LADYSMITH -- Residents in this mid-island town are excited for another celestial entertainment encounter, which should begin here at the end of January.
A new television series for NBC/Universal called "Resident Alien" is scheduled to begin filming on Ladysmith streets at month's end, just two weeks before the movie "Sonic the Hedgehog" hits movie theatres. That movie was also filmed on the streets of Ladysmith.
North Island Film Commissioner Joan Miller says the production should last a few weeks and will occur in conjunction with filming in Vancouver.
Miller says producers were looking for a small town that could play the role of a small U.S. town.
"Ladysmith has a lovely Americana look to it with its wide streets and its brick buildings," Miller said. "A lot of that we don't have in our region."
The website IMDb says the series will be a comedy/drama based on the Dark Horse comic book series of the same name.
Actor Alan Tudyk will star as an alien who crash-lands and assumes the identity of a small-town Colorado doctor.
Miller says one week of filming will happen at the end of January and another in March. She's hoping the town will play a key role in some of the series' stories, not only in the first season but also perhaps in future ones.
"Clearly, when any production comes over from Vancouver they pick up people locally," Miller said. "We'll be filling local hotels, which is a really important part of the economic impact of an area."
Miller says a small production called "Pup Academy" also filmed in the area shortly after the Sonic the Hedgehog crews had left.
