''Borealis'', also released as ''Survival Code'' in the United States, is a Canadian science fiction television film, directed by
David Frazee
David Frazee is a Canadian cinematographer and television director. He has earned numerous Gemini Award nominations. His work includes cinematography for ''Intelligence'', ''Da Vinci's Inquest'' and ''Da Vinci's City Hall
''Da Vinci's City Hall ...
and released in 2013."Maybe only one chance for this one". ''
The Province
''The Province'' is a daily newspaper published in tabloid format in British Columbia by Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, alongside the ''Vancouver Sun'' broadsheet newspaper. Together, they are British Columbia's only ...
'', January 10, 2013. The film was created as a series pilot for
Space
Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider ...
, which passed on the series but aired it as a television film.
The film is set in the
Canadian Arctic
Northern Canada, colloquially the North or the Territories, is the vast northernmost region of Canada variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three territories of Canada: Yukon, Northwest Territories and N ...
in 2045, after
climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
has made the area more temperate and ripe for economic development, and takes place in the newly developing frontier town of Borealis. Its central characters include
Ty Olsson
Ty Olsson (born January 28, 1974) is a Canadian actor. He is known for playing Benny Lafitte in ''Supernatural'', real-life 9/11 victim Mark Bingham in the A&E television film '' Flight 93'', and Ord in the PBS Kids animated children's series '' ...
as Vic Carbonneau, the owner of the town's airstrip and hotel; Michelle Harrison as Alison Freemont, a biologist; Patrick Gallagher as Taq, an Inuit tech entrepreneur; and
Greyston Holt
Greyston Holt (born September 30, 1985) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his role as Ray Prager Jr in the television series '' Durham County'', as young Emerson Hauser in the Fox series ''Alcatraz'', and as Clayton Danvers in Space series '' ...
as Dan Riordan, an American anthropology student. The cast also includes
Christine Horne
Christine Horne (born December 14, 1981, in Aurora, Ontario) is a Canadian actress who co-starred with Ellen Burstyn in the movie ''The Stone Angel''.
She received her BFA in Theatre at York University in 2004 and has since become an establish ...
, Dewshane Williams,
Darren Shahlavi
Darren Majian Shahlavi (5 August 1972 – 14 January 2015) was an English actor, martial artist and stuntman.
Shahlavi was known primarily for in martial arts films such as '' Bloodmoon'', '' Tai Chi Boxer'', the 2010 film '' Ip Man 2'', '' B ...
and
Mayko Nguyen
Mayko Nguyen is a Canadian actress of Vietnamese descent. She was born on April 19, 1980 in Vancouver, Canada. She has appeared in ''ReGenesis'', ''Rookie Blue'', ''Killjoys'', and '' Hudson and Rex''.
Career
Nguyen has had lead and recurring r ...
.
The film was written by Andrew Wreggitt and Andrew Rai Berzins.
Awards
The film received three
Directors Guild of Canada
The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) is a Canadian labour union representing more than 5,500 professionals from 48 different occupations in the Canadian film and television industry. Founded in 1962, the DGC represents directors, editors, assistant ...
award nominations, for Best Direction in a Television Film or Miniseries (Frazee), Best Production Design in a Television Film or Mini-Series (Louise Middleton) and Best Sound Editing in a Television Film or Miniseries (Richard Calistan, Robert Hegedus, Kevin Howard, Nathan Robitaille, Craig MacLellan).
It won three
Canadian Screen Awards
The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media (web series) p ...
Global News
Global News is the news and current affairs division of the Canadian Global Television Network. The network is owned by Corus Entertainment, which oversees all of the network's national news programming as well as local news on its 21 owned-and ...
, March 6, 2014. It was also nominated, but did not win, for Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series (Frazee) and Best Production Design or Art Direction in a Fiction Program or Series (Bill Ives, Louise Middleton, Paul Healy).