It took a little longer than Evan Godfrey would have liked, but once he was able to get funding to shoot the pilot for his web series Climax, SK, he’s been lucky.
Thanks to funding from Telus Storyhive, Godfrey was able to shoot on location. The nine-minute series pilot is about Jim Dash (Mackenzie Gray), a spy on the run from assassins. He tries to live his previously luxurious life in the small Saskatchewan town.
Evan Godfrey the director, writer and producer of Climax, SK
When the trailer came out last year, Godfrey was approached by Fred Ewanuick (Hank from Corner Gas), who offered his help to get the web series made. Godfrey jumped at the offer, writing a brand new character into the script specifically for Ewanuick.
“It had to be the exact opposite (of Hank). So if I wrote him as a Russian villain I figured that might be something he was interested in,” he said. “When people think of TV shows about the prairies they think of Corner Gas and to have him involved I think is totally perfect for this project.”
Godfrey also managed to secure the rights to a song by The Sheepdogs to complement a scene involving an exploding snowman.
Godfrey’s luck almost ran out on the one day they were expecting to shoot in the town. He was hoping for a lot of snow but heard there wasn’t any on the ground when he began the drive from Vancouver.
“Overnight there was a huge blizzard so we woke up to perfect filming conditions,” he remembers. “It was literally the one day of the year where the conditions were totally perfect — and it happened completely by accident.”
Godfrey still needs help to keep Climax, SK’s good luck running — and to tell the story past the pilot’s cliffhanger ending. Viewers of the pilot episode can vote for the series to receive full funding on the Telus Storyhive website.