Eager aspiring actors and community supporters were at L.V. Rogers Secondary School on Saturday for the shooting of the final scene of the feature length film Project: Turquoise Snowflake.
The final scene of the film was a sit-in, staged in the school gym, and to create the illusion that there was a huge crowd, the filmmakers called on the community for help.
“The response from the community has been great,” said L.V. Rogers vice-principal Tim Mushumanski.
“On Monday [October 17] Alex Atamanenko pitched our film in Parliament for a 60 second member’s statement, which the whole school watched live, and what a thrill that was for us. Right now we’ve got the drama room full of extras. They’ve really responded and how cool is that that people are coming out? It’s not a school thing, it’s a bigger-than-our-school thing.”
Since the film was pitched in 2010, students and staff have been hard at work creating a film that Mushumanski hopes will be shown on the big screen.
“I’d love to see it get into a few of the film festivals and really put our school and Nelson on the map — although there’s already many reasons for it to be on the map — but also to get kids, adults and politicians talking about climate change and what does it mean. Whether you agree with it or not I hope that people would talk about it.”
Mushumanski is an actor in the film, playing a principal, but is also an executive producer or “gopher,” as he puts it.
Project: Turquoise Snowflake is a feature length movie about three main characters — all students — who get fed up with what the adults, adult world, teachers and government are not doing about this looming environmental crisis.
“They start to become activists and become involved,” said executive producer Jo Ann Lowell. “Initially they are a bit out on the fringe. As you see their internal transformation, you see how they transform and the world around them starts to transform and eventually they are leading the town to this place of waking up, that we all have to get to together,”
She also said the film is a true Kootenay story. One of the characters doesn’t know who her dad is because her mom conceived at the Shambhala Music Festival.
Both Lowell and Mushumanski said working with the students has been really inspiring.
Students have been involved in the film both in front of the camera and behind it.
They have been working directly with some of the professionals like cameramen and editors, and Mushumanski hopes some of the skills may turn into careers for some of them.
“I’m hearing from the professionals that are here ‘that kid really has potential, they could do this as a career,’” he said. “There are many roles many of us had no idea existed because we don’t know about the film industry and kids are getting this kind of insider’s glimpse into it. Who knows where they’ll go with it but I’d love to have kids come back in 10 years and say you know what, I’m doing this now because of this film and it’s awesome.”
Lowell said Project: Turquoise Snowflake is unique because it is the first film of its kind in Canada produced by students. Editing is expected to be completed by February.