TV pilot | yvrshoots

Tag Archives: TV pilot

GREEN LIT: ABC Orders ONCE UPON A TIME IN WONDERLAND to Series

May 10, 2013 Once Upon a Time, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, Once Wonderland

Sophie Lowe as Alice. @ 2013 ABC Broadcasting Corp.

ABC ordered the Once Upon a Time spinoff Wonderland to series today based on a short presentation of five scenes filmed in Vancouver last month. The [Victorian England] story of Alice (Sophie Lowe) is of a girl who’s had a hard life but maintained a generous heart. A genie Cyrus (Peter Gadiot) is her love interest and the Knave of Hearts (Michael Socha) sounds like the Wonderland-equivalent of Hook, described as a sardonic adventurer, man of action and loner. The White Rabbit (now voiced by John Lithgow not Paul Reubens) and the Queen of Hearts (Emma Rigby) are also part of the 13-episode limited series. And while we can expect to see cameos from the likes of Cora (Barbara Hershey) and her daughter Regina (Lana Parrilla), Wonderland will be a separate world from Once Upon a Time.

Fan fave Jane Espenson, who knows how to write kickass female characters after stints on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Battlestar Galactica and Once Upon a Time, is a consulting producer. And Zach Estrin (Prison Break) and Steve Perlman will run the show with Once Upon a Time showrunners Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz.

Update: ABC passed on pilot Big Thunder, a 19th century western based on a popular Disney ride, filmed mainly in Maple Ridge and Squamish.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************

WEEK: April 29 – May 5, 2013

May 5, 2013 News

Sunday, May 5th – Red Widow finale The Hit 1×08 Convinced that Schiller (Goran Visnjic) murdered her husband, Marta (Radha Mitchell) asks for help with a revenge plot. But it turns out Schiller didn’t make her a widow. Her own father did because he didn’t want to lose his grandkids. Unfortunately no one tells Natalie (Erin Moriarty) who pulls a gun on Schiller in the final scene of the finale filmed at the Guiness Tower downtown last year.
Sunday, May 5th - Continuum 2×03 Vancouver-cop-from-the-future Kiera (Rachel Nichols) investigates a new street drug she recognizes because her sister was hooked on it in the future. The scenes of Kiera finding her sister in a shanty town for the “emancipated” were filmed on a parkade rooftop in Gastown. In present day, Alec Sandler (Erik Knudsen)’s friends drop the drug on the CBC Plaza and rival Liber8 operatives and former lovers Sonya and Travis go to war using gangs as their weapons.
Sunday, May 5th – Once Upon a Time 2×21 Young Baelfire (Dylan Schmid) is befriended by the Darling family of Peter Pan fame. Grownup Baelfire/Neal (Michael Raymond-James) intervenes in his father (Robert Carlyle)’s attempted stomping of Dr. Whale (David Anders( to impress Lacey (Emilie de Ravin); much needed talk between Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and grownup Baelfire/Neal takes place on Third Beach in Stanley Park, Meanwhile, Greg (Ethan Embry) and Tamara (Sonequa Martin Green) torture Regina (Lana Parilla) in Steveston cannery buildings.
Sunday, May 5th – Feature film Robocop with Joel Kinnaman, which shot last summer in Toronto, films in SFU Woodward’s underground parking and later at Granville and Dunsmuir.
Sunday May 5th – Words and Pictures with Clive Owen and Juliette Binoche scheduled to wrap filming in Vancouver, according to latest B.C. Production List.
Friday, May 3rd – Falling Skies screens first half of its 2-hour premiere at EW’s Capetown Festival in Hollywood, followed by a Q&A with showrunner Remi Aubuchon and cast members Noah Wyle, Moon Bloodgood, Drew Roy and Maxim Knight. Season 3 scoop.
Friday, May 3rd – EW has exclusive video of J.J. Abrams, Joel Wyman and John Noble talking about bringing closure to Fringe. One of the extras on the blu-ray/DVD for sale on Tuesday, May 7th.
Friday, May 3rd – Robocop films on farm on Dyke Road in Richmond. Camera on crane spotted.
Friday, May 3rd – Cedar Cove films in Deep Cove with Andie MacDowell walking on beach and on dock.
Friday, May 3rd – Continuum films inside CBC Vancouver.
Friday, May 3rd – ABC movie Christmas Bounty films at University of British Columbia.
Friday, May 3rd – New poster for Man of Steel features Henry Cavill in Superman suit and cape.
Friday, May 3rd – Tim Burton film Big Eyes with Christoph Waltz and Amy Adams scheduled to film here from July 8th to August 23rd, according to latest BC Production List.
Thursday, May 2nd – Film accelerator Cinecoup‘s Top 15 announced. Vote to finance one of these films with $1 million. 6 from Vancouver: Alien Abduction, Bad, Grade Nine, SCAM, The Fall and The Mill and the Mountain.
Thursday, May 2nd – Vancouver whydunit Motive 1×11 Brute Force airs on CTV, with Jarod Joseph as The Killer and Adrian Holmes as The Victim,

