Shot in Vancouver
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ISBN: 9781834050409

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Shot in Vancouver

Adventures in Hollywood North

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Known for its proximity to the US, its diverse landscape, and its handsome tax breaks, Vancouver has been a hub for the motion picture and television industry for decades. It currently ranks #3 in North America for productions, just behind Los Angeles and New York, and has been the setting for innumerable hit films, classic television shows, hidden gems, and trendsetters. As a stand-in for locations from Seattle to Smallville and Riverdale to Russia, Vancouver has hosted a wealth of major actors, directors, and seminal characters, including Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo and Ryan Reynolds’s Deadpool. Sam Wiebe tells the fascinating story of Vancouver’s rise as Hollywood North, from its humble beginnings as a locale for 1970s films such as McCabe & Mrs. Miller and Carnal Knowledge to its current incarnation as a major production hub that’s spawned a corresponding domestic industry, even though it is rarely depicted on film as itself. Shot in Vancouver is a loving and affectionate tribute to a city in disguise, as well as a catalogue of its astonishing contributions to film and television history.

Contributors

Sam Wiebe

Sam Wiebe (he/him) is a lifelong movie fan and an award-winning and bestselling author of Pacific Northwest crime fiction. His series of novels about Vancouver PI Dave Wakeland is one of the most authentic and acclaimed in contemporary detective series. Wiebe's other work includes Ocean Drive, Last of the Independents, and the Ethan Brand series, set in Washington State and written under the pen name Nolan Chase. Wiebe has won the Kobo Emerging Writer Prize and two Crime Writers of Canada awards and was nominated for the Edgar, Hammett, Shamus, and City of Vancouver book prizes. He lives in New Westminster, BC.

