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International Locations: Forest and Jungle
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Any filmmaker with an environmental conscience and a forest shoot scheduled is bound to be quivering with fear. Will the endangered species and rare plants be crushed by clumsy camera crews? The answer is – probably not, so long as your production crew takes care to abide by the laws and regulations of the country you’re in. Follow these and everyone wins: the native country gets publicity which boosts tourism, and you get some fantastic shots of magnificently distinctive flora and fauna.
The Americas
North America offers massive tracts of forest on its eastern and western seaboards. Anyone who’s read Bill Bryson’s A Walk In The Woods will know that the forests of the Appalachian mountains alone are vast, containing varied and spectacular scenery – especially in the quite literal ‘fall’ season. Hawaii and Florida have rainforests - with the well-known mangrove swamps offering a tropical feel, whilst California is notable for the incredible diversity of its pine species.
Canada’s forests – both deciduous and coniferous - must not be forgotten. Firs, silver maple groves and alders can be found in old growth forests like the Quinsam River Forest. Alternatively, Kelowna Forest in Okanagan provides a forest location with a twist; the infamous 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park fires destroyed 240 homes, leaving behind a burned landscape. This can deliver a startlingly stark territory, used to tremendous effect in summer 2005 as the ‘dead zone’ where the zombies lived in Andrew Currie’s new release, Fido.
As one progresses further north, leafy woodland turns to conifer forest and then, eventually, to tundra, ice and snow - very different from the Caribbean, where tropical rainforests exist on most islands. Though limited in size, there are many places to choose from. Fig Tree Drive on Antigua and Frigate Bird Sanctuary on Barbuda are two very moody and atmospheric examples.
Most South American countries feature extensive jungle. The uncompromising high plains of Bolivia give way to rich jungle towards the north and east, whilst in Costa Rica the jungles and waterfalls are famously spectacular, and - less famously - are easily accessible. Little need be said about Brazil. The Amazonian rainforest is the largest and most diverse in the world. Based here are several location services companies with extensive experience, regularly taking production trips into the humid depths.
The twelve per cent of Argentina that’s covered in forest has received less attention. Of 40 national parks and numerous protected areas, only the Tierra del Fuego in the south is particularly well known. It features the southernmost area of the Andean-Patagonian forest, made up mainly of lenga and guindo trees. The forest floors here are famous for being extremely damp, with sphagnum mosses and ferns covering everything underfoot.
Europe
Europe is spoilt for choice when it comes to both deciduous and evergreen forests. There are many well-known forest locations – the historical Ardennes, the Italian Apennines, and Germany’s Black Forest being but a few examples. However, there are also hundreds of less frequented location opportunities.
The Czech Republic’s Sumava National Park has hilly, heavily wooded landscapes – low mountain ranges that adjoin the Bavarian Forest National Park across the border in Germany. From the mountain peaks it’s possible to gaze across unending vistas of forest scenery. Swedish forests include Kilsbergen, Tiveden and the forests of Norrland. Some areas have been heavily hit by air pollution drifting across from continental Europe, creating varying shades of death and decay. If a primeval feel is more what you’re looking for, try the prehistoric Bialowieza Forest to the north-east of Warsaw in Poland – an unspoiled, unique coniferous forest with a very, very long history.
Europe also has some extremely fragile environments, so sensitive that filming is only permitted with light equipment. Hand-held cameras only is the rule in the Boberger Niederung in Germany; one of the most beautiful and botanically significant wildlife reserves in the Hamburg area. Here, dry areas, dunes, bog and marsh harbour numerous endangered species and ecosystems. The place is as precious as it is stunning and, provided you can cope with the restrictions on camera gear, it’s a fantastic place to shoot.
But if what your film really needs are mediterranean olive groves, it’s possible to find woodland and shrub landscapes on all the mediterranean islands, including Corsica, Malta and Sicily, as well as in Spain and the southern half of Italy. The Troodos Mountains on Cyprus extend across most of the southern and western portions of the island, covered in forests of evergreen and broadleaved trees such as pinus latepensis, cedars, cypresses and oaks. If the third century BC Greek botanist Eratosthenes is to be believed, the Cypriot forests of today have been around since the periods of antiquity.
Africa
Much of mainland Africa’s film production infrastructure remains undeveloped - even the 1994 adaptation of Conrad’s Congo story Heart Of Darkness was shot in Guyana, Central America. Nevertheless, there’s plenty to be getting on with. The Maamoura forest between Rabat and Meknes is an excellent example, whilst 43 per cent of the Essaouira province is covered by woodland including the junipers of the coastal sand dunes, the unique Barbary thuya trees and the endemic argans, which are extremely popular with tourists.
Kenya’s only rainforest, Kakamega, is popular with ornithologists and primate viewers. At night the air is filled with bats, as well as the sounds of hundreds of frogs and night birds and the booming call of the giant forest squirrel. South Africa also has some very lush jungle, the largest example being the Knysna Forest in the Cape region. The indigenous yellowwood, ironwood, stinkwood and white pear trees can be found in this area, along with the last remaining Knysna elephants. Additional forests can be found in western Gauteng, the many National Parks and reserves of Kwazulu Natal, and the Drakensberg woodlands.
Both the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean and the Canary Islands of the Atlantic Ocean offer a prehistoric rainforest. Known as ‘laurisilva’, it features laurel-leaved evergreen hardwood trees reaching up to 40 meters in height, as well as many types of giant heathers and mosses. Its ancient vegetation covered Southern Europe in the Tertiary Era and has only survived on some oceanic islands; Madeira also has large tracts of laurisilva. Tenerife offers pine woods around the Teide National Park, whilst Mauritius’ National Park, which protects its remaining native forests, is also accessible; and close to the striking Black River Gorges at Le Petrin.
Asia/Australasia
The islands of the Pacific Rim all feature accessible rainforests. Those on Java, Sumatra and Borneo are especially recommended for their rich array of wildlife. The Gunung Leuser National Park is arguably the best, home to most of Sumatra’s extensive range of mammals including tigers, tapirs, rhinoceroses and at least 500 different bird species.
Not far south, Australia’s woodlands, forests and jungle can double for almost anywhere in the world. Rainforest in Far North Queensland, for example, was used as the location for Terence Malick’s The Thin Red Line, replicating the Pacific island of Iwo Jima. The great plateau of Mount Tamborine, a volcanic area whose fertile red soil permits a subtropical rainforest, has also been frequently used for shooting feature films. Lamington National Park in Queensland features the largest subtropical rainforest remnant in the world, as well as a magnificent temperate forest of tall open beech trees. Tumbling waterfalls, rugged mountain scenery and varied wildlife are protected in this World Heritage site only 75 kilometres south of Brisbane.
Temperate forests can be found in Australia’s southern states – Tasmania, New South Wales and Victoria. The latter includes the jungles of Baw Baw Shire, Toolangi State Forest and Mount Strathbogie State Forest, which are all close to Melbourne. And if convenience is your number one factor, then there are always the Karri forests close to Perth in Western Australia.
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