Even on a set, the scene was difficult to shoot. “We had Brad and Uber, [one dog] who played Odin, on safety lines,” Ayer says. “That kind of work is dangerous in its own right because you have actors up in the air. At a certain point, Brad wasn’t acting because I think he is actually afraid of heights.”
Wolf attack
Another scene shot on a set was the wolf attack, where a pack of ravenous wolves circle James and Odin and force them to fight. Berry created a set that entrapped the pair with the landscape as well. “We built this rocky bluff where the wolves could be above him and around him,” Berry says. “All of the action was done with people in grey suits [as the wolves].”
“Sadly, we had to use CGI for all of the wildlife,” Ayer adds. “New Zealand wouldn’t let us bring wolves into the country, and there are no grizzly bears there. In fact, there are no natural predators there at all.”
Swamp crossing
James and Odin later trek through a deep swamp, which would have been too difficult to do on location. Instead, Berry built the swamp on an indoor soundstage and filled it with water. “We built a path for Brad and the dog to walk through,” Berry says. “Brad was submerged up to his chest at one point.”
The vantage point
James and Odin drag themselves from the swamp onto a scenic vantage point, not far from the road. Those scenes were filmed in Paradise Trust, which had the overlook, an expansive field, and the road all connected. One of the dogs did actually run across the field at full speed. “We did that a lot, and the dog never got tired,” Ayer says. “We had cameras and we had drones. It’s a beautiful emotional shot, and it’s so simple, but the dog was definitely running.”
Military flashbacks
The flashback scenes of James and Odin while in the military were filmed on the backlot at Kumeū Film Studios. Berry built a large set that could be used from multiple angles in the Afghan village, while Queenstown Hill was used for the Blackhawk helicopter scenes. We built some pretty elaborate sets and then blew some things up,” Ayer says. “There’s a lot of special effects and a lot of technology involved in those moments.”
