especially when they need "generic big city" as a setting. After working downtown Toronto for a number of years, I've seen a whole bunch of car commercials and a few movies being filmed there. Truth be told, I think I saw stuff being filmed on a more regular basis there than here in *actual* hollywood where I work now haha.

Phonehead

I live and work in Downtown Toronto and to be honest I don't think I've ever seen a day where some street isn't been closed off for filming. Below is a link to a site that tells you what's currently being filmed in Toronto;)

http://www.hotoronto.com/hotset.htm

bopper

This is all a relief to hear! My masters is in television production but I've quite a large gap on my CV now due to two years of traveling. I was hoping Toronto would be my best bet to maybe get my foot in the door again!

mcpodgemeister

I spent a year in Canada a while back in both cities and was mostly looking for post work.

Sites like Mandy will give you an idea of the volume of work in either Vancouver or Toronto. Vancouver was the hub of production in Canada but i think now Toronto and Vancouver are on par. I think it depends also what you do, are you looking for Tv or Film and production work or post work. I got more work in Vancouver than Toronto but I was in Toronto during winter which may have reduced the amount of work available. In the end though as with everywhere Media work is dependent on Networking and contacts that's what will determine if you get work or not. Also remember that the Industry over there is heavily unionized unlike here unless you work in RTE. There are Union and Non-Union productions and substantial differences in pay but again it depends what sort of work you are looking for.

NewsMeQuick

Anyone else considering both cities or tried one or the other?

About me, I'm a recent graduate of international business & languages (not French) and I'm considering both cities. I'm trying hard to get even some unpaid experience at home to try and buffer my CV, but I can't even get that so I may have to make do with a good but flexible degree (and school/college part-time jobs).

As for these cities, as far as I know, Van is good for trade, importing and exporting, it has a decent-sized city with city jobs and of course a great lifestyle and is 'expensive'. Toronto however, I'm reading is destination number 1 for 70-80% of immigrants, not just Irish and is the 'economic backbone' of the country according to a guide I just read. That seems like the best bet would be Tor but is that really the case?

Would I fare better in one or the other, or either?

zweton

You prob would in Calgary, id imagine there is less competition and it seems people working mostly in construction are heading there.

NewsMeQuick

Anyone else know much about white-collar work in these two cities?

I've read some guides on both cities which were helpful but I really need more information from people on the ground. I'm looking to work/intern in marketing, communication, HR, public administration roles in international trade, technology companies or government, though I'm open otherwise.

Is it true that most jobs are unadvertised? A Canadian girl I met told me that every new, young, businessperson needs a mentor. How does that work?

Does anyone know of any publications/guides/journals which are useful for immigrants or similar?


p.s. I found two similar threads on this, which are both closed (I don't know why) here here One obstacle for immigrants in the past was visa status and ability to work, but with our 2 year visas, surely that's enough to satisfy that requirement?

InTheTrees

NewsMeQuick wrote: »

Is it true that most jobs are unadvertised?

Interesting question. I suspect its true.

What is certainly true is that advertising is the Last Resort to find a new employee. Advertising is a hellish thing to go through.

Resume's on file would certainly come before advertising. Sometimes they'll have job listings on their web site but often not. If you've sent in a resume you'll get in before the job goes "public".

There's also employment agencies. They charge a hefty percentage as a finders fee to Employers but they're something to fall back on before having to resort to advertising.

zweton

yip, i guess thats why they say its who you know and not what you know.
Seems this is certainly the case in canada too.

KevinFQB1

Hi Rob, I am kind of in the same boat as you, I am also looking to move to either Toronto or Vancouver. I have a degree in multimedia myself so not as skilled as yourself (or your missus) but I'm keen to know how you get on, where you go and how the job search goes if you could keep us updated please!

NewsMeQuick

I'm still stuck on Van vs. Tor. It's most about job prospects, but as a secondary consideration I think I'd much prefer the climate in Van.

ciaran67

NewsMeQuick wrote: »

I'm still stuck on Van vs. Tor. It's most about job prospects, but as a secondary consideration I think I'd much prefer the climate in Van.

Doesn't matter which city its all about luck.

zweton

Which city of the two would have the best weekend breaks away without having to travel too far?

ciaran67

zweton wrote: »

Which city of the two would have the best weekend breaks away without having to travel too far?

Depends what you want. Vancouver has Seattle, 3 hours drive and Portland about 5/6 hours. Flights to all of western US within 3 hours and west coast Mexico and Hawaii.

Toronto has all the eastern States and of course closer to Europe and home. Its also a damn sight cheaper to fly anywhere from TO than Vancouver which is the biggest rip off place ever. If you want to fly from the west side you go over the border to Bellingham WA which seems to be much cheaper. Can't believe that YVR seems to ignore the fact that Bellingham airport if full of BC license plates.