Bringing television drama to St. John's

Creating a shiny new television drama series based in St. John's takes more than just a few cameras and some running around the downtown core.

In the case of "Republic of Doyle," premiering Jan. 6 on CBC-TV, it has meant gathering local film talent, working with municipal and provincial government representatives as well as outfitting two warehouse-like spaces with sets detailed with materials found in the province.

"Republic of Doyle" stars Newfoundland's Allan Hawco as Jake Doyle, a private investigator working in the city of St. John's.

Regular filming for the series began this summer. Yet, before filming could begin, sets needed to be built to create the indoor locations seen in the shows - everything from Doyle's garage to prison cells.

"If you come through here, you'll notice those little small details they've included to project reality," said executive producer John Vatcher, stepping into the Doyle kitchen during a fall tour of the sets.

The kitchen was built like any other, but it was built inside the former Torbay recreation centre as opposed to a regular home.

In giving the tour for media, Vatcher highlighted the attention given to making the sets feel like real places, but also making them feel real to Newfoundland.

While some television series will use illusionary techniques to suggest local materials, said producer Rob Blackie - such as painting plywood to look like certain types of local wood products - "Republic of Doyle" used materials from within the province or local recycled materials.

For example, the Doyle kitchen uses real Newfoundland slate and the floor of the Doyle home is actually made from the old bleachers of the former rec centre.

Gordon Barnes, production designer on "Republic of Doyle," carried the task of developing each of the indoor location sets. Barnes did not work in the studio when he first arrived in town.

"For the first few weeks I was here, I was drawing, but I was also visiting people's homes," said the designer, adding he took inspiration from the colour palettes and even the furniture people had used.

The goal was to help anchor "Republic of Doyle" in this place through the right set decoration.

"It's one of the first shows not afraid to say where it is," Barnes said.

He explained the idea was refreshing, noting how some dramatic shows set in Toronto will try to appear as a generic city, one that could be somewhere in the United States as easily as somewhere in Canada. Even "very Canadian" shows like "Corner Gas" are set in fictitious towns, he said.

In "Republic of Doyle," a bar set that appears in the show is referred to by the cast and crew as the "Duck of Dukeworth" and is specifically inspired by the St. John's pub the Duke of Duckworth. Posters around the set advertise for Quidi Vidi Brewery beer and Andy Jones's one-man show, "An Evening With Uncle Val."

"I had Terry and Colin, the owners (of the Duke), come in and you could see they didn't quite know what to make of it," Barnes said with a laugh.

In addition to locations and set, Newfoundland-born actors are peppered throughout the cast, and the show will lean heavily on guest appearances by stars originally from this province, including Mary Walsh, Mark Critch, Bob Joy and Gordon Pinsent.

At peak production in late November, 300 people were on the "Republic of Doyle" set - 120 actors and crew as well as 180 extras.

Blackie said the provincial government's Department of Finance and Department of Culture, Tourism and Recreation both became interested and involved early in the show's creation. He said a particular thanks should go to the City of St. John's.

"The mayor's office and special events committee, they have rolled out the green, white and pink carpet, if you will," Blackie said.

According to a provincial government news release, the series is expected to generate more than $11 million in economic spin-off for the province.

afitzpatrick@thetelegram.com

THE 'REPUBLIC OF DOYLE'TEAM

Creators
Allan Hawco, Malcolm MacRury, Perry Chafe
Cast
Sean McGinley, Allan Hawco, Krystin Pellerin, Rachael Wilson, Lynda Boyd, Mark O'Brien, Marthe Bernard
Executive producers
Michael Levine, John Vatcher, Allan Hawco
Producer
Rob Blackie
Writers (As of Nov. 2009)
Jesse McKeown, Steve Cochran, Cal Coons, Jeremy Boxen, Avrum Jacobson, John Callaghan, Perry Chafe
(Source: "Republic of Doyle" producer Rob Blackie)