SHOOT: Jon Tenney Films KING & MAXWELL Explosion in Gastown

April 29, 2013 King & Maxwell

Update: Sounds like King & Maxwell bought footage of the SPFX explosion below. Glad a good blast won’t go to waste.

Two years ago TV pilot Heavenly blew out the windows of Gastown’s Incendio restaurant in a controlled explosion.

I hoped for a repeat performance today from upcoming TNT series King & Maxwell. But it was not to be. Instead I watched as Washington, D.C. secret-service-agent-turned-private-investigator Sean King (Jon Tenney) drove up in his Lexus to park opposite Incendio, got out of his car talking on his phone and then ducked on cue. I assume he ducked from an explosion that will be added because he did it in take after take and tomorrow crew will dress the street with post-explosion debris to film on Wednesday.

WEEK: April 8-14, 2013

April 14, 2013 News

Sunday, April 14th – Once Upon a Time recap The Price of Magic airs, narrated by Alan Dale with help from showrunners Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz.
Sunday, Arpil 14th – Bravo pilot Rita with Anna Gunn (Breaking Brad) and Josh Hamilton films at West Vancouver Community Centre.
Saturday, Arpil 13th – First Weekend Club event at 7:50 p.m. showing of Vancouver feature Becoming Redwood at International Village. Q&A with some cast and producers after film, followed by drinks at Gastown’s Portside Pub.
Saturday, April 13th – Simon Pegg’s Hector & the Search for Happiness films at Burrard Ironworks
Saturday, April 13th – Deadline: Hollywood’s Primetime Pilot Panic Early Buzz 2 with nods to ABC pilot Big Thunder, ABC short presentation Once Wonderland, The CW’s The 100, NBC’s I Am Victor and Bravo’s Rita but FOX pilot Human still listed by earlier title InHuman.
Saturday, April 13th – Canada becoming sci-fi leader led by Vancouver’s own cop-from-the-future series Continuum. Globe and Mail Arts article.
Friday, April 12th – Vancouver feature Becoming Redwood opens at Internatiional Village. Interview with Vancouver writer-director Jesse James Miller in YVRShoots Series for Vancouver is Awesome.
Friday, April 12th – ABC short presentation Once Wonderland (potential Once Upon a Time spinoff) with Sophie Lowe as Alice wraps filming in Vancouver.
Friday, April 12th – CBS pilot Backstrom with Rainn Wilson as House-like detective wraps filming in Vancouver.
Friday, April 12th – Man of Steel’s Henry Cavill on cover of Entertainment Weekly’s Summer Movies issue.
Friday, April 12th – 3rd season set, prop & costume sale for hit sitcom Mr. Young at Burnaby studio (5828 Byrne Rd). April 12 (10am-4pm)
Friday, April 12th – Globe and Mail reports amalgamation of B.C. Film Commission and B.C. Film + Media into Creative BC in a bid to help Save BC Film.
Friday, April 12th – TVLine gets official confirmation that Curtis Armstrong is Metatron, the scribe of God, in Supernatural. Saw Armstrong filming with Misha Collins in Deep Cove.
Thursday, April 11th – Arrow films season finale overnight at Terminal City Ironworks complex in east Vancouver. Stephen Amell on set.
Thursday, April 11th – The Killing films on trails past Lafarge Lake in Coquitlam.
Thursday, April 11th – 3rd season set, prop & costume sale for hit sitcom Mr. Young at Burnaby studio (5828 Byrne Rd). April 11 (12-4 pm)
Thursday, April 11th – Words and Pictures seeks bike rider extras for filming on Monday April 15.
Wednesday, April 10th – Amanda Tapping-directed Arctic Air 2×12 airs, with Dragons’ Den dragon David Chilton (The Wealthy Barber) guest-starring as himself in Burnaby as Calgary.
Wednesday, April 10th – Psych wedding on 7×07 directed by James Roday as Lassie (Timothy Omundson) marries his gal Marlowe (Kristy Swanson). But first the bachelor party.
Wednesday, April 10th - Rogue 1×03 with Thandie Newtown & Marton Csokas airs on

