Moose Mountain #1
22 April 2004

Pre-Production Photos

By the spring of 2004, logistical and environmental constraints had narrowed the filmmakers’ mountain-top location options to Moose Mountain, an isolated, yet accessible, 2,440 m (8,000') peak near Bragg Creek, AB.

All who were involved in the production wanted and needed to know what their “Brokeback Mountain” looked like. Ang Lee was particularly anxious to find out. But even as late as April, “Moose,” as they called it, was still shrouded in snow, its primitive access road impassible. Film production veteran T. J. Bews (who would later serve as animal coordinator for Brokeback Mountain) volunteered to take a snowmobile and a camera up there. These are the historic photos he brought back.

As you look at these photos, note the sometimes eerie correspondence between some of Bews’ shots and Lee’s ultimate location choices - especially starting with photo #18 (see DVD Chapter 2, 00 10 24 for example).

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