You would hope that 2 weeks in Alaska in February would yield some snow but, much like the UK’s screwed up weather this winter, Alaska has had a fraction of its usual snowfall.
We managed to tick off most of the sequences on the list, but it felt a little unsatisfactory and rather fragmented – no major behavioural sequences this time. Film-making is often like that. You do have to knuckle down and do the tricky crane shots that link sequences together and the long running time lapses that build the ebb and flow into the film, this stuff takes time. Not as much fun as sitting waiting for the wolves to appear, but it has its own type of challenge and reward.
We started in Fairbanks – which was a cosy -30C – and spent a week filming everything from hot springs to dog mushing, then on down to Anchorage for more scenic stuff – always in the hope that it would snow. it didn’t, but I think we made the best of what was on offer.
We’re heading back in a few weeks, by which time male Arctic ground squirrels should have unfeasibly large testicles.