SHOOT: Anna Gunn & Josh Hamilton Film Bravo Pilot RITA at West Vancouver Community Centre

April 14, 2013 Rita, TV Pilots

Crew for Bravo’s first original drama pilot Rita turned the east parking lot of the West Vancouver Community Centre into a rich parents’ pickup point for fictional Connecticut private school Cabott Academy today. Adapted from a Danish series, Rita (Anna Gunn of Breaking Bad) is a forthright but witty teacher at Cabott Academy, one with a different view of life than the affluent, overprotective parents of her students. In a scene this afternoon, she walks out of the school’s Learning Annex where she has words with a parent and then talks with the school prinicpal Terrence (Josh Hamilton), who has a big crush on the sexy staffer, before she walks away.

It sounds like an easy scene to shoot until you consider the dozens of student and parent background performers leaving school at the same time and walking through a gridlock of luxury vehicles moving in a small confined area (extras were asked to bring their own high-end cars but wardrobe did a little upgrading to make the drivers look more like American east coast 1 per-centers). Director Miguel Arteta used a technocrane to cover the melee of students leaving and a second camera to focus on the two cast members.

SHOOT: FOX Pilot ALMOST HUMAN Films Under Cambie Bridge with Joel Wyman on Set

April 12, 2013 Almost Human, TV Pilots

Crew for the FOX pilot Almost Human (formerly Human) built a futuristic coffee kiosk on a sidewalk under the Cambie Bridge to shoot a scene on Easter Monday of masked kidnappers abducting a plainclothes Los Angeles police officer and driving away. I got there too late to see the abduction so I don’t know which actor was taken, but this is probably the officer whom John Kennex (Karl Urban of Star Trek) and his android cop partner Dorian (Michael Ealy) try to rescue from Gastown’s Winters Hotel.

J.J. Abrams and Fringe showrunner Joel Wyman’s futuristic buddy cop show is about LAPD officers partnered with androids and focuses on one particular pairing between John Kemnex and android Dorian, where the android displays more emotions than the human because the human is shut down after getting seriously hurt on a mission. Other characters include a cop-with-strong-morals Valerie Stahl (Minka Kelly), another police officer (Michael Irby) and the police captain (Lili Taylor).

Brad Anderson (The Machinist) directed the pilot not Joel Wyman but Wyman was in Vancouver overseeing production. I spotted him without his mohawk on set last week conferring with Anderson between takes under the Cambie Bridge.

