Tips for Shooting in Toronto

Dressed for the weather on the set of short film "Girls Who Say Yes"

I remember when I was at film school in New York.  I took a workshop at the New York Film Academy and later that same year I took courses towards an MA in Media Arts at the City College of New York in Harlem.  When I would tell New Yorkers that I wanted to be a director their response was always some variation of “What are you doing here?” “Isn't Toronto Hollywood North?”  It’s no doubt that we are world class in every way when it comes to cast, crew, production services etc.  The biggest challenge we often face is a combination of two things that are beyond our control: weather and seasons.  Creativity rules the day and having a great first AD doesn’t hurt! Shout outs to George Assimakopoulos and Sorcha Vasey.  With the exception of my stint in New York, some interviews I shot in LA for a BET special, and shooting for my own doc Looking For Dawn in LA and Barbados, everything I’ve ever directed has been shot in the GTA (ok I’ve gone as far as Hamilton and Caledon).  So I’ve learned a thing or two about what it’s like to shoot in this area.

Here are some of the things I’ve learned in regards to shooting in the GTA.

1. Don’t Be Afraid to Break The Rules

I wrote my first feature film Devotion as a story that takes place over the course of a school year.  The idea of shooting an extremely low budget film that takes place in several seasons goes against just about every low budget rule there is. If you haven’t read these rules, check out Colin Brunton’s great article here. http://www.online-communicator.com/scriptip.html  But I knew that by shooting in spring I had a shot at getting weather that I could sell (in establishers if necessary) as many different times of year (also with the help of very talented production designer Diana Abbatangelo). We had one snowy day in March when DOP LUX volunteered to drive on icy roads to get to our exterior location in North York to shoot the house with snow on the ground. We also spread dead leaves on the ground to sell “fall” (though real pumpkins were impossible to find). The rest of the seasons we did with wardrobe. Visual effects are common and I've heard of productions where snow is added digitally and/or artificially because as we all know, you can’t count on snow in this area, even in winter. But writing a low budget film with such a long time frame and season specific storyline breaks a low budget production rule but I did it anyway and it worked!

2. Dress For It

There are times when I aspire to be a fashionista but when I’m on set is not one of them. Before I went to my first music video night shoot I searched high and low for something that I never had before – a rain and wind resistant jacket. There is a reason a portion of your wardrobe expenses are tax deductible if you are a self employed person who works in film and television production. You need to dress properly for the weather. There have been times when I’ve had to wear three pairs of pants and two down jackets with a down vest over top. I may have looked ridiculous, but you know what? I was comfortable and ready for anything.  And remember, the sign of a true professional is having an extra pair of socks.

3. Have a Plan B

Ok, so the ideal exterior location has some kind of alternative for rain cover but this isn’t always the case.  So, having a plan B is useful and often necessary. When I was shooting Wilderness I had to learn this lesson again and again. I had a scene where the main character Linda Michaels, played by Penny Eizenga, finds her son in an alley and scouted the location to the hilt.  We shot for four days in August.  It was a hot dry summer and from what I remember they called for rain, but not the heavy downpour that hit us that night.  At first, I refused to accept the obvious.  Finally the rain got harder and harder, and I continued to work with the actors until the safety of the equipment was at risk.  Producer Foad Almassi found another location under the Gardiner Expressway where we could find shelter and it ended up looking better than the alley.  So remember to have a plan b people!

Director Eleanore Lindo Inspires

People often ask me what it’s like to be a woman in the directing world and who are my women role models in the business. While there are many women whose work I admire (Kathryn Bigelow, Kari Skogland, Nancy Meyers, Deepa Mehta, Holly Dale, Sophia Coppola, Sarah Polley, Lena Dunham, Euzhan Palcy, Gail Harvey, Julie Dash etc.) I consider Eleanore Lindo to be my role model. Eleanore is best known for directing Degrassi, Murdoch Mysteries, The Border, Heartland, Radio Free Roscoe and the Roxy Hunter TV movies.

I met Eleanore after winning the Emerging TV Director Award from Women In Film and Television and the Director’s Guild of Canada. The prize was a mentorship with a director. At first I was a little skeptical. Would an established TV director really be willing to help someone who is new in the business? After all, it’s no secret how competitive it is, and how few opportunities there are for directors in scripted series. I wasn’t sure what the value of this mentorship would be, but I had been trying to land my first episode and nothing was happening, so I was willing to give it a shot. At first, Heather Kanabe at Women In Film and Television was finding it difficult to find me a mentor (and she called men too!). Finally, director Eleanore Lindo returned our calls! She was willing, even enthusiastic, to mentor me. Our first meeting was at the Second Cup at Queen and John in downtown Toronto (a neighbourhood that was convenient for me, which says a lot). Eleanore told me about her experience becoming a working director. She attended school at the AFI (American Film Institute) and came back to Toronto where she began developing a film. During this development she ended up getting the opportunity to direct The Campbells and then Street Legal and Degrassi Junior High.   You can read more about her by visiting http://www.dramaticdetour.com/bio.html.

I asked Eleanore about being a woman in the directing world and she said she didn’t really think about how difficult it would be for her as a woman. That’s probably the trick, not thinking about it too much, or not at all. And then it hit me, how did I not know Eleanore before our introduction? She is a woman in Toronto making a career in directing television in Canada! How had we not crossed paths before?

Anyway, Eleanore convinced me that I should come do a set visit and possibly shadow her on a show at some point, if the producers were down for that. A few weeks later Eleanore was hired to direct three episodes of Degrassi TNG.  She asked producer Linda Schuyler and she said yes!  I was invited to the set to watch Eleanore work. Even though I had this attitude, “I know how to direct!” “I’ve shadowed before!” we connected on a personal level and I had long been a fan of Degrassi, so it was too good an opportunity to pass up. Eleanore showed me how important it is to be inside that world. Meeting people and being visible was just as important as the directing craft.  So I went, I took notes, and I learned a lot.  Now it’s almost five years later, and I’m getting ready to direct four episodes of Degrassi this July. Many of the crew I met back then are the same, so I’ll feel quite at home.

Thank you Eleanore! You opened the door to me, as I will one day do for others, and that’s why you’re my role model!