A peek into The Shack

Principal photography on The Shack ambitiously took place over 37 days and took the cast and crew to some of the most spectacular locations around the greater Vancouver, British Columbia region.

For production designer Joseph Nemec, the opportunity to work on The Shack was both a labour of love and a professional challenge he didn’t want to pass up.

Having read the book, Nemec connected to Mack’s journey of loss and redemption. “I related to Mack’s story,” says Nemec.

“Early in Mack’s life, as in mine, the travails he suffers before finally finding forgiveness and joy I identified with.”

Director Stuart Hazeldine weighs in on Nemec’s approach in creating a world that both audiences and actors would relate to. “Joseph has built the most amazing sets. The cabin and woodshed are beautiful and you get a real sense of serenity when you walk into those environments. That level of attention to detail has been a tremendous help to the actors because it’s much easier to

act in a space that feels like you imagined.”

For his design, Nemec was inspired by the relationships between the characters. “Two of the most visually iconic sets in The Shack are Papa’s cabin and the shack.”

Nemec designed a cabin that would be a sanctuary for Mack – a place where he could feel safe. “Papa’s world is protected and needed to feel open and airy, a place where there are no barriers and we wanted it to have a real sense of tenderness,” says Nemec.