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 2025 • 29 established itself as one of the leading production service companies in the industry, with offices in Iceland, Norway, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Finland, Sweden, Greece and the Canary Islands. More than just a service company, Truenorth Iceland actually develops and produces its own projects for film and television markets worldwide, but in terms of major U.S.- and EU-backed films like Clint Eastwood's Flags of Our Fathers or Ridley Scott's Prometheus, foreign productions had, for the most part, only come to Iceland for shorter shoots. The possibility of hosting a major series for the full run was something the Truenorth team very much wanted to make happen—so much so that they lobbied the government and were granted an increase in the incentive program to a very generous 35% cash rebate. A MAGICAL PLACE Truenorth SLM Thor Kjartansson/LMGI and LM Einar Sveinn Thordarson/LMGI had dispatched scouts, including LM Robert Garcia, to search for fish factories, hospitals, homes, offices and a number of lakes which would be critical to double for Alaska's frozen ocean. By the time López, Winkler and Taylor arrived in Reykjavík, Truenorth had gathered a wealth of location possibilities for them to consider. "Iceland is a magical place," says Einar. "We have an endless gallery of classical nature, with a variety of looks. The light is ever-changing, and the surreal drama of most locations here is astounding." "Thor and Einar's presentation convinced us that we could absolutely pull off recreating Alaska in Iceland from a visual standpoint," says Winkler. Another key element of the fourth season is that it takes place almost entirely at night. Iceland, like Alaska, has very little daylight from December through February, which was exactly what the production needed. But even more than that, Thor and Einar had shown that the country also had the infrastructure and skilled crew that could support the production in very harsh conditions. HBO signed off quickly and the creative team settled on the core locations found during those early scouts. UK SLM Jethro Ensor/ LMGI, fresh off the new series 3 Body Problem, soon arrived in Iceland to work out contractual details and to help sew up the remaining locations for HBO. "I was excited to go out there to support Thor, Einar and Robert as they were already setting things up," says Jethro. By the time he arrived, the schedule was already shifting. "If you've been in television for a while, that's pretty standard for TV drama, but it meant that we had to rethink certain locations the guys had found in different areas," he says. Arriving late in the game might have been tough on another show, but Ensor says he was welcomed by the Truenorth team, and they found themselves aligned very quickly. "For me personally," says Jethro, "it was about kind of knowing Dan's eye as production designer, seeing the storm of the schedule change coming and then working out how best to make it all work creatively. But honestly, most of that is down to Thor, Einar and Robert." Einar is equally effusive about Jethro. "He was absolutely essential for us. There is a real difference between the Icelandic way of doing things and the English way and Jethro was the perfect bridge between those methods, in addition to his experience on large-scale shows and his eye for locations." The scout confirmed that the high Arctic wouldn't be suitable for shooting a large-scale, long-form series. Patagonia, Newfoundland and Winnipeg were all considered as alternative settings, but it was the production company Truenorth that presented the most compelling case for Alaska to be played by Iceland. TRUENORTH ICELAND When the team at Truenorth received word that HBO was looking for an environment that could double for Alaska, they sent a photo package to the producers. "It was immediately clear to the creative team that Iceland had a lot to offer beyond just being a visual match," says Winkler. It also helped that Winkler had been introduced to the principals at Truenorth back in 2014 when, after deciding to take a solo trip to Iceland, some of the folks at Truenorth had helped map out her journey. Founded in 2003, LMGI business partner Truenorth has