Set designer
breaks new
snowy ground

Catherine Barr
Contributing Writer

BRIAN Davie is used
to creating Hollywood
movie magic. But now,
this award-winning
production designer
has stolen a scene from
Mother Nature herself.

Imagine a mist-covered
fverbed wandering gracefully
through a snowy, tranquil for-
est. Then, just bevond the
rocky blutt, a dog-sled team
charges into view.

As they pass the frosty
waterfall and slide onto the
thin ice, danger strikes. The
sled fails through the ice and
into the frigid water. Only the
dog team escapes untouched.

This kind of excitement is
all part of the action on the set
ofa new adventure television
series entitled Jack London’s
Call of the Wild.

The series, whose pilot is
scheduled to air on the U.S.'s
Discovery Channel at the end
of this month, stars veteran
actor Nick Mancuso. It is
based on the American
author’s turn-of-the-century
tales which take place during
the famous Yukon gold rush.

But re-creating the beauti-
ful, rugged wilderness of
London's legendary stories
was no easy task.

Enter North Vancouver’s
own Brian Davie and his team
of professionals. Together,
they came to a very natural
conclusion — bring the out-
doors, inside.

Armed with 42 cargo ship-
ping containers, 350,000 cu.
ft. of real snow, 5. 000 kilo-
grams of boulder Tocks and
over 850 evergreen trees,
Davie’s group set out to elimi-
nate the elements and take
over where nature left off.

The result was a beautiful
winter wonderland complete
with cliffs, caves, ice ponds,
waterfills and forests. And, the
best part is, all of it is housed
inside a 60,000 sq. ft., five-
storey, East Vancouver ware-
house.

According to Davie, this
kind of approach had never
been tried before. At first, no
one quite knew what to
expect. Would it look good?

Remember
our street cars

HENRY Ewert is writing a
book on North Vancouver’s
Street car operations, 1906-
1947.

A retired teacher who
taught his fast eighteen years
at Handsworth secondary
school, Ewert is the author
of the Expo 86-commis-
sioned The Story of the B.C.
Electric Railway Company as
well as a second volume
Victoria’s Streetcar Eva.

Since his new book is due
to be published in May, he
would enjoy hearing within
the next few weeks from
North Shore News readers
who have any information
about streetcars to share.
Anecdotes and photographs
are welcome.

Contact Ewert by phone
at 985-7940 or fax him at
990-4713.

SET designer Brian Davie and his crew have built a winter wonderland inside a five-storey East Vancouver warehouse for the new TV

series Jack London's Cail of the Wild. The pilot is scheduled to air on the Discovery Channel later this month.

Would it work?

But the indoor warehouse
setting tumed out to be the
perfect choice because not
only did it look great, it
allowed the various crews to
work on a 24 hour-a-day rota-
tion. For example, when the
actors were busy shooting a
scene, the construction crew
slept. Then, everybody
switched places.

That’s been the schedule
since early January when the
series started shooting its
weekly episodes. And hopeful-
ly, said Davie, that’s the way it
will continue.

If the series depended on
an outdoor setting, the vari
ables would be extremely

unpredictable and delays
would be inevitable.

Things like bad weather or
lack of daylight could wreak
havoc. Therefore, having a
reliable schedule more than

justified the approximately
$250, 000 cost for set con-
struction and effects.

Since the design team used
real snow, the warehouse even
developed its own kind of
environmental refrigeration
system. Some days, the tem-
perature falls to below zero at
floor level.

“We got the snow from
Cypress and Seymour moun-
tains,” explained Davie. “We

cleared their parking lots. They

loved us.”

"North Shore
Crisis Services Society

: Currently seeking donations of:
; © New sets of dishes, pots, pan cutlery & glasses

¢ Good quality towels
i e New undergarments
© Maternity wear

; © Clothing items for women, adolescent ‘boys
& toddlers (freshly laundered or dry cleaned

& in good repair)

i New donation drop off times:
: Every Tuesday & Wednesday

: 10:00am - 1:00pm

{ Drop off location:

; “Donations Room

| Door” (located a few?
' doors further down:
the hall from our

i main office)

#212 - 145 E. 15th St,
* North Vancouver
; Phone: 987-1773

Even after a two-week
Christmas hiatus, the set melt-
ed very litte. Hot studio lights
sometimes water things down
a litde, but a number of
pumps keep the concrete floor
and surrounding walkways
from flooding over.

“It was a real gamble,” said
Davie as he reflected on the
success of the project. “But we
knew what the odds were.”

Add a titdle shaving cream
on the trees (for snow) and
over five tons of paraffin wax
(for ice) and the place is indis-
tinguishable from the real

‘The Homeowner, Protection Office in cooperation with

thing.

In fact, the sec is such an
impressive example of produc-
tion-design work that industry
professionals are already talk-
ing about nominating Davie
and his team for a Leo Award
(B.C.’s equivalent of the
Oscars/Emmys).

Still, Davie remains realistic
about his work. He knows that
at any moment the conditions
could change and everything
could be washed away.

But the pressure is all in a
day’s work for senior set men
like Davie.

Legal c snsiderations
Technical, information

Who should attend:

Strata council members and owners

° Property managers

Seating i is limited.

Te register for a sominar and for more information,
contact the Homeowner Protection Office:

on Tall-free: 1 800 407 7757

Email: hpo@hpe.be.ca

Homeowner

For well over a decade
now, he has been responsible
for the look and feel of numer-
ous productions, movies and
commercials. Last year he
added a Leo Award to his col-
lection for his work on the
movie Rupert's Land.

And now, with Mother
Nature in his comer, odds are
he'll come home with another
winner.

“We've been very fortu-
nate,” he said. “It’s a team
sport (and) it takes everyone
working together to ) Bet some-
thing like this done.”

tS ay
LU

Protection Office . Website: www.hpo.be.ca