Spanning four decades, I have worked in Alberta’s film and television industry, mainly as a background performer for various movies, television series, and commercials..I started back in the late 90s as a background performer for Mystery, Alaska — a movie filmed in Canmore, starring Russell Crowe. I played two roles — townsfolk and a sports reporter — and lived out in Canmore for the better part of two months for the shoot..It was a blast, although it was comical as Crowe got himself kicked out of every pub in Canmore for being a snaky drunk when not filming. .Over the years, I’ve worked on dozens of productions including Fargo, Wynonna Earp, Tin Star, The Detour, Joe Picket, Heartland, Ride, Black Summer, and several commercials. . The Western Standard's Mel Risdon, left, on the set of Mystery, AlaskaThe Western Standard's Mel Risdon, left, on the set of Mystery, Alaska .When my agent called and said she could get me in for The Last of Us (TLOU), I agreed as I always do, and made myself available for multiple shoot dates in July 2021..I’d never heard of TLOU, as I’m not a gamer, however, my husband James was elated at the news. He is an occasional gamer and has played this particular one for years. .As James explained the game to me, I had flashbacks of apocalyptic zombie scenes on the TV screen while he played and remembered I found watching a bit unsettling and even terrifying at times. And yet, this is what I had signed up for. .I didn’t know much about the show or who was starring in it, but James — also a huge fan of Game of Thrones — pointed out Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, two actors from the blockbuster HBO TV series, had been cast in TLOU. Cool, I was doing my homework before hitting the set. I have since learned TLOU is believed to be the largest television production in Canadian history. It’s expected to bring in over $200 million to Alberta's economy and less than two weeks after the show premiered mid-January this year, HBO announced it was committing to a second season of the show. .The initial scenes in Episode 1 were shot in High River and Fort Macleod beginning in July 2021. I was booked on set for both locations, most days shooting until near sunup. Day one of filming was shot in High River in a quiet cul-de-sac transformed into a patriotic US-based town complete with American flags and cactus plants. The shoot was establishing where the main character — Joel (played by Pascal) — and his daughter Sarah lived back in the early 2000s..I was on set with my son’s 1992 Toyota Corolla as a prop car parked in one of the driveways of a home in the cul-de-sac. I can pick it out in one scene as the camera pans around just after Joel kills his infected zombie neighbour, but it’s a blur. .It's interesting to note that everything you see in a scene — every person walking, product placement, flag, sign, car parked or driving — is there by design. Every detail is considered. For instance, my parked vehicle, although a blur on a dark driveway likely 50 or 60 feet away from the shot, had US licence plates in place of our Alberta one. Nothing is random and the attention to detail ensures continuity from shot to shot. When a scene is shot, there can be several takes, even dozens for some of the action-based scenes..The one scene in Episode 1 where Joel and his brother Tommy pull up, jump out of the truck and Joel kills his infected elderly neighbour took more than a dozen takes from all different angles. I sat across the street the whole time and watched thinking, “It will be neat to see this scene play out on the screen.” I wasn't disappointed. .The shoot in that cul-de-sac took several days as the action scenes required a lot of choreographing and there were many special effects involved. The shoots typically started later in the day and would go all night as I would drive home watching the sun come up. It was a hot few days, as well, and with COVID-19 protocols in place, masks had to be worn when on set unless you were eating. At times it was sweltering. .During downtime between scenes, we background actors were sent to what’s called “holding,” which was in a nearby church. There we were fed well, kept hydrated, and could stretch out for a rest from time to time. We were also required to leave our cellphones behind in holding before heading to set as pictures or any social media posts of what is being shot are strictly prohibited. .Those few days in High River, although hot and long, were fun. Gabriel Luna, one of the other actors who plays Joel’s younger brother Tommy, was very personable and would chat with us background performers, which doesn’t happen all that often as the actors usually stay in other locations on set. Luna often carried around a guitar and, when he wasn’t needed in a scene, would play and sing for the crew and us. .I chatted with Luna on a few occasions behind the scenes and whenever he would see me, he’d wave and yell, “Hey Mel!” I was flattered. .Shortly after the High River shoot, we were off to Fort Macleod to shoot the scenes where the town is being overrun by the infected and a plane ends up crashing down on the main street of the town. For that shoot, I was part of a family and paired up with a fellow my age and a teenage boy. Again, the shoots were typically later in the day and we were on set through the night until just before dawn. .In the scene I was in, my faux family and I had to run down the street as horrified people poured out of the town theatre running from the blood-drenched infected. There was so much blood. Blood everywhere. Fake blood, but hoards of it, nonetheless. In fact, when we were in for wardrobe before the shoot, the wardrobe team asked for those of us who didn’t mind our clothes getting ruined with blood to come to an area where makeup artists would add the fake red goo to our bodies, hair, and clothes. I opted to stay clean. .Although the days were hot, as often Alberta nights can be, it would get quite chilly in the wee hours of the morning. One poor guy had to lay on the pavement near us for hours while they shot the scene, his head resting in a cold pool of red goo. Between shoots the crew would give him something to prop his head up, cover him with a blanket and stuff hand-warmer packets where he needed them. Poor guy. .The route my faux family and I had to run had us scrambling alongside Joel’s truck for a portion of the scene. It was interesting to see all the rigs and equipment they used to get the shots — hanging cameras in front, beside, and behind the truck and bringing rigs inside the cab to capture all angles of the scene. It took all night. .During a bathroom break, I trekked to the honeywagon — the term used for portable toilet trailers in the film and television industry — one block over from set. There I saw props and set crew working on an upside-down truck, identical to the truck Joel was driving in the scene. They were making it look like it had flipped from an explosion. Later I learned about the plane crash on that main street. I wondered how that would translate on the screen as we were instructed to run one way down the street then turn around after seeing the plane hurling towards the ground and run the other way. I was impressed by the final result as the special effects are incredible for this show. .During that shoot in Fort Macleod, Luna again sat with a few of us, played his guitar and sang between shoots. As we chatted with him, we shared some suggestions on great Alberta sites he should try to visit while here shooting, including hitting the mountains. He was a pleasure to work with. .The Alberta shoot continued in various locations including Calgary and Edmonton. Because I played a background role in the earlier shoots, for continuity, a performer cannot be cast again, so I just followed along from afar reading news articles of the production’s progress as it moved around Alberta and caused the odd traffic snarl in Calgary’s downtown core from time to time. .Then to my surprise, my agent contacted me in June 2022 to get me lined up again for a re-shoot in High River. Apparently, they needed to re-shoot some of the opening scenes again, which I was happy to do. Unfortunately for the locations team, they had to recreate the street — US flags, cactus plants and all — all over again. But for me, it was a nice surprise to have the opportunity to come back and be a part of this amazing thing taking Alberta by storm..TLOU is now my favourite show to look forward to each week. If you haven’t seen it yet, you’re missing out!
