Sask. feature film Die Alone just one of 13 headed to big screens

More investments in the Saskatchewan film industry mean 13 new productions recently filmed in the province are heading to the big screen. Enhancements to Regina’s IMAX theater are also slated to take place.

Evan speaks with Erin Dean, CEO of Creative Saskatchewan and Kevin Dewalt, producer with Minds Eye Entertainment, to hear more about these creative strides in the province and Die Alone which opens across Canada this weekend.

Thirteen projects were filmed in the province. Erin Dean, is that above normal?

DEAN: We’re absolutely seeing growth in the film industry across Saskatchewan. So those 13 shows that we featured at the IMAX a few weeks ago are just a sampling of the projects that have been funded over the past couple of years. Since April 2023 we have committed to 36 productions through our future film and television production grant.

What is Creative Saskatchewan?

DEAN: We are the economic development agency for Saskatchewan creative industries. So through targeted investments into different creative sectors, including film and television, music, both publishing, digital, interactive, live performing arts, craft, visual arts, we spur on economic activity and allow people to bring their projects here, create work here, create employment here, and positively impact the Saskatchewan economy.

How long have you been doing this now, Kevin Dewalt?

DEWALT: Minds Eye Entertainment was incorporated in February 1986.

Dewalt, you’ve made a go of it all of these years in Saskatchewan, there had to be some ups and downs in that time.

DEWALT: Oh, definitely. You know, when I started Minds Eye in the mid-80s, there really was no industry. I think the biggest thing that was being produced at that time was 30 second commercials at CKCK-DT, some of your listeners might remember that stage. There’s a few of us that got together and felt that it was time to tell Saskatchewan stories. We started an organization called the Saskatchewan Motion Picture Industry Association. That following year, we hired a half-time person. We started to talk to the government. We started to go to festivals and markets for industry, and it didn’t take long. Within three or four years, the industry started, and we started from the grassroots up. At one point, we built the industry up to about $70 million a year in production.

Do we have people who are trained in our province, or do you have to go out of province when you’re putting together a crew for a film or a set that you’re working on?

DEWALT: We definitely have some skilled people in the province. In fact, there are still people around who head up departments that I started working with back in the late ’80s. We all have a bit of gray hair, but there’s an incredible amount of experience, and we’re in the process of training and developing the younger generation. And the current movie that that’s being talked about this week, Die Alone, had about 30 to 40, trainees in it. We’re really, really committed to rebuilding the industry.

We’ve seen some investments Erin Dean recently in the province that probably make your job easier when you’re trying to attract business to Saskatchewan. Talk about that?

DEAN: The best example of why you would want to make projects in Saskatchewan are the films that are made here. So this weekend, the feature film Die Alone opens in Cineplex theatres in Canada. It showcases Saskatchewan on the big screen. It looks beautiful. It’s a great example of the talent and the passion of the crew who brought that project to life. And we hope that everyone gets a chance to see it. And when we go out to market to attract good projects to Saskatchewan, we point to projects like Die Alone to say look what can be done here. Look at the calibre of the workers here. So I hope everyone gets a chance to go see it, because it’s fantastic.

Where was Die Alone shot in the province?

DEWALT: We started in July last summer, and our main locations were quite a bit around southern Saskatchewan. We shot some in Regina, some in Qu’Appelle, some in Fort Qu’Appelle and some in Indian Head.

What kind of reaction do you get from small-town Sask. when you’re in town shooting, and you’re generating a buzz in the coffee shop?

DEWALT: It’s remarkable. Actually, I think people get that you’re here in that community, and you see your community on the big screen, especially in this film. This film is going to be across Canada, starting on Friday. We’ve already sold the movie to over 25 countries around the world. We’re just so proud to show Saskatchewan to the world, and it’s such a beautiful spot. It doesn’t get seen as much as it should. So we hope that this film really shows off what’s such a beautiful province we have.

Erin Dean, are we a province, or do we have an industry here that can attract big names?

DEAN: We’re developing the next generation of producers as well, so we’ve been really focused on finding training initiatives and accelerator programs to help the next crop of producers. That is the key — finding the talent, finding the profile that can help you sell your project and get it made. And we know Saskatchewan is a great place to make a movie.

In those communities where they filmed — Katepwa, Indian Head Fort Qu’Appelle — they love film production because they come in and spend a pile of money at their local businesses as well. So it’s good for the province, it’s good for our profile. And I think as the industry grows  we’ll see more projects with high-profile people and hopefully more projects on the big screen in theatres.

Kevin Dewalt, are there any big names people would recognize that you’ve worked with?

DEWALT: Die Alone was my 33rd feature film, we’ve worked with a lot of big stars over the years. Forest Whitaker spent several weeks in Regina shooting a film called Lullaby For Pi. In Die Alone we have Carrie-Anne Moss as our lead. Carrie-Anne Moss (Matrix series) is Canadian. She’s considered an A-list star around the world. We’ve also got Frank Grillo. Grillo is known as an action star, but he has a dramatic role in this movie.

And we have some young actors, too, like Douglas Smith. There’s a Kevin Costner movie called Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 2 coming out in November, and he’s got the lead role in that. He’s an up and coming Canadian. He’s going to go places. We’ve just been fortunate to have just lots of stars over the years, and when they come, they get treated like normal people. We don’t have the paparazzi, they don’t have to hide. They get to explore and see the communities. And without exception, they just blown away of what we have to offer.

We did a we did a movie called The Tall Man and had Jessica Biel here. She’d never been to the prairies, never been to Saskatchewan. And she absolutely loved it. I understand that she’s been back since just for a holiday. It’s really the people and the communities that attract people to the province. And, of course, the beauty. There’s nothing better than a successful commercial feature film that’s seen around the world and they say, “where was that shot?” That’s gonna happen on this movie. People are going to dig into the internet. They’re gonna explore and realize, wow, I’ve never been there. Let’s go check it out. That’s what film can do to a community.

Kevin, can you give us a quick synopsis of the plot Die Alone?

DEWALT: I would call a zombie-love story-thriller. In the business, you’re never supposed to do three genres together, but we took a chance on this one.It’s set in a kind of a post-apocalyptic world where nature has taken over. There’s a young man named Ethan who has amnesia and through the movie we explore what happened to him. He’s trying to find his girlfriend and he’ll just go and do whatever he needs to do to find her. With zombies it turns out to be a thriller with some action. Because it crosses genres it’s going to appeal to both men and women — and it just looks terrific. That’s why Cineplex has picked it up and is releasing it across the country.

Erin Dean, what else is on the horizon?

We have more projects filming across Saskatchewan. There’s a great series called Guardians of the North and that is the Saskatchewan story of the people at Candle Lake who are working to save their communities from wildfires.  We have a great show called Flat Out Food that goes across Saskatchewan. We’re working with Kevin on bringing the next feature, so there is lots to celebrate about Saskatchewan’s film industry.

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