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SHOOT: Karl Urban & Minka Kelly Film TV Pilot ALMOST HUMAN in Vancouver’s Business District

J.J. Abrams and Fringe showrunner Joel Wyman’s TV pilot Almost Human (formerly Human) is filming in downtown Vancouver’s Business District on West Hastings Street, transformed into a futuristic Los Angeles, for the second day in a row this weekend. Stars Karl Urban (Star Trek’s Bones) and Minka Kelly (Friday Night Lights) are on set as Los Angeles police officers at the crime scene of yesterday’s armoured vehicle heist.

Related: TV pilot Almost Human Films Armoured Car Heist in Vancouver’s Business District

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PROMOS: ARROW 1×13 Betrayal Promo Images – Updated

David Anders (Once Upon a Time and Alias) is the next cult guest star to drop by Arrow. We’ll meet him next Wednesday night as infamous Starling City criminal Cyrus Vanch, who plans to take on Stephen Amell’s The Hood to re-establish his reputation as a leading crime lord. Something tells me it won’t work out.

But the theme of the episode is betrayal and there seems to be plenty of that to go around. In the Island flashbacks, Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen meets Manu Bennett’s man-behind-the-Deathstroke-mask who claims there are two masks..

© 2013 The CW Television Network

Flash forward to Starling City where the major betrayals are parental. Katie Cassidy’s Laurel is betrayed by her father who uses her as bait to capture The Hood, filmed in the rain on top of the Bentall parkade in front of a gaggle of visiting American TV journalists. Afterward Laurel angrily tells Colin Donnell’s Tommy about it but he’s not thrilled she kept her meetings with The Hood secret from him.

Read More »PROMOS: ARROW 1×13 Betrayal Promo Images – Updated

SHOOT: ARROW’s Motorcycle Stunt for 1×15 at Oceanic Plaza Downtown

Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen stole a motorcycle last night in downtown Vancouver’s Portal Park. Afterwards, Amell’s stunt double turned the bike around in a couple of 360s before roaring off. The next leg of the stunt was the bike racing from the roof of a yellow Starling City cab down onto West Hastings below, dodging prop traffic as it rides the yellow line to the end of the block. You can see one camera on top of a ladder on the right of the photo below and another at the end of the block near the intersection with Thurlow. Other legs of the stunt included riding down the stairs at Oceanic Plaza and up over the yellow Starling City cab. And there was talk of another segment across the Hastings pedestrian overpass. Unfortunately I couldn’t stay to see it all.

Read More »SHOOT: ARROW’s Motorcycle Stunt for 1×15 at Oceanic Plaza Downtown

SHOOT: Newlywed Stephen Amell Steals Motorcycle for ARROW 1×15 at Portal Park Downtown

Newly-married Arrow star Stephen Amell shot a scene last night in the winter cold at downtown Vancouver’s Portal Park of his character Oliver Queen dressed in a sharp suit and stealing a motorcycle. You’d think a billionaire like Queen could toss the guy a few bucks to borrow his bike but the owner refused to give it up and Queen had to adminster a beatdown. Amell did the fake beatdown himself from several different camera angles until his stunt double took over for the stunt riding and Amell waved goodbye to a fan from his departing star car. Not long after, news broke on Just Jared.com that Amell had married his longtime girlfriend Cassandra Jean over the holiday hiatus in a sunset Caribbean ceremony on Christmas Day. That might explain Arrow fight coordinator James Bamford and his wife’s Caribbean snaps over the holiday hiatus. Wonder how many Arrow cast and crew attended?

Read More »SHOOT: Newlywed Stephen Amell Steals Motorcycle for ARROW 1×15 at Portal Park Downtown

WEEK: November 26 – December 2, 2012

ARROW’s Katie Cassidy & Colin Donnell Filming Downtown at Oceanic Plaza

Uh-oh Tommy. Looks like Laurel’s mad at you. Katie Cassidy’s Laurel paced up and down as the Arrow cameras rolled in downtown Vancouver’s Oceanic Plaza yesterday, before stepping right into Colin Donnell’s face in take after take. She talked and talked until he walked away. It should have been a romantic setting with that big balloon light floating above them to simulate moonlight, but apparently not. Guy Bee (@GuyNormanBee) is directing this episode, which had an earlier outside scene of Colin Donnell’s Tommy walking and talking to Laurel on his cell phone along West Hastings. [Update: So Laurel was mad at her Dad who used her as bait in a bid to capture The Hood; and Tommy walks away because Laurel hadn’t told him she’d been meeting with The Hood].

Read More »ARROW’s Katie Cassidy & Colin Donnell Filming Downtown at Oceanic Plaza

WEEK: October 29 – November 4, 2012

SHOOT: FRINGE Films in NYC Taxi in Downtown Vancouver for Ep. 5×09

As streets began flooding in the real Manhattan yesterday morning and the east coast braced for Hurricane Sandy’s full impact, Fringe filmed scenes in a NYC taxicab in cloudy, wet Vancouver dressed as Manhattan under Observer Occupation in 2036. It sure put our rain in perspective.

I didn’t find the set until close to lunchtime and not long after Fringe wrapped and returned to studio for the rest of the day, so I don’t know if there were scenes other than John Noble’s Walter in the cab along with an unexpected guest star from seasons earlier. I won’t spoil the identity of that guest star until the producers choose to, because one of the joys of the final season is the way Fringe brings back or echoes former cases and characters. After the guest star wrapped, a Flex star car picked up her and Jasika Nicole’s Astrid, who must have been in that very crowded cab as well. I can’t imagine the risk they took talking in a cab with all those background Observers and Loyalist soldiers walking past. And on one of the background cabs driving by — a Reward Wire rooftop ad. Remember the creepy-good Captain Windmark-voiced Fringe teaser, Wanted: Peter Bishop, ahead of the season premiere?

Read More »SHOOT: FRINGE Films in NYC Taxi in Downtown Vancouver for Ep. 5×09