When Calls The Heart Executive Producer Brian Bird Answers Heartie's Burning Questions, Including a Big "What If" Question
Susan Templin: Because so much time passes between productions of the seasons, how long does it take to get Hope Valley and the cast "back up and ready to film?"
Brian Bird: That’s a great question, Susan. Because our goal is to make the seasons as seamless as possible, we have gone to a lot of work to create the feel that no time has passed between the cliffhanger of Season 2 and the Premiere of Season 3 (which means we’re going to pick up in S3 right where we left off… I’ll leave it to your imagination to conjure up how you think that might go). That, for instance, means hairstyles have to be the same on our actors, which requires a lot of homework by our cracker-hack Hair and Makeup departments. One of the little secrets of that process is called “continuity photography.” For every scene we film, our hair and makeup crews take dozens of photos of the actors. That way we can match them up as the new season begins rolling. In terms of the town, in between seasons, we do our best to weatherize the buildings. However, usually, we have to do some painting touch-ups, along with tree and foliage trimming.
Evelyn Meyer: What is the most meaningful scene in WCTH for you to date and why?
BB: It’s very hard for me to choose just one, Evelyn. It’s like asking someone which of their children they love best. For us on the producing and writing crew, every episode feels like one of our babies. But if you had to pin me down, I’ll give you my four favorite moments: 1) From Season 1, I love the victorious lady coal miners finishing clearing the mine and then watching Gowen sign over the deeds to their houses; 2) Also, from S1, I can’t keep from misting up when I see the scene of Elizabeth finding little Rosaleen all alone in the mine, helping her past her grief over her lost Daddy, and then returning her home to her mother and community safe and sound; 3) And yet again from S1, I’m always very moved by Jack’s scene around the campfire with our “wounded warrior” Adam Miller, challenging him, despite his disability, not to run from his responsibility of being a husband and; and finally 4) From S2, the “stuck-in-the-mine” make-up scenes between Jack and Elizabeth as they get past their conflicts and resolve to start over. Those scenes required some very nuanced acting, and Daniel and Erin truly delivered.
Marianne Murphy: Do you have a project manager – someone who organizes and keeps track of all the personnel, schedules, activities and contracts?
BB: Marianne, it’s very intuitive for you to ask this, and the answer is absolutely YES. By the time we start rolling cameras, when many of the creative script decisions have already been made, the production process is MOSTLY about logistics. That’s not to say creative choices don’t happen after that, but by that point in the process it’s mostly a race against time and money, and we have three true champions of this critically essential part of the show: Our Line Producers, Vicki Sotheran and Greg Malcolm, and our Unit Production Manager Simon Richardson. Without these three very talented filmmakers crunching the numbers, When Calls the Heart would never have been possible. The best picture I can give you is that Vicki, Greg and Simon are like air-traffic controllers and they constantly have a dozen 747s circling their tower. It takes real talent to keep those planes in the air and to land them safely one by one. This includes not only managing the 14-day production schedule for each two episodes, but also the manpower and the money. They are responsible for the all the hiring and firing of crew-members, along with watching every penny of the budget, and the reams of paperwork, contracts, permits, permissions required by every episode, from getting a set built to making sure our crew meals are tasty and healthy. It takes a village to make a TV show, and these three filmmakers are the Mayor, School Superintendent and Police Chief of our Village!
Carolyn Shoopman: Do you film one episode before you start on another?
BB: Carolyn, typically in the TV business, that is that case. For instance, when I was writing and producing Touched By An Angel, we made 24 episodes every season, and each episode usually took 8 days to complete, so literally we filmed Monday-through-Fridays, and we would start shooting a new script every eight business days. Given that we are producing 10 episodes of WCTH each season, and we are filming it as a period (1910) drama, the budget and actor schedules dictate that we “block shoot” two episodes at a time. That means two, one-hour scripts go into production together, and we “block” together scenes and performances for both episodes in their respective locations. For example, there may be scenes from both episodes that take place in the saloon, so we tend to shoot all those scenes together, which means our cast has to keep all that story-telling straight in their minds, even if they are filming the scenes out of order. It’s a way for us to skin the cat, keep the budgets in line, and get it all done as effectively as possible. To be honest, most TV series these days include some elements of block shooting.
Tina Lovett Creekmore: I am hoping for a longer season that comes on weekly. It keeps the fan base on their toes. I do think most of us did enjoy seeing a little bit of Elizabeth’s upbringing and entitlements in Hamilton in Season 2, but we long for the storylines from the first season. Do you plan to do more in Hope Valley in the upcoming episodes and slow down on the big city scenes?
