When Swiss-born film director Josias Tschanz went home to make his first feature length movie, it wasn't to Europe. He and a film crew headed to the north of British Columbia
to the Lake District near Tweedsmuir Park.
This, for the latter teen years of his life, was home before Tschanz moved to Vancouver where he now bases his film career.
Cougar Ranch and Capstone Ranch are neighbouring sprawls in the ultra rural backcountry of the Lakes District. It is where modern culture and traditional principals are still raw nerves buzzing against each other, as they did in Tschanz's upbringing here. His parents pursued the urban Euro dream of living amongst the mountains and forests of Canada, bringing 15-year-old Tschanz along - unwillingly. They called their destination Cougar Ranch.
Even by rural Canadian standards, the place is off the beaten track. It is 500 hectares of forest and lakes at the foot of Brown's Mountain. The nearest town, Burns Lake, is an hour-and-half away, except at night, when the ferry stops and it is entirely cut off from distant civilization.
The Tschanz family set to work there close to 10 years ago, hacking a tourist resort out of the trees. It operates there today, with his gruff, grizzled father Hans still sitting on the front porch. He and the land share major parts in Neutral Territory, a fictional story Tschanz and friend Joel Mark Harris scripted on elements of his youth and that place.
"My parents have a tourist ranch, very modern looking. My mom and dad built all the log cabins, but it was too nice for what I was needing," Tschanz told The Citizen in an exclusive interview.
"My dad's character is a very stubborn, patriot Swiss immigrant stuck on his old ways. We needed something that suited his personality, and Capstone Ranch next door was totally deserted. A Dutch businessman named Harry Kessels had bought it and a Polish-German family lives there now, but at the time it was empty and Mr. Kessels gave us permission to use the place. It was in great condition, but just enough rustic charm and charisma to fit [the character of Wernie]."
In the story, a modern Swiss-Canadian son comes home to confront his aging Swiss father over the ownership of the property now that father Wernie is aging and alienated son Henry wants to get on to a married life in the city. Under clouds of tension and drama, there is an element of romantic love, an element of family love, and an element of connection to the land. Father, son and set play themselves in the movie.
"We tried to make the landscape part of the film, almost a character in the film," said Tschanz. "The scenery is breathtaking. It had the lakes, the forest, the mountains, there is something so cinematic up there. It would be a pleasure for any filmmaker."
The Lakes District has hardly ever seen a film crew before. A couple of documentaries have been filmed about the Cheslatta Carrier Nation on whose traditional territory the Tschanz family ranch now sits. Recording artist Rachelle Van Zanten was also raised in the area and filmed some music video footage on home soil (Tschanz attempted to include one of her songs in the film but was unable. The two intend to work together on a future project, he said). This is the first time the residents hosted a full movie shot primarily on their location.
"It was a total Burns Lake affair. It was 75 per cent shot on the Southside [the area south of Francois Lake] and 25 per cent shot in town," Tschanz said.
We had my parents' ranch, of course, with their 20 horses. My mom did a lot of the catering. Our good friend Klaus Posselt is a pilot so he helped us with our aerial shots. A good friend of mine who lives down in Vancouver with me now, Paul Lazerus, helped with casting. We got some old Burns Lake friends to play some parts. Kevin Derksen played a doctor and Kris Shively played a nurse. We had 30 or 40 extras for the bar scene, all of them from Burns Lake. We had a tremendous amount of support. They let us use the Francois Lake ferry, the hospital was very accommodating for five or six scenes we shot in there. And from a filmmaker's point of view, the colours there, the natural light, is excellent, he said.
Using his own father - whom he describes as a farmer turned actor - was also as natural as the wind in the trees. Hans has been building list of credits, thanks to his son's passion for film. He was first cast in the short Saskia's Letter, again as the father of a conflicted youth and again set on a rural ranch. Tschanz said he auditioned several seasoned actors for these roles but he couldn't get his own dad's face out of his head.
Even those without blood relations felt like a family on this set, Tschanz said.
"The chemistry we had was remarkable, considering it was two weeks of 16- to 18-hour days, only one day off. I was very impressed with the whole crew and cast."
We had a very international crew: South Africa, Colombia, Japan, Switzerland, Canadians from the city and various places, he added.
For them, they were telling me it was like a trip into another world going from the Southside to Burns Lake. It takes an hour-and-a-half by car and I remember doing that every day as a kid going to LDSS [Lakes District secondary school] and thought nothing of it. It used a lot of gas, and people from elsewhere think that's a world tour, but for people who live there, you don't even think about it, said Tschanz.
Neutral Territory used mostly lesser-known actors.
It was the first credit for Crystal Debruyn, who played Henry's fiance.
It is also the first credit for Laura McCarthy who played the farm hand and Henry's old school friend, but TV viewers might remember she won the singing title on the CBC reality show Triple Sensation.
Brian Leslie, who portrayed the unscrupulous lawyer Henry, has had a lot of credits mostly for commercials with some parts in feature films and television.
Tschanz himself has been in a couple of short films as an actor before he took on Neutral Territory's character. Although mostly focused on being a director, he is involved in a documentary called Kick about soccer fans in South Africa. He has a number of other feature film projects under development as well, and credits the experience and acclaim Neutral Territory has provided for attracting more experienced cast and crew to his future endeavours.
Although Neutral Territory has not yet had a wide distribution, it has been released within the film industry. It has been nominated for a Maverick Movie Award (Best Cinematography - Vince Arvidson) and is an official selection for the upcoming Beloit International Film Festival in the Chicago area.
Local film fans can get their first look at the movie on the May long weekend in Burns Lake where a gala reception with multiple screenings will be held. Many of the cast and crew are returning for this event, and Tschanz is excited to see the turnout from the town's population to share in the celebration.
He doesn't expect a neutral reaction.
