Osoyoos has provided a backdrop for a growing number of feature movies, including a Punjabi film, Crash, shot here in June 2014 with Bollywood actors and pictured above. The 2010 western comedy Gunless was also shot here, as have been numerous other feature films, television shows and commercials. (Richard McGuire file photo)
A romantic Valentine’s Day movie currently being shot entirely around Osoyoos reflects the continued growth of the Okanagan film and television production business.
That’s the view of Jon Summerland, Okanagan Film Commissioner, who has worked closely with this and other productions to encourage them to use Osoyoos and the Okanagan as a location.
The movie, A Hand in Love, also known as Heart Felt, is being produced by Reel One Entertainment and Odyssey Media Inc. as a movie of the week. It will air in Canada on The Movie Network and in the U.S. on ION Television.
A press release from the Okanagan Film Commission describes A Hand in Love as a story about true love in an on-again, off-again relationship featuring a young couple who deal with business, a vineyard, a blog and a baby.
So why did the producers pick Osoyoos to shoot the film?
“It’s perfect,” said Summerland. “They needed a resort, a winery and it needed to be arid. It needed to be high-end. So in just one little area, you’ve got everything you needed.”
Although Summerland was reluctant to divulge actual shooting locations, he left little doubt that Nk’Mip Cellars and Spirit Ridge will play a role.
The Okanagan Film Commission, said Summerland, worked closely with the producers from the outset, sending them location files and helping them with crew.
It helped that he has worked previously with one of the producers, Jonathan “JJ” DuBois.
Summerland said he read the script and was able to suggest locations that might work. The choice of Osoyoos was an easy sell.
“It wasn’t a hard persuasion by any means,” said Summerland. “They were very keen on it.”
Over the past couple of weeks, the production has been scouting locations, casting extras and getting their crew in order, he said.
“They need to have all their ducks in a row,” he added.
Shooting is expected to start this weekend.
The past year has seen several films, television shows and commercials shot around Osoyoos.
These include the popular BBC automotive show Top Gear, The Amazing Race Canada, a Lexus commercial, a documentary and two primetime television shows that have not yet aired and which Summerland can’t yet disclose.
“We’ve got three going right now that will shoot before Christmas,” said Summerland, referring to locations throughout the Okanagan.
Two of these are in the $2 million to $5 million range and one will be shot in Kelowna and the other in the Grindrod and Enderby area, he said.
You might think the low Canadian dollar would be a big draw to the area for U.S. filmmakers, but Summerland points out that it’s actually having a perverse impact on the Okanagan.
“The low dollar is really great for Vancouver,” said Summerland. “Here in the Okanagan, it’s not.”
One problem is that local crew become harder to hire because so many of them have gone to the booming film industry in Vancouver to work.
Also, with the low dollar stimulating tourism to the Okanagan, it becomes harder for film productions to find affordable accommodations.
The local film industry has actually done better when the dollar is closer to par, he said.
Still, the Okanagan Film Commission is aggressively going after opportunities and building the industry here from the ground up, as it has been doing for the past eight years, Summerland said.
In 2008, the film industry had a $5.4 million impact locally, while last year it had grown to about $20 million. This year it will probably be down to about $14-$15 million, Summerland said.
“It’s a pretty good return on taxpayers’ dollars,” he said, noting that the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen contributes between $24,000 and $30,000 annually to the Okanagan Film Commission.
And now film producers are coming back because they know what the region offers.
So what did Summerland think when he read the script for A Hand in Love?
“It was cute,” he said diplomatically. “It was a love story. I don’t want to pigeonhole it, but my wife will like it.”
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