BB: Tina, you actually have two questions here. First, trust me, we would all love to bring you more and more episodes each year to your heart’s content, because that means we would never be out of work each year! But that’s not the reality of the TV business today. Each episode is very expensive to produce, and even the big networks these days are turning to what we call “short orders” of 8-12 episodes in a season. In fact, American TV is very late to the party of short seasons. In the 1960s, networks would routinely do 39 episodes each year of popular series. That was reduced to 24 episodes in the 1970s and 80s, factoring in 24 new broadcasts, 24 repeat broadcasts, and 4 weeks of special preemption programming each year. But in other countries, a season has routinely been only 8-12 episodes. If you don’t believe me, check out all the TV series from the United Kingdom you can now find on Netflix. The reasoning behind this is the law of supply of demand. If you provide a fewer number of popular products, the demand goes up, which means the audience doesn’t take a program for granted. If they get hooked on a series, they show up faithfully week after week. It’s easy to skip a week or two when you know there are 24 coming, and 24 chances to see them later. Tighter supply and very loyal viewing also helps boost advertising rates – which by the way is what pays for most of the cost of filming the show in the first place. (I will save my lecture on the virtue of being good patrons of those who provide us with what we like for another day).
As for the second part of your question, all I can say (without giving away spoilers) is that we heard the desires of your Hearties hearts during Season 2… and you will not be disappointed in Season 3.
Stacy Blessing Matthews: I liked the turnaround of Rosemary. Did you have this in mind when you had Pascale in the first season?
BB: Stacy, I wish I could say that we are such brilliant storytellers that we have every aspect of several seasons worth of episodes all figured out ahead of time, but I would lying, and that’s not a Hope Valley virtue! In fact, it’s a myth when you hear that the writing staffs of TV shows have all their episodes figured out ahead of time. We may have big season-long goals sorted out before we begin shooting a new season, but God is always in the details, and most episodes are rewritten a handful of times before they go into production. That’s what keeps it fresh and dynamic, and not predictable.
In terms of Pascale, when we introduced Rosemarie in Season 1, our only goal at that time was to throw a relationship complication at Jack and Elizabeth (aka “love triangle). But as S2 evolved, and we introduced new characters, we realized there was so much more potential for an interesting, multi-dimensional character arc for Rosemarie. For me, it would get boring if we didn’t make great new discoveries about the characters and the town along the way, as opposed to being premeditated about the whole thing. And when all is said and done, the fact that it all mostly holds together for you Hearties is as much about providential favor as it is about our story talents. But to know the audience is loving feels really great to all of us who put so much time into making the show.
Katelyn Latawiec: With the recent news about the cancellation of Cedar Cove after three seasons, it makes me really nervous for When Calls the Heart! I hope it won't be their custom to just do three seasons of a show now.”
BB: Katelyn, thanks for your heart on this big “what if” question on behalf of all the Hearties. Let me first say, I don’t know the specific reasons why the network did not continue with another season of Cedar Cove. I do know that the business of making a TV show is very complicated and there are undoubtedly many factors going into this decision. Sometimes it is just about ratings: but honestly, there could be dozens of good reasons why the show is not being renewed for a 4th season.
At some point, EVERY television series is cancelled. Both Little House on the Prairie and Touched By An Angel ran for nine seasons. Gunsmoke, on the other hand, was the longest running show in TV history with 22 seasons until The Simpsons broke that record a few years back. I think there are two good “Hope Valley” takeaways we can draw from this news: First, one of the great virtues of people who live by faith is that they treat each day as if it is their last. We are never promised tomorrow, so that means we need to make a difference somehow, someway with today. At some point, (many years from now I hope), When Calls the Heart will bid adieu to its audience, and when that happens the worst thing in my mind that could happen would be tens of thousands of Hearties grieving its end and having their lives devastated. We will have done a bad job with our stories and meta-narratives if that’s the case. My hope would be that Hearties across the world will have their lives enriched somehow by our show until that day, and that we won’t hear weeping and gnashing of teeth when there are no more original episodes. (Remember, TBAA and LHOP have continued blessing generations of new viewers in reruns and on DVD). Secondly, instead of fearing decisions we cannot control, let’s do something we can control: How about using the cancellation of one show we may have enjoyed to motivate us to redouble our Heartie efforts on behalf of not just WCTH, but for more family friendly TV and media everywhere! That’s bigger than the destiny of WCTH. That’s what a legacy is all about, and something we can be proud of and remembered for. Onward and upward! #E-Fangelism!
