2 posts tagged “road to avonlea”
The Filming of Road to Avonlea
People are often curious as to where Road to Avonlea was actually filmed. Most of Avonlea was filmed outside of Toronto on a set that we built near the town of Uxbridge, Ontario on a plot of land that I had originally used to shoot all of the reverse angles of Green Gables for the first Anne of Green Gables film.
I really liked the landscape there and when I decided to initiate production on the series that particular piece of land came to mind because of the vistas and because it looked a lot like PEI. Well, except for the brown dirt roads. For the first seasons we painted the roads red and later on began layering crushed brick in order to create the red sands of the island. I also used a lot of second unit footage that was shot in the Maritimes to give an authentic feel.
The set no longer exists, as we had to tear it down once production was completed so the town of Avonlea can only live on through film and imagination.
If you are interested, I’ve just published a book called "Beyond Green Gables: Kevin Sullivan's Designscapes". It's all about how to create the atmosphere and detail that exists in so many of my films in the world we live in today. It's full of anecdotes, actors, production and interior designs that would give you an insight into how the Avonlea world was created. It’s available on-line at our boutique www.sullivanboutique.com. I hope you check it out and let me know what you think.
Favorite Episode of Road to Avonlea
My favorite episodes of Road to Avonlea have always been the ones where we tried to do something innovative and different. I would have to say that my very favorite episode is from Season Five, episode 54 “Memento Mori.”
In this episode Hetty King comes face to face with her own mortality. In the process she learns to be happy in her own skin. She comes to the quiet realization in this emotional drama, that hers is actually a life well lived despite the fact that she is disappointed with her accomplishments. Her powerful desire to achieve great things, to be an important and even powerful personality, give way to acceptance that the most meaningful things in her life are family and community. They are the aspects of her life that give her purpose and make her cherished.
If you have a chance, go back and watch this episode again, it is such an intriguing inside look at the complex character that is Hetty King. Even though I played a role, along with Jackie Burroughs and the great Lucy Maud Montgomery, in making Aunt Hetty who she is, this episode taught me, and will teach you all, a little bit more about how Hetty King came to be such a strong woman, and can maybe teach us all a little bit about ourselves and how we came to be who we are.
