Hollywood North on road to recovery
Industry has risen to meet challenges following pandemic-induced shutdown
When COVID-19 arrived in B.C., the local film industry was perhaps the biggest canary in the economic coal mine.
As health officials ordered other industries to shutter, Hollywood North crammed whatever it could into the final hours of shooting and then suspended on-set activity in mid-March. Suddenly, crews were sent home, the future of various projects uncertain, American stars and directors fled south and it was unclear if filming in B.C. would resume before a vaccine was available.
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees 891 member and special effects coordinator James Paradis was among those who spoke during a Dec. 15 virtual town hall with the Motion Picture Industry Association of B.C. Panelists were offered the chance to reflect on the past year in B.C. film and the lessons the industry — which encompasses about 70,000 jobs — has learned.
“We'd always heard these stories about wildcat strikes and these types of things where you just literally put your tools down and go home — but we actually did,” said Paradis.
“We put our tools down, we turned the lights out, we didn't sweep up, we didn't clean up, we didn't return rentals, we just all went home and the uncertainty — that was a big part for us all to get around.”
But while crews waited for the return to work, studio heads, producers, unions and stakeholders jumped into action, launching discussions on how to establish an industry-wide safety plan. Logistics of new on-set zone systems, mandatory PPE, and regular cast and crew testing were hammered out, while safety plans were revised and revised again after being reviewed by health officials.
Finally, over the summer, cameras began to roll. Lights, camera, PPE, action.
Two-thousand-and-nineteen was a record-setting year for B.C. film, with more than $4.1 billion injected into the local economy. And though 2020's final spending total will likely be lower than previous years, the number of B.C.filmed productions that launched post-shutdown indicates Hollywood North is well on its way to recovery.
At the time of the shutdown in mid-March, there had been 44 productions filming simultaneously.
“Production levels dropped to zero for the first time ever in mid-March due to COVID-19, and didn't return until June. MOWs (movies of the week) came back to work first, with series coming back in July,” notes a Dec. 15 report from the Directors Guild of Canada B.C.
“The compounding effect of interrupted shows returning, and delayed shows starting, led to an unprecedented surge in production, rising to 70 shows in prep or production.”
That figure surpasses the previous record of 57 simultaneous productions, set in September 2016.
The report also highlighted the opportunity Canadian directors enjoyed when filming resumed.
In February 2020, Canadian directors commanded only 10 per cent of episodic work being filmed in B.C. When production resumed over the summer, Canadian directors were “exclusively hired due to travel and quarantine restrictions,” directing about 50 per cent of B.C.-filmed projects.
“Unfortunately, as production ramped back up to record levels, Canadian directors' market share dropped back down to the same numbers seen before the shutdown,” notes the report.
“It's clear we have the talent pool and experience, so now is the time for extra pressure on U.S. decisions to build on the unlikely momentum 2020 has provided Canadian talent.”
It was a slog to get through the
pandemic-induced shutdown, but now, months into the restart, it appears co-operation was and is the key to turning on and keeping on Hollywood North's lights.
“The one word for sure ... that we continue to hear is `collaboration.' We hear it all the time about British Columbia prior to COVID-19 but it certainly was the common thread in terms of our return to safe-work operations, and all the hard work that went into that,” said Marnie Gee, B.C. Film Commissioner at Creative B.C.
Despite being one of the first productions to return in the early, tentative days, showrunner Jonathan Lloyd Walker said the Van Helsing cast and crew were able to complete four months of shooting to wrap their season without anyone getting sick.
“I think we did over 800 or 900 tests, probably more than that,” said Walker recently.
“Nobody got sick. Everybody followed the protocols and we were able to successfully deliver the season, so that in itself was a massive accomplishment for a year that has been so hampered by so many challenges and I just hope as we head into the new year we are able to keep the industry going and everyone gets vaccinated and is healthy.”
Paradis pointed out that while PPE on-set has been met with frustrations, it's a necessary frustration that ensures the industry remains open.
“Working nights in the pouring rain with a layer of rain gear on, wearing a gown over top, with a mask, goggles and then a face shield — it's almost impossible to work,” he said. “But we're going to go through with it because none of us want to either harm each other or put a glitch in what we're trying to move ahead with. There's a lot of respect because we want to protect each other.”
Walker echoed those sentiments, noting there is an understanding from cast and crew that collective efforts are required to ensure the industry and individual productions can avoid another shutdown.
“I think there has been a really high standard. I think everybody has recognized our ability to continue to make a living and keep this industry viable, particularly here in Vancouver, depended upon a buy-in by everybody at every level. That's what I saw,” said Walker, who expects Van Helsing Season 5 to air on the SyFy channel in February or March 2021.
“That recent Tom Cruise rant in England about his crew not following protocols — we never had that. We never needed to do that because there were very few circumstances where anybody didn't toe the line.
“Everybody knew, top to bottom, all of our livelihoods depended on it so let's all work together to get it done.”