CBS is onto something hot with their series Fire Country. The all-action drama follows the lives of various people connected to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), including numerous prison inmates who are volunteering to battle blazes in an attempt to shorten their sentences. Though the show has been bashed for its (lack of) realism, viewing figures were strong enough that the network renewed the series for another season earlier this year. One of the things that many people online have enjoyed about the show is the setting, which is supposed to be in California. However, as many have pointed out, most of the filming of the series actually took place in Canada. If you want to know more about where Fire Country is filmed, read ahead!
What is Fire Country about?
Fire Country follows the story of Bode Donovan (Max Thieriot), a young prisoner who has an incredibly troubled past. In an attempt to gain some redemption, and shorten his sentence, Donovan volunteers for the California Conservation Camp Program, which allows prisoners to assist the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. In a stroke of luck (or not), he is assigned to his hometown of Edgewater in Northern California, where he works alongside old friends, professional firefighters, and other inmates, trying to battle the massive forest fires that have been engulfing the region in recent years.
Although the series has been criticized for inaccuracy by the real Cal Fire organization, as well as law enforcement and prison services, it has been praised for bringing attention to the environmental impact of wildfires, and their increasing intensity in California.
Is Fire Country based on real life?
While the story of Fire Country isn’t based on real life, there are programs in which incarcerated people help to fight fires in exchange for reduced sentences. The stories on the show, however, are fabrications, and as many experts have pointed out, the storylines are often unrealistic from a procedural standpoint.
Where is Fire Country filmed?
Despite being set in Northern California, the vast majority of Fire Country was filmed in British Columbia, in Western Canada. Really, it was only some establishing shots for the fictional city of Edgewood that were filmed in the American state — this took place in Rio Dell, Humboldt County, which is where the show is actually set.
When the characters are in the actual city of Edgewood, they were mostly being filmed in the Vancouver metropolitan area, a huge urban center that has plenty of great spots to get town shots. Specifically, the village of Anmore in the Metro Vancouver area is where most of the shots based in Edgewater are taken. The Canadian city is right on the southwest corner of the mainland of BC and has been used countless times as a filming location. It was even a filming spot for Deadpool.
Other scenes in Edgewood were also filmed in Fort Langley, a small village in the township of Langley. The area has plenty of natural beauty, as well as enough structures to give it a town feel, and is actually home to a lot of interesting sites that made it onto the show, like the Fort Langley Community Park, the Community Hall, the Fort Langley National Historic Site, and others.
Some parts of the show are also filmed in Squamish, a small community and an absolutely stunning spot that’s about an hour north of Vancouver. Known for its gorgeous and rugged scenery, it’s become a mainstay for a lot of filmmakers looking to get some fantastic nature shots. In fact, Squamish has been featured as a production site in Final Destination and Big Sky, as well as plenty of other films and shows.
Generally speaking, Canada is much cheaper for production companies to film in than the States. This is for a variety of reasons, but the rugged landscapes and similarities in terms of the look of major cities make it an easy switch (American Psycho was famously filmed in Toronto, despite being entirely set in New York).
Will Fire Country be back for a second season?
Yes, it was confirmed in January 2023 that Fire Country would be back for a second season.
