Producer Spotlight: Jeremy Larter

Having filmed in both larger city centers and in Prince Edward Island, we asked Jeremy what he enjoys about filming in his home province.

Q: What do you enjoy most about filming in your home province?

A: I really like meeting all the new people that seem to come out of the woodwork to film a new project and creating new relationships.   It’s a big machine that requires a lot of cooperation, vehicles, extras, it’s a very intense environment for about a month and then we all go our separate ways until we come together again for another project.  I love seeing the different places on the Island you never knew existed while scouting new locations.

What I like about a small town is the low degree of separation, making it much easier to tap into resources.  If you need a location, you call your dad’s friend.  If you need a hot rod car from the 70’s, you call your cousin. All those pieces help put together a film industry that can grow.

Q: What are some of the challenges you’ve faced filming in PEI?

A: Filmmaking is one big challenge. PEI is a newer film industry and finding new people to crew up can be difficult. Working with smaller crews, you need very experienced people.  That experience base is currently building on the Island as more and more film productions come here.

When 63 Lights Entertainment was applying to Telefilm to produce “Who’s Your Father?”, Innovation PEI was able to help by providing development funding which enabled us to hire a marketing person, develop a marketing plan, hone a script and develop a pitch packet for our application.

Q: Do you have a favourite production?

A: I don’t really have a favourite production, as each experience has been different with a different set of challenges. It’s really about the logistics and time management.  It’s a very practical exercise.

There’s the artistry involved but you need to be in a certain place at a certain time with the right people to make something happen to get the job done for that day.

Q: What do you think is the biggest draw to attract more filmmakers to want to come to Prince Edward Island?

A: The Island really sells itself. We see lots of landscapes in tourism advertisements but not as much in the movies.  We can forget that PEI is a very exotic place when you put it on a movie screen.  For someone in New York, it could be California, or anywhere.  Also, the proximity of everything is really special. A beach, rolling fields, a small town, all within 20 minutes.

Having a competitive labour incentive/rebate really helps when competing with other provinces.  Really having a base of talent, highly trained crew, infrastructure and access to equipment needs to be built on.