MELS Studios

MELS Studios provides integrated film and television production infrastructure and audiovisual post-production services in Quebec. Its facilities support international feature films, domestic television, streaming series, commercials and broadcast productions. The company combines soundstage and equipment rentals with virtual production, image and sound finishing, localization and distribution deliverables, allowing productions to access multiple stages of their workflow through one provider.

Across its Montreal-area and Québec City operations, MELS offers 20 soundstages alongside production offices, workshops and technical support facilities. Its rental business supplies cinema cameras, lenses, grip equipment, lighting and auxiliary power. Mobile production trucks, editing trailers and production trailers extend its services beyond the studio campuses, supporting television and location-based work.

Production and finishing

MELS operates a permanent LED-volume virtual production studio that integrates real-time environments with physical filming. This capability complements its conventional stages and equipment operations, serving feature films and commercial shoots.

Its digital post-production offering includes offline editorial, colour grading, image restoration, sound design and theatrical mixing. Dolby Atmos mixing stages and Dolby Vision finishing suites support premium sound and image delivery. Localization services cover dubbing, subtitling, script adaptation and described video, while distribution work includes Digital Cinema Packages, Interoperable Master Format deliverables, digital archiving and LTO backup. These services support both production workflows and the technical requirements of international distribution.

Origins and evolution

The business began in 1988 when Mel Hoppenheim transformed Montreal’s historic Expo Théâtre pavilion into Mel’s Cité du Cinéma. Its operations subsequently became part of Vision Globale. Groupe TVA acquired Vision Globale’s audiovisual and studio assets in late 2014, and the activities were consolidated under the MELS brand in August 2015.

The company has since adjusted its service mix. It discontinued its dedicated in-house visual effects department in 2023 while retaining virtual production and digital finishing. In 2026, it announced the closure of its legacy photochemical laboratory as post-production workflows consolidated into digital facilities.