Toronto is getting a giant new film studio on the waterfront

Hollywood North continues to expand with the announcement of a new 165,000-square-foot studio complex in Toronto's Port Lands.

The City of Toronto and Cinespace have confirmed that Marine Terminal 51 and a portion of Toronto's Cruise Ship Terminal will be transformed into a series of leading-edge film and TV production facilities.

Cinespace, founded in Toronto circa 1988, is the largest private owner and operator of studio space in North America.

Checking out the set of the award-winning show, The Handmaid's Tale, at Cinespace in Etobicoke. The Shape of Water – which is up for 13 Oscars this Sunday - was also filmed in this studio. #Oscars pic.twitter.com/5N3HzxJpmm

— John Tory (@JohnTory) March 2, 2018

Award-winning TV shows and movies like The Handmaid's Tale, Pompeii and The Shape of Water have all been filmed on Cinespace grounds in the GTA, and the procurement of this new facility will allow the company to up its game even further.

"Toronto's screen industries are experiencing a period of significant growth and investment and there is a need to protect and enhance studio infrastructure in our city," said City Councillor Paula Fletcher in a release on Friday. 

With investors now spending billions in the city each year making films and TV shows, Fletcher says that "this announcement is good for business, good for the area, and good for Toronto."

A lack of supply to meet all of the demand from Hollywood had already prompted Cinespace to start work on another studio complex in September.

That Etobicoke-based facility, dubbed "Titan Studios," is still very much a go. When its finished, Toronto will have an additional 50,000 square feet in production space and its own permanent underwater filming tank.

No word yet on when construction will begin on the new Port Lands studio space, but city officials say that it won't affect or displace any industrial port operations or cruise ship activities.