Welcome everybody back to another episode of WestVancouver.com / West Vancouver Magazine Podcast. Here in Hollywood North, we have lots of glam. And live on air with me today is one of those people who makes it all happen. We have Shawn Williamson here with us from Brightlight Pictures. It doesn’t get any better than this when it comes to lights, camera – action! Shawn, thank you for joining us.

Shawn
Oh, thank you, my pleasure.
Cat

Now I can only imagine what you’ve seen over 20 years of movie-making, T.V. and films. You’ve been involved in all aspects of it. Rumour also has it you’re from North Vancouver. So, where did this all start?

Shawn
Well, I did. I grew up in North Van. I went to Argyle. And so I’m a North Shore boy originally. But it started organically out of the theatre. I went to university for a very brief moment, and discovered it wasn’t really for me, and ended up working at the Arts Club Theatre where I did an apprenticeship and ultimately worked in all kinds of different technical and behind the scenes positions over the years - and ended up there as a stage manager before I transitioned into film and television.

Cat
So you weren’t the guy up front doing the tap-dancing - you were always the guy kind of behind the scenes helping put it all together? (laughs) Is that kind of accurate?

Shawn
I’ve never been on stage. (laughs) I have no talent whatsoever. So I’m very, very happy behind the camera.

Cat
Well, that’s completely not true. Because you clearly have absolute mounds of talent to be able to survive in what is an incredibly difficult industry and sometimes made more difficult by the fact that you’re Canadian. I know L.A. is a tough scene as well for anybody looking to make it big, but you’ve clearly made it big. So what exactly would you say your job title is? Tell us, what does somebody in your position do? What is your day like?
(Use the timestamps below to forward ahead in the podcast above)

Cast and Crew of ABC’s The Good Doctor - from left, David Shore, Shawn Williamson and Freddie Highmore. Photo credit: Sony Pictures Used with Permission

02:47 - Shawn
Well, it really does vary. Different producers do very different jobs. Some are working in development, finding scripts and packaging them, or putting them together with other talent, with actors, directors and studio money. And some producers, which is how I started, just grew up making movies.

Vancouver has generally been a destination for foreign films. And it certainly now has blossomed and grown and matured into a proper production destination where you can finance and package films. But earlier on, it was a destination. So I grew up in the industry making movies and television shows for U.S. studios or foreign financiers.
And so, part of my job originally was simply to make the movie. And you are effectively the employer on set. You’re the person that deals with the creative elements. You juggle all the elements that you would think - actors, directors, the studio’s desires, and the script. So you have a budget you’re working towards, and you’re spending effectively every part of that budget. But it’s largely people management, and our philosophical view in producing comes from what I learned at the Arts Club as a stage manager.

05:36 - Cat
Wow, well, I’m going to guess that there isn’t a producer’s school - this is something you had to really get in and get your hands on, as you said, use your experience. But it sounds like you really need to hone your focus and your talents on keeping all these balls in the air. I imagine the bigger the story, the bigger the script, and the bigger the cast, the more it can really run wildly out of control. So that sounds like that’s the hardest part – but what is the best part of your job?

06:18 - Shawn
The best part is the people – and telling stories. We’re making television, we’re telling stories, we’re making films and such - it doesn’t really matter when yo...