Day 00 Blog – The Calm Before the Storm

Dear Backers’ Club Members,

Hello World

It’s on!

My name is Davin, and over the next 6 weeks of shooting I am going to be your unedited eyes and ears on the set of “Corner Gas: The Movie.” I’m going to film everything, and then send you videos, pictures and notes from the studio and our various locations so that you know exactly what life is like for the wonderful people making this wonderful movie. I’m happy to be your digital VIP Backstage Pass…

But that’s not all – I’ll also be your voice on set. Over the next few weeks as I share life on set with you, I’ll be asking for your input on things you want to see, people you want to meet and questions that you want me to ask the cast and crew – and then I’ll go out and get it for you. Hopefully by the end of this we’ll know the difference between Grip and a Gaffer, you’ll know what all the calls mean that everyone yells out before a camera rolls, and you’ll practically be able to taste the food at the craft table.

The Calm Before the Storm

Excited? So am I am, but hold on. That all starts tomorrow.

Right now I’m sitting in the operations room of the production office. From my chair I can see Roughrider jerseys, an “employee of the day” board (I’m not on it yet, but it’s early so fingers crossed), whiteboards filled with plans and to-do lists, a giant poster with Brent’s face on it, and more calendars than you’d find in a calendar shop on New Year’s Eve. Sitting next to me are the fun guys from the transport team, the cool props master, the talented art director, the busy production coordinator… or at least they will be once we start shooting tomorrow. Today is definitely the calm before the storm. It’s the day before we roll cameras. Let’s call it “Day 0”.

 

 

Here’s what I did today to prepare for the shoot. I had a spooky walk through the dimly lit studio filled with half-built sets that are being prepared for us to shoot on in a few weeks. I ventured out to downtown Regina where I got a haircut and a burger. Then the highlight – we drove out to the Corner Gas Station in Rouleau, Saskatchewan. It was a nostalgic drive for me. You see, I was born in Saskatchewan and lived in Saskatoon for many years. I remember the “big skies” and endless highways of the prairies, but it certainly comes flooding back once you’re here. Country music on the radio. Custom tractors sitting quiet in the field on raised tires looking look like lazy insects. Roads on Google Map that hardly qualify as more than dirt paths. And the weather! It was sunny when we set out, but in minutes we were in a rainstorm that we swore was either a large tornado or a small black hole. Sometimes the highest setting on your wipers isn’t enough! Just a few minutes later, I was standing back under the sun underneath the iconic Corner Gas sign.

 

 

And yes, not surprisingly, it looks smaller in person than it does on screen, but nevertheless it has all of the overwhelming charm that you would expect. We weren’t parked for more than 10 minutes and already four different cars had pulled up to get a glimpse of the Station. Most of our visitors were too shy to step out of the vehicle. One burly guy wearing a Superman shirt wasn’t shy at all, and after we introduced him to security, he was peeking into the windows of the Ruby. Before we parted ways we sent him in to Rouleau to get a burger at the Dog River Hotel, and then decided we should do a quick walk up Rouleau’s Main Street ourselves.

A Stroll Through Rouleau

Rouleau has all the trappings of a small prairie town – yes, the liquor store also sells insurance – but it also has all the best parts. Everyone I met along the way was the kind of person you want to meet. Interesting – quick to shake your hand and tell you a story. You swear you already know them. We visited the police station, the post office on the corner, the Corner Gas Souvenir shop with the functioning DRPD cruiser out front, and finally popped our heads in to the Dog River Hotel – happy to see our new friend was being served. It’s great. I can’t wait to work with everyone on these streets.

 

 

That’s it for today. We’re testing out our cameras for the behind-the-scenes features, and we’ll be up at dawn to capture a whole slew of firsts. (Hmm… this is Saskatchewan. Maybe I should say a whole slough?)

Davin and the Digital Team

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ps – A Quick Note on “Real-Time”

Just in case you were wondering, we actually started filming about a week ago. These blogs are being written on the days we film, and released a week later. We were hoping to give you a “real-time” blog, but this way we knew we could keep up a daily schedule of content. I hope you’ll forgive the week delay and still have a sense that you are experiencing the process along with all of us!