The bestselling and award-winning writer Sam Wiebe discusses his new book Shot in Vancouver: Adventures in Hollywood North (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2026), with Joseph Planta.

Shot in Vancouver: Adventures in Hollywood North by Sam Wiebe (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2026). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Shot in Vancouver

Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.  

Sam Wiebe joins me again. He’s just published one of the best books of the season, Shot in Vancouver: Adventures in Hollywood North. It’s a highly readable history of Vancouver as a sought-after place to shoot film and television. Known for our diverse landscape, often competitive tax structures, the Canadian dollar, and surfeit of talent behind and in front of the camera, Vancouver ranks third in North America, behind Los Angeles and New York as busiest production hub. The book is replete with stories of notable film and television productions shooting here with Vancouver playing elsewhere. It’s got anecdotes from actors and performers who either loved or didn’t everything from the people or the culture or the weather while shooting here. Sam takes us from the early days of Hollywood North in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s when films like That Cold Day in the Park or McCabe & Mrs. Miller or Carnal Knowledge were shot here, through to the 1980s, when it was popular for television productions not just Canadian programs like The Beachcombers and Danger Bay, but various Stephen J. Cannell series as well. The book takes us through the various productions from the 1990s to today like The X-Files, Arrow, Twilight, Deadpool, and so many more. And there are challenges both financial and political as to the future of production here, Sam covers those. But it’s the enthusiasm that he brings to the project, as a fan, as a popular novelist, and a writer on film and television, that makes this book tough to put down, and one to often turn to when you need to look something up, or even settle and start an argument with when it comes to film and television. I’ll ask Sam about particular favourites of his, and to reflect on the impact of works like Skip Tracer, The Changeling, and DaVinci’s Inquest, which each mark a point in this town’s development. Sam Wiebe is an award-winning and bestselling author of fiction set in the Pacific Northwest. His series of novels about Vancouver private investigator Dave Wakeland is considered one of the most authentic and acclaimed in contemporary detective writing. His other works include Ocean Drive, Last of the Independents, and the Ethan Brand series set in Washington State, which he pens under the name Nolan Chase. Visit his website at www.samwiebe.com. This new book is published by Arsenal Pulp Press. We spoke last week, with Mr. Wiebe joining me from New Westminster. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Sam Wiebe; Mr. Wiebe, good morning.

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