WEEK: April 1-7, 2013

April 7, 2013 News

Sunday, April 7th – Feature film Words & Pictures with Clive Owen & Juliette Binoche spends weekend filming at St. George’s private school in Vancouver.
Saturday, April 6th – Once Upon a Time season two wrap party attended by showrunners Adam Horowitz & Eddy Kitsis.
Saturday, April 6th – Arrow films 1×22 in the Telus Tower with Stephen Amell, John Barrowman, Willa Holland, Colton Haynes, Colin Donnell, Paul Blackthorne, Emily Bett Rickards on set.
Saturday, April 6th – CBS pilot Backstrom films in The Regent Hotel in the downtown eastside and in the Vancouver Art Galley downtown with star Rainn Wilson on set.
Saturday, April 6th – Early edition of Deadline’s Primetime Pilot Panic features six Vancouver-shot pilots: I Am Victor with John Stamos, Human with Karl Urban, Intelligence with Josh Holloway, Backstrom with Rainn Wilson, Big Thunder and The 100.
Friday, April 5th – Once Upon a Time wraps filming of its second season in Vancouver very late Friday/early morning Saturday.
Friday, April 5th – Dawn of the Planet of the Apes films in Golden Ears Park with Andy Serkis as Caesar, Jason Clarke, Keri Russell and motion-capture apes spotted on set.
Friday, April 5th – Video of Godzilla in Golden Ears Park filming military rappelling down from helicopter to recover nuclear missile after Godzilla wrecks train carrying it.
Friday, April 5th – TNT series King & Maxwell wtth Jon Tenney & Rebecca Romijn films driving scene near the Queen Elizabeth Theatre and more scenes inside The Centre.
Friday, April 5th – CBS pilot Backstrom wraps three days of filming (Wednesday to Friday) inside the old Pappas Fur building downtown.
Friday, April 5th – BC Production List says ABC pilot Big Thunder and CW pilots The 100 and Blink wrapped filming in Vancouver.
Friday, April 5th – Cult 1×07 airs on The CW. Contains scene of Billy Grimm (Robert Knepper) speaking at Vancouver Art Gallery while Kelly Collins (Alona Tal) inspects his signature red car looking for evidence of an abduction.
Friday, April 5th – Paul Reubens, aka Pee Wee Herman, cast as White Rabbit on Once Upon a Time‘s pilot presentation OnceWonderland, joining Sophie Lowe as Alice, Peter Gadiot as Cyrus, Michael Socha as the Knave of Hearts and Emma Rigby as the Red Queen. Filming is scheduled from April 8th – 12th.
Thursday, April 4th – Vancouver whydunit Motive 1×09 airs on CTV with a young art lover as the victim.
Thutsday, April 4th – Supernatural‘s Jensen Ackles & Jared Padalecki film an establishing shot with the Impala at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in New Westminster after filming scenes inside and then at the law courts.
Thursday, April 4th – TNT series King & Maxwell films Jon Tenney & Rebecca Romijn at The Centre.
Thursday, April 4th – CBS pilot Intelligence with Josh Holloway, Marg Helgenberger and Meghan Ory wraps filming in Vancouver.
Thursday, April 4th – FOX pilot Human with Karl Urban, Michael Ealy, Minka Kelly & more wraps filming in Vancouver overnight in the Terminal City Ironworks complex in

SHOOT: Rainn Wilson Drenched by Rain Tower for CBS Pilot BACKSTROM at Marine Building Downtown

April 5, 2013 Backstrom, TV Pilots

Last Saturday CBS pilot Backstrom closed off a block of Burrard Street and set up a giant rain tower hanging from a crane to shoot scenes of title character Evert Backstrom (Rainn Wilson of The Office) in the bright orange slicker coming out of the iconic Marine building dressed as a Portland Police station. From Bones showrunner Hart Hanson, Backstrom is a detective version of Dr. House — self-destructive, offensive, irascible and brilliant of course — and based on the books by real-life Swedish criminologist and novelist Leif G.W. Persson. In the scene, Backstrom (the well-cast Wilson) walked out of the Portland Police Station, stopped to light up a cigar in the rain and then walked north down Burrard Street in take after take.

Early Wednesday morning, Backstrom filmed inside the Vancouver Public Library on the west side of the 2nd or 3rd floor and then moved into the empty Pappas Furs building where it is expected to film until late tonight. On Wednesday, Wilson tweeted a very Vancouver tweet to @Lululemon: My yoga pants have blood all over them.

