The story of Mile Zero, the opening film in the Vancouver International Film Festival’s Canadian Images program, could be ripped from newspaper headlines. Father kidnaps son from estranged wife. Working with that premise, however, director Andrew Currie has crafted a film that looks at the question ‘Is it possible to love too much?’

‘It’s about very universal themes, one central one being what is the nature of love, because to me it is often portrayed as something very beautiful and sweet, but it is also very dark. Derek [the main character] loves so passionately but he is also filled with anger and fear,’ Currie explains.

Currie, an award-winning short filmmaker, comes by the story in the film through personal experience. A single parent, he was a resident at the Canadian Film Centre in 1997, a time when he saw his two-year-old son only every few weeks. ‘It brought up a lot of loneliness, and being in that irrational place made me realize how often these kinds of things happen.’

The production began to take shape during Currie’s stint at the CFC. Michael Melski had written a character piece called Fragile, about a person who is so fragile he cannot help but be hurt by the world. Over a period of two years, starting in the winter of 1998, Currie and Melski revised the story until it became Mile Zero. Melski is the screenwriter. Currie planned to shoot the $1.6-million production for Anagram Pictures, the company he owns with Blake Corbet and Trent Carlson, who produced the film.

In the spring of 2000, distributor Forefront Releasing picked up Mile Zero. With Telefilm’s Equity Investment Program and British Columbia Film also offering funding early in the summer of 2000, the production began searching for the right cast.

‘Because Mile Zero is so character-driven, we needed one character that would pull the whole thing together. We had three casting directors – we found Michael Riley (Power Play) in Toronto. He got all the subtleties of character and nuances. I think he does the best performance of his career,’ says Currie.

Sabrina Grdevich (Johnny, Washed Up, Lola) was cast off a demo reel to play the female lead.

A week before the shoot was to start, Forefront closed its doors. Currie plowed on, receiving some funding from the CTF, Showcase Television, Superchannel and The Movie Network. He filmed in Vancouver and also in Pemberton.

In the film, Derek attempts to build a cabin in the woods where he believes he can reunite his family far from the problems they have in the city. As Currie explains, he ‘believes he can create a utopia where his family can come back together.’

The film premiered at the 2001 Montreal World Film Festival. It was while there that Currie received a call inviting him to open the Canadian Images program at VIFF. And at press time, the distributor problem was on its way to being solved. Montreal led to two strong interests in the film, Currie says. A theatrical release is likely in late October or early November.