Brian Bird's Q&A with Hearties
By Brian Bird
Executive Producer and writer of When Calls The Heart
Megan Daehnke
Q: I actually have two questions. First, what made you take the series back to Elizabeth's hometown instead of keeping it in Coal Valley? And second, do you have an idea of how the series will one day end? Some series' writers know the timeline of the beginning, middle, and end of the series, and I wondered if you had that mapped out yet in your mind, knowing that it is subject to change?
A: Megan, in all television series, the challenge is to create a wide enough canvas to paint in case you end up in the rare and enviable situation of having several seasons of episodes to create for the fans. In the case of the last series I worked on, Touched By An Angel, we actually ended up with nine seasons and over 200 episodes. On Little House on the Prairie, Michael Landon’s father had a similar number of episodes and seasons. Obviously you don’t want to have a tiny canvas to create the world of the series on, so we felt in Season 2 of When Calls the Heart, we needed to broaden the canvas to give us more potential outlets for our story-telling, as well as introduce new characters and conflicts that will give us potential for a very long run. By going to Hamilton, we have expanded the possibilities for lots and lots of episodes!
Regarding your second question, writers and show runners are famous for perpetuating the idea that they have several seasons with beginning, middle and end, and all plots and subplots completely mapped out for their series. I have one word for that: LIARS. It’s a complete myth.
After all, we are STORY-TELLERS. What happens to all story-tellers when they are young? They get their mouths washed out with soap! The reality at best is that most writers have some very vague, general notions of where they want to go in their shows. They’re just hoping to get through the first full season. Beyond that, it’s all made up as they go. In the case of When Calls the Heart, I don’t want my mouth washed out with soap… if you get my drift.
Rhonda Marchand Childs
Q: Did you pray for a #Heartie movement and God did more than you asked or imagined? (Ephesians 3:20)
A: Rhonda, this a great question, and I wish I could say I have such a strong faith that I foresaw the possibilities of a #Heartie movement and “prayed it in.” The reality is that we were so crazy-busy getting Season 1 made that we were just trying to keep our heads above water, let alone figuring out how to fuel a fan-movement for the show. But despite our lack of faith, God did do more than we even knew how to ask for by sending the Heartie wave and the potential of a Heartie tsunami going forward. It was a complete surprise and blessing to us when you super-fans emerged. And it has only continued to surprise and bless us. As happens with all of God’s blessings, they are usually undeserved, but deeply needed and amazingly timely. I believe you Hearties are one of the big reasons for Season 2, and I also believe you are as unstoppable as I pray this show will become. Bravo brave Hearties!
Ruth Ann Kiger
Q: Is the last episode of Season Two - a conclusion or a cliffhanger?
A: Ruth Ann, the only way we would ever finish a season on a satisfying conclusion would be if we knew ahead of time that we were ending the series, and it would be promoted as a “series finale.” So the bottom line is that Season 2 will actually end on multiple cliffhangers. Some people don’t like cliffhangers because it exasperates them… which is exactly why we joyously give them to you! Exasperation is a good thing in story-telling because it’s one of the things that drives your appetite for the next chapter, and drives your motivation to ask Hallmark Channel for more chapters. And we really, really want to bring you more and more chapters of When Calls the Heart on the Hallmark Channel. I will let you connect the dots from there.
Jane Sibenaller
Q: I was wondering if Hallmark's announcement about developing a production studio in Los Angeles will impact on your shooting or production in Vancouver?
A: Jane, it may take a while for this studio to be up and running, but even if it were available today, we would be unlikely to move the production from Vancouver to Los Angeles for a few reasons. The biggest reason is that our production “footprint” is so well established in British Colombia and at the Jamestown movie ranch. It would be very expensive to try to recreate the world of When Calls the Heart in Los Angeles. It is not impossible, but it would probably be cost-prohibitive and too creatively challenging. We have put a lot of time, energy and money into building our world there. Plus, unlike California right now, British Colombia has no shortage of rain J.
Tina Olson Browning
Q: I am signed up and love the newsletter!!! My question is, when do the actors see the finished show? When it airs on TV when we see it or before? Thanks Mr. Bird!!!
A: Tina, we are thrilled you love the newsletter. I honestly hope every Heartie signs up for it, too! And a big hat’s off to Sheri Lynn DiGiovanna for all her hard work making it great. To answer your question, we’re on such a tight timeline getting the shows finished through our post-production process (editing, music, sound and color correction), it is rare that our cast-members have a chance to see the show before it’s on the air. But for them, they get a big thrill watching the episodes at the same time the Hearties do. It also gives them an opportunity to interact with you all on Twitter and Facebook!
