“Take your stinking paws off me, you damned dirty ape!
– Charlton Heston as George Taylor, Planet of the Apes
Sorry Chuck, but that was so-o-o-o 1968.
In 2013, local film buffs will consider themselves lucky to shake the hand of a primate from the “Apes” franchise.
That’s because filming of “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” begins in Campbell River next month.
“They’ll be here in April. That’s all I can say right now,” says Joan Miller, head of the Vancouver Island North Film Commission.
A pre-production crew has been scouting the area for months with the assistance of the film commission. They’ve also lined up supplies, rented equipment, booked hotel rooms, and hired a few local people for production jobs.
“They picked this location because of the scenic forest and landscapes,” says Miller. “But another attraction is the professional way they are treated in this community.”
What Miller really means is, people don’t go flapping their gums when Hollywood shows up in the River City. And up until Monday’s confirmation from Miller, the location for the outdoor scenes was kept under wrap.
As for the plot, according to screenrant.com:
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes will take place 15 years after its predecessor, in a world much changed from the last time audiences saw a troop of intelligent apes taking refuge in the California wilderness.
“The same engineered virus that gave Caesar and his fellow apes super-intelligence continues to rage throughout the world, wiping out entire population centers. Dawn will apparently focus on two intertwined stories – a group of scientists attempting to survive in a lawless, plague-devastated San Francisco while Caesar struggles to maintain control of the emerging ape society.”
The film stars Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Jason Clarke and Kodi Smit-McPhee, and is expected to be released in May 2014.
More Filming:
In addition to the movie, a new car commercial began filming in the Campbell River area this week.
“And no, it’s not the Gold River Highway,” Miller laughs.
She wouldn’t say what car company it is or where they’re filming other than the backroads.
“We must have scouted 300 to 400 kilometres of dirt roads last week. My car was covered in mud,” she says.
As well, from March 21-26, scenes for the movie “Nautilus” will be shot in Nanaimo.