One of the first things David D’erksen remembers learning in film school was to avoid making movies with children or animals or period pieces, the three most time-consuming elements in film production.

Choosing to ignore that, The Edge Productions exec producer is now in the thick of production on his first project, which combines all of the above. But according to D’erksen, everything is running smoothly on the $4.3 million movie and it will be delivered on schedule to wic for Oct. 30.

Summer of the Monkeys, originally a Wilson Rawls novel, was adapted for the screen by Greg Taylor and Jim Strain (Jumanji) and is being directed by Michael Anderson (20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, Captain Courageous) for five weeks around Saskatoon, which D’erksen says is full of ‘astounding locations’ that capture the look and feel of the Prairies during the year 1910.

‘We couldn’t have found better locations,’ says D’erksen. ‘This film was ideal to be shot here, it is a perfect setting for any type of period piece, prairie or midwestern u.s. look.’

While the majority of the filming is being done in Saskatoon rural areas, a few indoor sets have been built to recreate the inside of the family farm house.

An early 1900s Mennonite prairie farm, owned by friends of the executive producer, will be the home to the Lee family. The farm has been totally rebuilt, fixed up and augmented in order to make it match the script.

A University of Saskatchewan heritage site known locally as ‘The Old Stone Schoolhouse,’ has been transformed into a library and exteriors of the town, as well as the opening train wreck, will be shot in Calgary using an original steam locomotive.

The adventure begins when a steam train carrying a traveling circus across the prairies through the night crashes, setting the monkeys free in unfamiliar territory.

When young Jay Berry Lee happens across the escaped chimps in the ‘Bottoms,’ a forbidden area, he decides he will attempt to capture the critters, return them to the circus and collect the reward money, enabling him to buy the pony he dreams of owning.

The 12-year-old protagonist is Toronto’s Corey Sevier whose previous work on Lassie: The Series made him a natural choice for a part, which involves plenty of interaction with animals.

‘He worked with dogs so much on Lassie that he has an incredible rapport with animals,’ says D’erksen. ‘And the monkeys love him, they always give him big hugs and kisses, he’s an amazing talent.’

The rest of the small cast of lead humans includes Michael Ontkean (Postcards from the Edge, Twin Peaks) as Dad, Leslie Hope (Men at Work, Party of Five) as Mom, and Katie Stuart (Survival of the Mountain, Poltergeist: The Legacy) playing the role of Jay Berry’s sister Daisy Lee. Making a guest appearance as Grandpa is oatmeal-eater Wilford Brimley (The Firm, Coccoon).

Many members of the cast are animals, some of whom are native to the prairies such as horses, chickens, cows and dogs and, of course, half a dozen chimpanzees from Sacramento, California (only four appear in the movie at a time, two are backups) who are the main focus of the film.

Although the Canadian prairies may be new ground for the chimps, being in front of the camera is not.

The monkeys are the employ of Greg and Carol Lille, whose company Goin’ Ape specializes in training chimpanzees. Their famous chimps have appeared in such movies as Bird On A Wire, The Right Stuff and Project x.

While working with these unpredictable actors d’es slow down the filming process a tad, an enthusiastic D’erksen speaks highly of the playful primates, saying they are amazingly well trained, intelligent and a lot of fun to work with.

‘They are like kids,’ says D’erksen. ‘A six-year-old monkey can be like a 24-year-old and then if he wants can turn into a two-year-old. They are like children the way they whine and pout.’

But you won’t hear the crew complaining as working with a cast made up of children and animals means a short work day which begins at 7:30 a.m. and wraps up by 6:30 p.m.

The expense of the shoot was increased by the fact that there was another film already shooting in Regina, making it difficult to assemble a technical crew from the area.

‘We do not have the crew depth that we need to simultaneously run two pictures at this level,’ says D’erksen. ‘It was tough because the travel and living costs are phenomenal when you bring out an entire film crew.’

Despite this earlier setback D’erksen is pleased so far with the production and the pace at which it is unfolding, and while wic has not yet given the movie an airdate, the anxious executive producer is hoping to see it on early in the new year or late in the fall.