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Canadian science fiction television was produced by theCBC as early as the 1950s. In the 1970s,CTV producedThe Starlost. In the 1980s, Canadian animation studios includingNelvana, began producing a growing proportion of the world market in animation.

In the 1990s, Canada became an important player in live actionspeculative fiction on television, with dozens of series likeForever Knight,Robocop, and most notablyThe X-Files andStargate SG-1. Many series have been produced for youth and children's markets, includingDeepwater Black andMythQuest.

In the first decade of the 21st century, changes in provincial tax legislation prompted many production companies to move from Toronto toVancouver. Recent series produced in Vancouver includeThe Dead Zone,Smallville,Andromeda,Stargate Atlantis,Stargate Universe,The 4400,Sanctuary and the reimaginedBattlestar Galactica.

Because of the small size of the domestic television market, most Canadian productions involve partnerships with production studios based in the United States and Europe. However, in recent years, new partnership arrangements are allowing Canadian investors a growing share of control of projects produced in Canada and elsewhere.

Science fiction inCanada was produced by theCBC in its early years, notably the seriesSpace Command (1953–1954). Actors such asJames Doohan andWilliam Shatner first appeared on Canadian television, before finding success in the United States. In the 1970s,CTV producedThe Starlost in itsScarborough studios. In the 1980s, many animation houses, most notablyNelvana, began producing a growing proportion of the world market in animation; Canada has become the world leader in 3D animation with shows likeReBoot andTripping the Rift. Only in the 1990s, with changes in exchange rates and tax legislation, plus a growing skills set among local production companies which had had success in local production and in producing films for American and international markets, that Canada became an important player in live action speculative fiction on television, with shows likeForever Knight,RoboCop, and most notablyThe X-Files andStargate SG-1. The merger that producedAlliance Atlantis found itself with a large stable of science fiction shows, whileLions Gate Television,Fireworks Entertainment,CanWest Global, andCHUM Television produced shows of their own. American-based companies likeFox,Warner Bros.,Paramount, andUniversal also built substantial operations in Canada for their productions. During the 1990s and early 2000s, dozens of science fiction shows were produced in Canada, taking large market shares in American and international markets. A large body of shows have been produced for youth and children's markets, includingDeepwater Black,2030 CE, andMythQuest; many of these are mainly distributed outside North America.

Famous Canadian actors who played popular science fiction roles includeDan Aykroyd,John Candy,Jim Carrey,James Doohan,Nathan Fillion,Michael J. Fox,Lorne Greene,Michael Ironside,Leslie Nielsen,Walter Pidgeon,Christopher Plummer,Michael Shanks,William Shatner,Martin Short,Marc Singer,Donald Sutherland,Kiefer Sutherland,Amanda Tapping,Lexa Doig,Laura Bertram,Keanu Reeves,Kristin Kreuk andCarrie-Anne Moss.

Well-known Canadianfilmmakers who have produced science fiction includeJames Cameron,David Cronenberg,Lex Gigeroff andNorman Jewison.

Canada's science fiction television industry is closely related to the United States. Many Canadian-born actors likeNicole de Boer,Amanda Tapping,Tricia Helfer, andAnthony Michael Hall are immediately recognizable to American SF fans, while some American-born actors and producers likeChristopher Judge andPeter DeLuise have spent most of their working lives in Canada.

The Constellation Awards are awarded annually in Canada to honour the best science fiction or fantasy television or film works of the previous year.

After coming to Canada as a guest atToronto Trek in 1994 and 1995,Majel Barrett Roddenberry chose Toronto as a base for producingEarth: Final Conflict, based on a concept created by her late husband,Gene Roddenberry; her sonRod became a Canadian resident for three years to work with the production team.

In the early 2000s, changes in provincial tax legislation prompted many production companies to move from Toronto toVancouver, which already had a strong television production industry. Recent popular shows produced in Vancouver includeThe Dead Zone,The 4400,Andromeda,Stargate Atlantis, and the remake ofBattlestar Galactica. Since 1995, more than half a billion dollars a year is spent on media production in Vancouver, with $1.4 billion in 2003 alone.^[1] Production also began growing in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and elsewhere, such as the production ofLexx inHalifax. However, Toronto continued to be a base for shows likeOdyssey 5,Jake 2.0, andMutant X.

Because of the small size of the domestic television market, most Canadian productions involve partnerships with production studios based in the United States and Europe. This sometimes create long preparation cycles for many shows, with years of delay between initial creative development and actual production. Although American management was a common model for Canadian production in the 1990s, more complex partnership arrangements are allowing Canadian investors a growing share of control of projects produced in Canada. This trend has also resulted in outflowing investment to projects produced in other countries, includingDoctor Who, a co-production between the CBC and BBC, andCharlie Jade, developed in Canada but produced inSouth Africa.

• Canadian science fiction
• Canadian science fiction television series
• History of science fiction

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