MacDougall found a nugget of gold in Klondike
For Dustin MacDougall, a role in the Discovery Channel miniseries Klondike is pure gold.
Raised in Lumsden, MacDougall works in Regina as a delivery man for Fed Ex as he continues to pursue his dream of becoming a full-time actor. Earning the role of Hush in the six-hour miniseries, which will air over three nights beginning Jan. 20, certainly could go a long way in helping MacDougall move forward in the business.
“It was incredible when I heard I got the part,” MacDougall said.
“I couldn’t believe that I was going to get to work with Sam Shepard, a Pulitzer Prize winning playwright and Oscar nominee.”
Klondike tells the story of Bill Haskell and Byron Epstein who decide to seek their fortune during the Klondike Gold Rush. Richard Madden, who portrayed King of the North Robb Stark in Game of Thrones, stars as Haskell while newcomer Augustus Prew tackles the role of Epstein.
The cast also includes Shepard, as Father Judge, Tim Roth as The Count and Abbie Cornish as Belinda Mulrooney.
Seven people were involved as producers — Ridley Scott is the most recognizable for his work on movies like Black Hawk Down, Thelma and Louise, Hannibal and Blade Runner. Simon Cellan Jones, who directed Treme and Generation Kill, was at the controls when filming began in the Calgary area.
The shooting schedule was challenging as the cast and crew worked through both extremely cold conditions and days where temperatures were almost balmy.
“That’s the magic of Calgary and the chinooks,” MacDougall said with a chuckle. “One day we were shooting a scene that happens after my character’s first altercation with Richard Madden’s character and he was leading me by gunpoint. It was probably +20C and everyone was dressed in layers with oil skinned pants and big boots.
Everyone had to act like they were freezing because it was supposed to be the dead of winter.
“It was pretty challenging. The sun was so hot and you were buried in all those clothes.”
While MacDougall caught a few breaks when it came to the weather, Madden filmed a number of scenes under trying conditions.
“I was lucky to have only two other exterior scenes, the rest of mine were shot indoors. But Richard Madden, he had to do some serious stuff,” said MacDougall. “He did all of the tough scenes. When you see him river rafting through the rapids, that’s actually him river rafting through the rapids.
When he’s climbing through the mountains, it’s actually him climbing through the mountains.
“That’s what so cool about the film. It’s the Discovery Channel and where it comes from is the real footage of documentaries and they wanted the miniseries to reflect that. There was very little, if any, green screening done.”
MacDougall flew to New York City earlier this week to attend a premiere on Thursday night. It was his first opportunity to see the finished product — he’d only seen the trailer and clips that are posted on the Discovery Channel website.
“I’m going to stay the weekend because I’ve never been to New York but on Monday I’ll be back in my truck,” said MacDougall.
MacDougall also had the opportunity recently to work with actor/screenwriter/director Fatih Akin on his latest film, The Cut. Akin, who won the best screenplay award at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival for The Edge of Heaven, will debut The Cut at Cannes later this year.
As the roles continue to roll in for MacDougall, he remains optimistic that one day he will be able to earn a living doing what he loves to do.
“It hasn’t happened yet. Maybe I’m young and stupid but I’m hopeful that in the next five years I’ll have enough credits that will allow me to work more consistently and be able to pay my bills with just acting,” said MacDougall. “That would be like a dream come true.
“(Acting) feels like it’s the only thing you’re meant to do and you don’t want to give up on that.”