Chapter Contributors Pages Year Price
In this chapter, Wiebe examines how Vancouver became a global filming hub during the Tax Shelter Era of the 1970s and 1980s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the evolution of filmmaking in British Columbia from the late nineteenth century to the present.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how Rumble in the Bronx (1995) is an important part of Vancouver’s film-making history.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores how MacGyver and 21 Jump Street, produced in Vancouver during the late 1980s and early 1990s, transformed the city into a lasting film and television production hub.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the 1988 thriller Shoot to Kill, marking Sidney Poitier’s return to acting after a decade-long absence.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines three erotic thriller films from the 1990s—The Crush (1993), The Ex (1996), and Fear (1996)—that positioned Vancouver as a stand-in for Middle America.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses how Timecop (1994) and The 6th Day (2000) used Vancouver’s landscapes, casting the city as Washington, DC.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines two Allied war films shot in British Columbia during the early 1940s: 49th Parallel (1941) and Commandos Strike at Dawn (1942).
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 2002 action film Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever, directed by Wych Kaosayananda and starring Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses Donald Sutherland’s role as the leading-man in two British Columbia films: A Man, a Woman, and a Bank, and Bear Island.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examinrd Romeo Must Die (2000), a Vancouver-shot film that weaves Shakespeare’s feuding families into martial arts spectacle and a hip hop soundtrack.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses Cold War espionage and spy-themed films produced in Vancouver, British Columbia, from the early 1970s through the 2010s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses director John Woo’s 1996 television film Once a Thief and his 2003 feature Paycheck, both produced in Vancouver as deliberate departures from his Hong Kong …
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 1982 production of First Blood in Hope, British Columbia, and the misadventures that shaped its making.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 1987 romantic comedy Roxanne, written by and starring Steve Martin, set against the backdrop of Nelson, British Columbia.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examine how Sandy Wilson’s semi-autobiographical films My American Cousin (1985) and American Boyfriends (1989) trace the coming-of-age journey of a young woman in …
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses British-born director John Badham’s three action-comedy features—Stakeout (1987), Bird on a Wire (1990), and Another Stakeout (1993)—all filmed …
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines two West Coast Canadian television series, The Beachcombers (1972–1990) and Danger Bay (1983–1990), both filmed along the B.C. coast.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 1989 comedy We’re No Angels, where Robert De Niro and Sean Penn play escapees mistaken for priests in a Depression-era town.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the 1982 film Big Meat Eater, which satirized 1970s Canadian conservatism.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the production of children’s and family films in Vancouver and British Columbia from the late 1980s through the mid-2000s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines two Canadian comedies that placed lesbian relationships at the centre of their narratives.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines Hallmark-style holiday romances and their role in British Columbia’s film industry, centring on October Kiss (2015) and Love Hard (2021).
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the partnership of Vancouver filmmakers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores three comedy-crime films produced in Vancouver between 1989 and 2013.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines films and television series shot in and around the city that centre adolescents and young adults, spanning the mid-1980s through the early 2020s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines Diablo Cody’s screenwriting across three films—Juno (2007), Jennifer’s Body (2009), and Tully (2018)—all connected to Vancouver’s …
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the cultural journey of three irreverent comedy films—Happy Gilmore (1996), Freddy Got Fingered (2001), and Hot Rod (2007)—all shot in Vancouver.
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In this chapter, Wiebe delves into the 2000 mockumentary Best in Show, directed by Christopher Guest and filmed in Vancouver during the winter of 1999.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), directed by Robert Altman.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how The Accused (1988) offers an unflinching exploration of rape culture through the story of Sarah Tobias.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores the Vancouver-based television series Da Vinci’s Inquest (1998–2006) and its political spin-off, Da Vinci’s City Hall.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the making and legacy of The Grey Fox (1982), a Pacific Coast Western directed by Phillip Borsos.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the history of procedural television series filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, from the early 1970s through the mid-2000s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces Jack Nicholson’s rise as a New Hollywood star through two landmark films shot in British Columbia in the early 1970s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the 1980 murder of Vancouver model Dorothy Stratten by her husband Paul Snider, and the 1983 Bob Fosse film Star 80 that adapted their story.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses The L Word, a six-season lesbian drama that aired on Showtime from 2004 to 2009.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses Secrets of Chinatown (1935), produced under the British quota system in Victoria, British Columbia, and how the film serves as a case study in early Canadian cinema.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how Asian communities in British Columbia have been represented on screen, tracing a shift from whitewashed Hollywood productions to Asian-led stories.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the 1987 film adaptation of Marilynne Robinson’s Housekeeping, directed by Bill Forsyth and filmed around Nelson, British Columbia.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines three character-driven dramas—Distant Thunder (1988), Intersection (1994), and Insomnia (2002)—united by themes of memory, guilt, and moral reckoning.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the evolution of procedural television filmed in Vancouver, from the early CBC era through the late 1980s American series boom to the present day.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the life of Tsleil-Waututh actor and advocate, Chief Dan George, whose career spanned the late 1960s through early 1980s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe situates two Vancouver-based series, Profit (1996–97) and Intelligence (2005–07), within the prestige television movement of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces James Clavell’s Vancouver years, discussing how his 1962 film The Sweet and the Bitter, which addressed the internment of Japanese Canadians, connects to his …