I haven’t spotted any of Rainn Wilson’s co-stars on set this week like- Dennis Haysbert o rMamie Gummer (her mother perennial Oscar winner Meryl Streep was spotted in Vancouver visiting her daughter but not by me).

WEEK: March 25-31, 2013

March 31, 2013 News

Sunday, March 31st – Red Widow,1×06 The Captive. Irwin tries to comfort his Dad’s young girlfriend outside Lana Lou’s restaurant in the Downtown Eastside. It won’t end well. And after Marta’s daughter Natalie goes missing, Marta, her eldest son Gabriel and her youngest son Boris go searching for Natalie at the Terminal City Ironworks complex.
Sunday, March 31st – Feature film Hector & the Search for Happiness films scenes of Simon Pegg, Toni Collette & Christopher Plummer in the Life Sciences Centre at UBC with volunteer extras in lecture hall from 1 pm to 7 pm.
Sunday, March 31st – Josh Holloway, Marg Helgenberger and Meghan Ory film CBS pilot Intelligence on Easter Sunday. Helgenberger’s photo with Holloway.
Sunday, March 31st – Arrow panel at WonderCon with sunburned Stephen Amell (The Red Arrow), Colin Donnell, Willa Holland & Paul Blackthorne
Saturday, March 30th – CBS pilot Backstrom turns Marine building downtown into Portland Police station and soaks star Rainn Wilson with a huge rain tower.
Saturday, March 30th – Feature film Hector & the Search for Happiness with Simon Pegg, Christopher Plummer & Toni Collette starts filming.
Saturday, March 30th – Falling Skies panel with Drew Roy, Sarah Carter and others at WonderCon in Anaheim.
Friday, March 29th – Tomorrowland starring George Clooney & Hugh Laurie appears on BC production list with rough filming schedule of Aug 2013 -Jan 2014
Friday, March 29th – OnceWonderland presentation (not quite a pilot) appears on BC production list with filming dates of April 8 to 12th.
Friday, March 29th – AMC announces 2-hour premiere on June 2nd of third season of The Killing with Mireille Enos & Joel Kinnaman.
Friday, March 29th – Cult 1×06 airs on The CW. Sky (Jessica Lucas)e is in a coma treated by a doctor (Geoff Gustafson)..EJ (Stacey Farber) tries to track down the drug dealer filmed at Victory Square.
Thursday, March 28th – Vancouver whydunit Motive airs 1×08 about young man beaten & suffocated.
Thursday, March 28th – Once Upon a Time films its season finale inside the cannery in Steveston with Captain Hook and stunt double spotted on set and then two beach scenes in Garry Point Park — the last one of the Lost Boys in Neverland.
Thursday, March 28th – Movie Words & Pictures with Clive Owen & Juliette Binoche wraps a second week (Monday to Thursday) of filming inside St. George’s school.
Thursday, March 28th – Supernatural films at Boston Pizza on Marine Way in Burnaby.
Thursday, March 28th – NBC pilot I am Victor wraps filming in Vancouver with a final day of filming in Yaletown of ground floor scenes of the L.A. law firm of John Stamos’s divorce attorney.
Thursday, March 28th – FOX Pilot Human with Karl Urban & Michael Ealy films on Annacis Island.
Thursday, March 28th - Rainn Wilson & Dennis Haysbert film CBS pilot Backstrom in a downtown alley off Cambie.
Thursday, March 28th – Syfy sets premiere date of June 8th for first season of Primeval: New World

SHOOT: Rainn Wilson & Dennis Haysbert Film CBS Pilot BACKSTROM in Downtown Vancouver Alley

March 28, 2013 Backstrom, TV Pilots

Rainn Wilson (The Office/Six Feet Under) is Backstrom in Bones showrunner Hart Hanson’s CBS pilot, based on the books of a real-life Swedish criminologist. Here are Wilson & co-star Dennis Haysbert filming a scene in a downtown Vancouver alley off Cambie this afternoon. The alley with the Breaking Bad graffiti art that Wilson tweeted this morning.