Stacey Blessing Mathews
Q: Last season had a faith-based foundation. Will the same be prevalent this season?
A: Stacey, we hope you will notice no less emphasis on faith in Season 2 than you saw in Season 1. Our goal has never been to preach to the audience, but to stir up “soul cravings” with themes of redemption, forgiveness, sacrifice, courage and community (and other great virtues found in scripture) in order to stimulate great “flesh and blood” conversations between real friends and neighbors. I’ve always believed this is the best way to communicate the good virtues to culture. I’m more interested in seeing a good water-cooler conversation happen between you and your friends or co-workers about When Calls the Heart on Monday morning than I am in using the show as a bully-pulpit on Saturday night. Sometimes “on the nose” preaching turns into propaganda for an audience, and we want When Calls the Heart to entertain as well as enlighten and inspire the audience.
Lori Meeker
Q: We know we will love Season 2 no matter where the story lines take us. What kind of weekly ratings will Hallmark be looking for to renew for Season 3? How much does Tweeting during the broadcast help to persuade Hallmark and advertisers? Any timeline for a Season 3 decision? Thanks, Brian! #Heartie on!
A: Lori, I think for the Hallmark Channel, there are several factors for judging whether When Calls the Heart is successful enough to merit a Season 3 pick-up. Of course, ratings are huge to the process and Hallmark will definitely be looking to see if the show picks up steam from week to week. If we can see gradual growth in the ratings, I think that will put us in a good position. If the numbers decline from week to week, then that would be a bad thing. The ratings that really matter most are the LIVE BROADCAST and SAME DAY (i.e. viewers that DVR-record and watch later that evening). The ratings service also measures LIVE PLUS 3 (viewers that watch their DVR-recorded episode within 3 days) and LIVE PLUS 5 and LIVE PLUS 7. However, the 5-and-7-day viewings are less important because advertisers don’t always allow them to be counted in the totals. The other factors that matter to the Channel are definitely social media impressions that are registered through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and a few others. Those impressions are increasingly more valuable with each passing TV season because they mean that grass roots enjoyment of the show is spreading the love across the social media networks. So, yes, if we are able to trend nationally on Twitter each week… that is going to make a difference. Hence why our heart-working Admins are recruiting and training so many Hearties in the Art of Twitter!
KimberlyGrace Bowman
Q: Is there a historical advisor on set?
A: Kimberly, technically, there is not one official Historical Advisor on the set of When Calls the Heart, although shows like Downton Abbey definitely employ them for accuracy purposes. We believe we have the only historical advisors we need in the talent of our Art Department. Our incredible Production Designers, James Robbins (Season 2) and Brentan Harron (Season 1), along with their teams of design, construction, set dressing and property (Props) personnel have done a masterful job of recreating the world you have all come to love. That includes hunting down actual props and antiques from the era we are trying to recreate. Kudos also go to our costumers, Allisa Swanson (Season2) and Sandra Burns (Season 1), for doing such an amazing job with both designing and hunting down the best wardrobe possible. And finally, we are indebted to our lead Hair and makeup artists for the way in which they “beautify” our town!
Sheri Lynn DiGiovanna
Q: This season looks a little different. Who decides what changes are made to the show and why?
A: Before I answer this, Sheri, thank you for the hundreds of hours you have spent making our Hearties website such a robust, informative community!
Now for your question… the answer about who decides what changes are made to the show is one of the easier ones for me to answer, and that is, “It take a village to make a TV show.” The direction of the story-telling and sweep and “arc” of the show is very much a collaborative effort between the writers, producers, directors, and the Hallmark Channel. There are myths out there about “auteur” writers and producers who make all the decisions on a series. The reality is “iron sharpens iron,” and it requires a lot of brainpower to get it right. You have probably seen other shows that have evolved over the first few seasons before they find their “voice” or signature look. The same is true with When Calls the Heart. We hope our “discovery” of the show wasn’t too painfully obvious last season, but on the inside, we were definitely finding our way, trying to figure out exactly what the show should be. For Season 2, Hallmark Channel asked us to expand the painting canvas to include Elizabeth’s home town and family in Hamilton. They are hoping for a smidgeon of the beauty and romance of Downtown Abbey combined with the down-home goodness of Coal (or is it Hope) Valley J. We believe we have accomplished that in an extraordinary way with these new episodes that you will all be seeing in a few weeks. It’s also wonderful because it has given us lots of ways to spin stories for years (we hope) because of the broader canvas we’re creating on now.
– Brian Bird
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