Camp Kandalore in Algonquin Highlands will serve as the backdrop of an upcoming major Hollywood feature, by Blumhouse Productions, with filming to begin later this month.
Catherine Crawford, location manager for the movie, appeared before Algonquin Highlands council Nov. 7 seeking permission for crews to park cars along Kanawa Lane, Partridge Lake Road, and at the Stanhope Firefighters Community Centre, while also detailing plans for filming on township property.
Blumhouse is known mainly for producing horror films and while Crawford didn’t reveal any details surrounding the plot or who will be featured, she confirmed filming will mostly take place at night on the campgrounds.
The movie is slated for theatrical release and has the working title ‘Mysterium’. American filmmaker Scott Derrickson, known for his work on horror flicks Sinister, The Black Phone, Deliver Us from Evil, and The Exorcism of Emily Rose, as well as Marvel’s Doctor Strange, will direct, with Jason Blum and Robert Cargill serving as producers.
Crews arrived in the County Nov. 7 to prepare the location for filming. Shooting is set to begin Nov. 26 and wrap Dec. 12. All activities in the area will be concluded by Dec. 20, Crawford said.
She estimated the crew to be around 150 people, though not all will be on-site in the Highlands. Due to the large number of people, Crawford said there’s a need for additional parking on top of what’s available at the camp.
“It’s a complicated request – it sounds like you have an awful lot of vehicles to support,” said mayor Liz Danielsen, who expressed concern about cars being parked along the side of municipal roads in the event of a snowfall. “How would the vehicles impact our ability to plow?”
Public works manager Adam Thorn said he had no concerns – saying the roads in question are wide and plows will be able to maneuver around vehicles. Crawford also said workers would move their cars before the road is plowed.
She noted the film crew works long hours – for daytime shoots, staff will be on-site from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m., and for late shoots arriving around 11 a.m. and leaving at 1 a.m. Thorn noted there are no residential properties in the immediate vicinity – though there is a private road leading to cottages on Kushog Lake. Danielsen said she’d like those residents to be notified of the filming, which Crawford agreed to.
The proposal to shoot on municipal land is for the corner of Kandalore Road and Kanawa Lane Nov. 29 from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. Crawford said the scene will focus on characters arriving at camp during a blizzard. Kanawa Lane will play as a road off of a highway where actors have to get out of the car to see where the road is. They will drive along Kanawa Lane to the entrance of Camp Kandalore, where they will be greeted by a fictional camp employee on horseback.
She said crews will use a combination of visual and special effects to create artificial snow, which will be blown by large fans.
An application has been submitted to the Ministry of Transportation to close one lane on Hwy. 35 Nov. 29 so a lighting crane can be placed. Crawford said an OPP officer will be on-site to manage traffic.
Council approved the requests on condition a $10,000 damage deposit be submitted to the township, to cover any costs associated with clean-up, which Crawford agreed to.
“We brought [Blumhouse] to Canada rather than New York state, so this is very good [news] for the province and for the township,” Crawford said.
