UBC Reports | Vol. 48 | No. 11 | Sep.
5 , 2002
Campus popular with filmmakers
By Helen Lewis
On an average day, Cecil Green Park House is home to bright
reception areas and busy university offices. But when the
crew of The Dead Zone rolls in, it becomes the moody Maine
mansion of psychic hero Johnny Smith.
Based on the characters of a popular Stephen King novel,
The Dead Zone follows the story of Smith who, after a tragic
car accident, awakens from a coma with paranormal powers.
The Dead Zone crew films the outside of Cecil Green Park
House for "establishment shots" of Johnny Smith’s
home, and has special sets constructed for the interior scenes.
UBC is a regular location for the USA Network cable series,
which broke rating records with its June debut to become the
top basic cable original dramatic series ever.
Cecil Green Park is just one of many UBC locations used by
film crews. With about 70 days of filming taking place on
campus in an average year, makeup trailers, catering vans,
film crews and directors’ chairs are a common sight – particularly
around Main Library, the Chan Centre and the Chemistry Building.
Big-budget feature films Anti-Trust, Josie and the Pussycats
and Along Came A Spider and popular television shows Smallville,
Dark Angel and Mysterious Ways have filmed here – bringing
with them stars like Kristin Kreuk, Rachel Leigh Cook, Tom
Welling, Ryan Phillippe, Tara Reid, and Claire Forlani.
In 2001, UBC saw the filming of eight television series,
nine feature films, six movies of the week, three documentaries,
four educational films, five commercials, one video, one pilot
and one miniseries.
Commercials filmed on campus include those for Compaq, Nescafe,
Nintendo, Chase Manhattan Bank, Mitsubishi, Sprite and Wal-Mart.
Television series such as Seven Days, These Arms Of Mine,
Higher Ground and Poltergeist: The Legacy have also filmed
scenes at UBC. The Dead Zone location manager, Mary Jo Beirnes,
said UBC was "an awesome place to film" because
of its old stone buildings and beautiful gardens.
Strict guidelines are in place to ensure filming does not
disrupt university activities, and to preserve UBC’s reputation
and public image.
