The Location Managers Guild International (LMGI) is the largest organization of Location Managers and Location Scouts in the motion picture, television, commercial and print production industries. Their membership plays a vital role in the creativ
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LMGI COMPASS | Spring 2022 • 33 UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN LOCATION DEPARTMENT: Ma' Palmer/LMGI SLM Mike Johansen/LMGI LM Brian Dunne - LM Historical Unit Jason Liadis/LMGI - KALM/LM Trent Asher - ALM Maeve Orlady - ALM Rew Jones - ALM Rebecca Larocque - ALM Historical Unit Crystal Conroy - ALM Samantha Lecapoy - ALM Adrienne Sharma - Locations Coordinator Ken Noda - Location Scout Warren Cronin - Location Scout Terry Marsh - Location Scout Ryan Hunter - Trainee LM "The homeowner said, 'You know, we weren't planning to respond, but we showed the letter to our kids and found out that our daughter-in-law grew up Mormon, and when she read the Krakauer book, she left the church … so we're going to let you shoot here.'" The woman, as it happens, was also a huge fan of Lance's work. It was the second time fortune had smiled on the production. "It was kind of a galvanizing thing in that you realize the stories we tell can change people's lives," says Matt. "And that moment in particular, for a lot of us, was a reaf rmation about how powerful this story is in particular." Winter There were numerous hurdles the location team had to leap over—from recreating an FLDS (Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints) compound and trucking in nearly 100 cubic yards of red soil (which then needed to be removed when they wrapped), to nding a suitable location that could double the entrance to the old Circus Circus Hotel & Casino (they ended up using the facade of the historic Palace Theater in Calgary and installing thousands of dollars in lightbulbs under the old marquee). From nding a remote cabin in the woods to locating a Miami motel location. But perhaps nothing was more dif cult than clearing away snow from their sets in the weeks leading up to Christmas and in minus 25 degrees Celsius no less. The team would often spend a week pre-clearing a property of snow. Then they'd go in, paint the grass and add silk leaves to every tree and bush only to have it snow again the night before they were set to shoot, and they'd have to do it all again. "That's exactly what happened to our Miami set," laughs Matt. "It was like a parasite attacking a cell," Renée says. "We have videos of it and it's completely insane. Guys up on the roof with blowers and dry steam trucks that create this very ethereal creepy environment." Photo by Kyle Kaplan/Amazon They even brought in a helicopter at one point just to blow the top layer of snow off a eld of grass because you couldn't walk on it lest you trampled it all down. Having overcome these challenges leaves Matt with a great sense of pride for what they were able to accomplish. "For me personally," he says, "after having wrestled a bit with whether to be a part of this project or not, I felt like maybe what we were doing was illuminating something about the human experience … about how complicated it is and how easy it is to fall into situations you don't expect to end up in." Having made it through one of the most challenging and complicated shows of his career, would he do it all over again? "Oh, absolutely," he says with a smile. Above and opposite page, top right: Photo courtesy of FX/Hulu Above and opposite page, top right: Photo courtesy of FX Networks