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines more than a century of survival-genre films and television produced in British Columbia, from Winds of Chance (1925) to Yellowjackets (2021).
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In this chpater, Wiebe examines The Sweet Hereafter (1997), Atom Egoyan’s Oscar-nominated film adapted from Russell Banks’s novel about a 1989 school bus crash in Alton, Texas.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses how The Changeling (1980), directed by Peter Medak and starring George C. Scott, stands as the defining film of British Columbia’s Tax Shelter Era.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how the 1990 miniseries IT and the 1993 film Needful Things transformed British Columbia into a hub for horror filmmaking.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how Vancouver’s identity shaped two psychological thrillers: That Cold Day in the Park (1969) and The Stepfather (1987).
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines three horror films made in British Columbia between 1969 and 1979: The Mad Room, The Keeper, and Prophecy.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 1989 slasher film Jason Takes Manhattan, directed by Rob Hedden and starring Kane Hodder as Jason.
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In this chapter Wiebe discusses the making of the 1987 slasher American Gothic, which brought veteran actress Yvonne De Carlo back to Vancouver after decades in Hollywood.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses how The Final Destination franchise was filmed in Vancouver.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how in the mid-1970s through the 2010s, British Columbia became a hub for horror and science-fiction sequels, remakes, and prequels.
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In this chapter, Wiebe profiles the filmmaking careers of Jen and Sylvia Soska, the North Vancouver-born twins.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the fifteen-year run of Supernatural, a 2005-to-2020 series created by Eric Kripke that followed brothers Sam and Dean Winchester hunting monsters across America.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores Marie Clements’s 2006 film Unnatural & Accidental, adapted from her 2000 play and inspired by the 1988 conviction of Vancouver barber Gilbert Paul Jordan …
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the comedy-horror genre through five feature films produced in British Columbia between 1996 and 2011, from Bordello of Blood to The Cabin in the Woods.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores how second-generation directors Panos Cosmatos and Osgood Perkins use Vancouver’s landscapes and textures to craft horror settings.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses two horror television series, Masters of Horror (2005–07) and Midnight Mass (2021).
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines two Vancouver-shot films that trace the rise and fall of the city’s punk rock scene from the late 1970s through the 1990s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses how two Vancouver productions introduced the world to Sandra Oh and director Mina Shum.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the 1977 Canadian feature Skip Tracer, directed by Zale Dalen and filmed guerrilla-style on Vancouver streets in the fall of 1976.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines two Vancouver-produced films directed by Lynne Stopkewich and starring Molly Parker: Kissed (1996) and Suspicious River (2000).
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the making and legacy of In the Land of the Head Hunters, the 1914 film shot among the Kwakwaka’wakw in British Columbia.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the careers of Larry Kent and Jack Darcus, two independent filmmakers who shaped Vancouver’s artistic film scene during the 1960s and 1970s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 1971 film Madeleine Is… , and how it marked a milestone in Canadian cinema as the first feature directed by a woman, Sylvia Spring.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the career of Bruce Sweeney, a Vancouver-based filmmaker.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores two Vancouver-produced films from the late 1990s that centre on troubled young people, both featuring early performances by actor Brendan Fletcher.
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In this chapter, Wiebe explores how the 1994 Dosanjh murders in Vancouver and the juror scandal that followed inspired two very different films: The Love Crimes of Gillian Guess (2004) and Beeba …
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines the 1980 film Out of the Blue.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the 2019 film The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open, a single-take drama directed by Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and Kathleen Hepburn.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses The X-Files (1993–2018) and its production in Vancouver.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines "Kill Switch," a fifth-season X-Files episode written by William Gibson and Tom Maddox in the late 1990s and filmed across Vancouver’s Lower Mainland.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how Chris Carter’s Vancouver-based career extended beyond The X-Files.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the Highlander franchise, from Gregory Widen’s 1986 screenplay to the six-season television series (1992–98) filmed primarily in Vancouver.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the evolution of superhero television from the 1990s through the 2020s.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses how Simon Fraser University’s Burnaby Mountain campus has served as a filming location for over fifty years, beginning with The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972).
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses Runaway, directed by Michael Crichton and released in 1984.
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses the Stargate franchise.
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In this chapter, Wiebe examines how Vancouver and British Columbia have served as filming locations for science fiction and fantasy productions from 1981 to 2026.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces the evolution of British Columbia’s superhero television franchise, beginning with Smallville (2001–2011).
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In this chapter, Wiebe discusses Battlestar Galactica (2004–09), Ronald D. Moore’s reimagining of the 1978 space opera.
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In this chapter, Wiebe traces Ryan Reynolds’s career from his early 1990s television work through the Deadpool franchise (2016–2024), set against Vancouver’s growth as a …
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In this afterword, Wiebe examines the role that Vancouver has played as a film and television hub, a region frequently called "Hollywood North."
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This "chapter" includes a glossary of terms, organizations, and locations.
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This "chapter" is a bibliography.
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This "chapter" is an index of peole and titles.
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