Toronto film crew finds warm and friendly welcome in Kincardine

Filming in Kincardine was like a breath of fresh air for the Toronto cast and crew of the movie, "Red Spring."

About a dozen people arrived May 2 at the farm of Doug and Joan Storrey, and the residence of Stacey Millar, which was home base for three weeks of shooting. While some stayed there, others were lodged with family and friends in the area.

"We have been blown away by how friendly and helpful everyone has been," says Tonya Dodds, a Kincardine native who is executive producer of the show. Her husband, Jeff Sinisac, is executive producer and director, and also plays the part of Ray in the movie.

Joining them, are actors Elysia White as Vicky, and Lindsey Middleton as Bailey, and crew members, Tom Antos, director of photography; Jonathan Robbins and Stacey Millar, producers; Randy Rush on sound; Jake O'Neill, assistant director; Caleb White, production assistant; and Matthew Luppino, assistant cameraman.

About 40 people from Kincardine have also participated as extras in the movie which is set just after a vampire apocalypse and focuses on a few remaining survivors. While there are some very epic action scenes, most of the film is dedicated to how a small group of survivors is trying to adjust to a new reality where humans are literally being hunted. They are travelling from place to place, looking for their loved ones and dealing with their grief and anger when those loved ones aren't found.

While the majority of the filming was done at the Storrey farm, there were key scenes shot in other locations, says Dodds, such as downtown Kincardine, the Kincardine Harbour, and the Kincardine Arts Centre auditorium.

"So many people have been so supportive," says Dodds. "They have donated their time, props, food. When we did the filming downtown, it looked like an accident and we had a lot of people coming over to find out what was going on."

Generally, however, the film equipment is quite compact so it's not obvious to the public that a film-shoot is under way, especially when the scenes are being done at the back of the Storrey farm.

The biggest challenge, says Dodds, was the weather. "We had a few cold nights, and there was one scene in which it just could not rain. But you can't control the weather."

Kincardine is a great place to shoot a movie, she says. So much so, that Sinisac has decided to use Kincardine as the setting, rather than a fictional town name.

"Stacey (Millar) and her daughter, Slayde, have been wonderful to us, letting us stay in their home," Dodds says. "Everyone has been instrumental in helping make this happen. Joan (Storrey) has ferried us to hard-to-reach locations on the farm, which has helped us out."

There are several other scenes that will have to be shot in different locations, she says, such as one in which the main characters are leaving a city - that will be done back in Toronto.

Darren Creces of Kincardine, who paints sets for the Kincardine Theatre Guild, helped turn Millar's basement into a bomb shelter for the filming, with walls that look so real, you have to touch them to realize they're just styrofoam.

Dodds says the plan is to sell the movie to a distribution company once it is finished. However, post-production work could take up to two years, as visual effects are added frame-by-frame.