When Calls The Heart Executive Producer Brian Bird
Answers Heartie's Burning Questions
In commemoration of the first-ever Hearties Family Reunion in Hope Valley, Executive Producer Brian Bird has chosen five burning questions that were solicited from Hearties for the event on Saturday. Of the hundreds of questions asked, Brian chose these five so that some of the Hearties who were not able to attend the event are still getting their questions answered!
Q. Carolyn Anderton, Bryant, Alabama: I'm very curious about Jack's mother… is she going to be coming to Hope Valley soon?
BB: Carolyn, the answer is… YES. In fact, Jack’s mother is going to arrive in the final two episodes of Season 3, she will interfere like all good mothers do in Jack and Elizabeth’s relationship, and she will be played by one of the bigger stars in TV and film. That is all you are going to get from me at this moment because she arrives in a few days to shake things up. How’s that for pot-stirring?
Q. Vicky Ellison LeClaire, Roanoke, Virginia: Housing and feeding everyone must be quite an undertaking. Who is tasked with this responsibility?
BB: Vicky, the little secret in TV shows is that we have a little camp with dormitories where we lock the cast and crew up at night so they will be ready for work tomorrow… just kidding. Most of our cracker-jack crew and cast live in and around the Vancouver, B.C., area so they get to go home to their own houses and bed and loved ones every night. For the few of us who travel from the U.S. to work on When Calls the Heart, they have this neat invention here called a hotel. It’s not home, but at least I don’t have to make my own bed every day. On the feeding front, we have a fabulous catering company called Rolling Chef that makes all of our cast and crew meals, and they feed like kings!
Q. Linda Roo, Ferndale, Washington: Inclement weather is frequent up here in the Pacific Northwest. Are there days when the filming is cancelled due to weather? Or is filming flexible and reverts to indoor scenes during bad weather days?
BB: Great question, Linda. Not one day of filming has ever been cancelled because of weather on When Calls the Heart. Now if there were a tornado, maybe we would take a day off, but the intrepid crews of Vancouver are more reliable than mailmen. They have shot in all kinds of weather, snowfalls, downpours, including minus-45- degree temperatures. They have all kinds of cold-and wet-weather gear to protect the equipment, and are some of the best crew I have ever worked with. Because there is so much rain here, they just roll with the punches and we always make our production days (reach our goals). And you are correct on the second part of your question. We do indeed move our schedule around as best we can if we need to. If there is an unexpected snow, or torrential rainstorms, we “push” exterior scenes to another day, and “pull up” interior scenes so that we don’t get behind. Once in season 1, we had to move an exterior scene into the saloon because the actors were so cold their teeth were chattering. It was not fair to them, and we would have had to replace all their dialogue later in post-production, which is not our best option.
Q. Kathy McCleary Vaughan, Havelock, North Carolina: What is the average length of time per day, you are filming? What time do you start and what estimated time do you shut down for the night.
BB: Kathy, the normal production day is between 11 and 12 hours, five days a week. There are many factors that go into scheduling each day’s work, including the number of daylight scenes and the number of scenes that require darkness and need to be filmed at night. Most production days start early, at 6 or 7 a.m., with the “crew call” in which crewmembers arrive to begin setting up their camera and lighting equipment. The actors are not off the hook from these early calls either because they have to arrive before the start of filming to get into wardrobe and go through “the works” (hair and makeup). Some days do not start until later in the day if the production unit is scheduled to shoot mostly night work, so that we can use those 11-12 hours all at night. Other days, which require all day work, have to start even earlier because here in the Northern Hemisphere, we begin losing the light at 4p.m.
Q. Evelyn Meyer, St. Louis, Missouri: Is there any way the #Hearties can support the actors & crew of WCTH in a way we aren't already doing? Is there something we shouldn't be doing or should do less of or more of?
BB: Evelyn, we are all humbled by a question like this because we feel like the luckiest TV show Crew in the world with fans who care enough to ask if they can do more. All I can say, as we welcome 175 Hearties to Hope Valley this week (all intrepid souls who have saved their money in order to make this journey here) – is thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart. There has never been a fan group of a show that is more loyal, devoted, and fearless about sharing their love of When Calls the Heart with their family, friends, and even strangers. And did I mention patient? You Hearties have stuck with us through thick and thin, as we have figured out how best to tell our stories, and through all of the questions about whether the show was going to continue from season to season. And I believe you are the reason we have a Season 3, and in a month or so, you will be the reason this show is successful in a new time slot on a new night. Long may you reign because if you do, so will When Calls the Heart.
