THE SHOWS MUST GO ON
It's safety first in Hollywood North
Filming love scenes for TV and movies has always been one of those, shall we say, tricky things. And these uncomfortable scenes are now just a bit more uncomfortable thanks to COVID-19.
“I have an estranged husband in the show. They have a moment where they think about getting back together, so we had a love scene,” Vancouver actor Jewel Staite, who stars in the new Global drama Family Law, said over the phone after a recent day of shooting.
“It was a little bizarre to have to be tested right before and be tested right after. Also, I formed a pact with him that we would keep each other safe and not go outside of our bubble until that love scene was over.
“Things like that are a little strange.”
Strange is the new normal on Hollywood North sets as strident COVID-19 health-and-safety protocols remain in place. Things like masks, designated areas, limited set access and little to no background actors are all part of the `new normal' when it comes to the nearly $3-billion-a-year B.C. industry that was shut down in early March due to the pandemic.
At press time, it was reported by Variety that a handful of Vancouver productions had been shut down due to delays in processing COVID-19 testing results. The outlet reported that shows including Riverdale, Batwoman, Nancy Drew, Charmed, Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl, The Mysterious Benedict Society and Maid halted production mid-week.
“There were some delays in test results, so out of caution we shut down yesterday and today. We expect to resume production either tomorrow or Friday,” Variety reported that David E. Kelley, the showrunner for Vancouver-shot ABC show Big Sky, said on a panel during a virtual news conference on Wednesday for the Television Critics Association.
“We spent the last five or six months working on COVID plans and the ever-evolving world of COVID, and it's nice to finally go, `OK, I think we have a plan that's safe and working.' So far so good,” said Shawn Williamson of Brightlight Pictures and the producer of ABC's The Good Doctor, a big-budget show that went back to work a month ago.
Williamson and others commented prior to the shutdowns reported by Variety. There was no word on The Good Doctor's status at press time.
Some of the other big TV titles that were up and running include Lost in Space, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist, A Million Little Things, and The Mighty Ducks. Some smaller made-for-TV movie productions went back to work as early as June and a few other productions trickled in after that, but, really, things are just now hitting full stride as close to 60 productions are listed on Creative B.C.'s site as prepping and shooting in the province this fall and early winter.
“I can only speak from my perspective, but it seems to be going really smoothly,” said Family Law showrunner and head writer Susin Nielsen, whose show went back into production in early July.
“I think people got into the groove reasonably quickly. There might have been bumps to iron out in the first couple of weeks, but now we're all very used to wearing masks. We're used to the physical distancing. We sanitize up the wazoo. We have an entire new team whose job it is to go around and sanitize all day long. I have been really surprised it hasn't seemed to hamper the speed of getting things done.”
Prem Gill, head of Creative B.C., isn't surprised how well the industry put all hands on deck and figured out how to get the 70,000 or so people in the province's film and TV production business back to work.
“Everybody wants to do their part. I think that's what we see in this industry and across the board in general. Nobody has ever made a movie during a pandemic until now,” said Gill, whose group was just given $2 million in a Domestic Production Fund to help support the creation of local storytelling.
With the buildup in full swing, Kendrie Upton, the Directors
Guild of Canada B.C.'s executive director, says reports from sets have been good. Members and union officials are happy with how things are being handled in the new COVID-19 reality.
“So far I would say things are going really well, from our perspective,” said Upton. “We're back to visiting our members on sets as we always do, regardless of COVID, and from everything we are seeing, productions are doing a really excellent job of keeping people safe. Our members seem to feel really well cared for and protected, and that's what we care most about.”
To handle the back-to-work push and industry growth, WorkSafeBC upped its usual film team from 10 to 30 officers. Those officers visited sets around the province to make sure health and safety protocols, not just in terms of COVID but also in general, are being met.
“We're pleased with what they have done,” said Al Johnson, head of prevention services at WorkSafeBC.
Johnson pointed to the implementation of an industry-wide, 65-page safety guidebook, and in many cases, an on-set COVID-19 safety officer, as big proponents in keeping productions safe.
However, Johnson adds, there have been a few “hiccups” spotted by WorkSafeBC officers. He reports that, on occasion, crew members have to be reminded away from the set to keep up the strict safety requirements they face on the set.
“We're very much encouraging them to be vigilant and stay the course, so to speak, and make sure they don't let their guard down when it comes to controlling the risk,” said Johnson.
Director David Strasser said the TV movie For Better Or Worse that he began shooting June 8 in West Kelowna was the first to return to work after the shutdown.
“I realized, among both the cast and crew and the owners of the company, there was obviously a lot of anxiety and trepidation about being the first,” said Strasser, whose whole team stayed in a bubble on-set and at the same empty hotel complex on the shores of Okanagan Lake.
Strasser said he quickly decided the best way to lead was to learn, so he went about making himself as much of an expert on the practical nature of the pandemic as possible.
Veteran Hollywood actor Victor Garber, who plays the complicated family patriarch on Family Law, came to Vancouver in early July from New York. He quarantined for two weeks before taking a step on-set.
“We're tested regularly. It took me a week to kind of get comfortable and now I feel safe and I'm very trusting of everybody,” said Garber. “Everybody is completely on board and it feels like we're all on the same page. People want to work and they want to stay healthy. ”