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 | Winter 2023 • 33 shot: "We figured out a way to make two areas. It makes sense that the pot farmers would be hiding out at a higher level and then grow level is lower, and the production value from that was amazing. I find if you lean into problems, you'll find a solution quicker and better. You have to be ready to move and pivot." Millar says driving and indoor shots, close angles that hide dead branches, utilizing the greens department—and adding even more green in post-production—also help camouflage the seasons and the passage of time. Backing up the shoot schedule for Season 5 solved the temporal problem but created another: public parks, trying to catch up on revenue lost during the pandemic, prohibited filming in the summer to keep the campgrounds open for tourists. "We did start six weeks earlier than last year so that we could actually capture more natural trees and greens longer, but the logistical caveat is we can't shoot any provincial parks in the summer," says Millar. "So, we have to search for more private forests and engage the Squamish Nation and Ministry of Forests." Other areas are closed due to fire season, when the danger posed by a stray spark in the warm, dry conditions is just too great. Within these lean parameters, the creative team's strategy for Season 5 is ambitious: As character storylines culminate, an epic event will bring the town together—which means incorporating more CGI, consolidating locations and finding new far-flung places to take the script. As the story blooms in the hands of new showrunner Patrick Sean Smith, location manager Fiona Crossley has come aboard to support Millar in developing the expanding narrative map. BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS: KINDNESS AND COMMUNITY Virgin River is filmed on an intricate system of municipal and provincial roads, public parks, private property and back country—much of which is Indigenous land that's home to several tribal groups. "The Squamish Nation is one of the largest Indigenous First Nations groups in in BC and there's an immense amount of relationship between all the First Nations in BC and the lower mainland and the film industry," Millar says. "We work with all these different nations intimately to get permission to go on their lands. On the first day of filming 50 Shades of Grey, we had a tribal elder come down and smudge the set and bless the set. "We knew that we were on unceded territories and just wanted to pay our respect for the chance to live work and play here. It's great building that relationship and learning how to orchestrate and synchronize all the different entities at the same time has been a big fun learning curve." The terms of that relationship include responsible stewardship of the sweeping natural beauty Virgin River captures on film. Canada manages its public lands and forests efficiently so that