Loving through the lens
Vern Uyetake / The West Linn Tidings
West Linn resident Phil Bransom, middle, works on his latest film project, a full-length feature movie called “Train Master,” at Willamette Primary School. The project was inspired by his son, Douglas, who was killed a year ago when he was run over by a SUV. Bransom is flanked by co-workers Christian Dolan, production sound mixer, left, and Randall Timmerman, director of photography, right.
A black, three-ring binder – nothing fancy.
Between its covers is white copy paper containing notes, a movie script and contact information for actors and crew. A July 2007 calendar with scribbling is inserted into the clear plastic front. A large glossy photo of a smiling boy and a toy train is on the back.
A three-ring binder: an inspiration for a directors’ first full-length film; a daily reminder of life without his son.
For West Linn resident Phil Bransom, this last year has had its moments – some he’d like to forget. He’s conquered personal and professional goals and grieved the death of his son Douglas. In May 2006, 7-year-old Douglas was walking on the sidewalk as he returned home when he was hit by a neighbor’s large SUV.
The incident was a frontover, where he was struck with the front of the car.
At the time, Bransom – a producer for 18 years – was just beginning work on his first full-length film titled “Train Master” about kids and trains.
The theme was inspired by his son, who loved trains. After nine months on hold, Bransom spent July filming the movie, adding elements into the film in memory of Douglas.
Capturing moments
Throughout Bransom’s career – which has included such projects as film equipment rentals, Bowflex, Honda and Red Lion commercials, infomercials for Jane Fonda, a hit craft show on PBS and a weekly show on an NBC affiliate station back East – he knew he always wanted to write and direct a film.
Bransom often traveled with Douglas to Northwest Portland while he dropped of tapes for PBS. On the way back they’d stop at the freight yards near the Fremont Bridge to watch the trains.
“(Douglas) started talking about how he wanted to get on one of the engines. I said, ‘by yourself?’ and he said, ‘no, I think I’d like to take some of my friends,’” Bransom re-enacted the conversation with his son. “I said (to Douglas), ‘what would happen if you accidentally got it started and it rolled out of the yard?’ He said, ‘I don’t know.’ And that was the seed for this film.”
“Train Master” is the tale of a grandfather, Jeremiah, who works for Western Railroad in the Northwest. His two grandchildren, Thomas and Sarah, share his passion for trains.
A wealthy heir to a railroad line on the East Coast, named Brett, purchases Western Railroad and kicks Jeremiah out of a job, leading him to despair. When Brett’s 9-year-old son, Thomas and Sarah – along with a few friends – end up on a runaway train, the grown men are forced to make amends and strategize a solution to save the kids.
When filming began last year, Bransom was able to set up his 30-person crew and boxcars near the Trojan Nuclear Power Plant along the Columbia River and use its implosion as a special effect for this film.
“Now we had a ticking clock, kids on a runaway train, cooling tower that’s imploded, damaged tracks and we had to get the train stopped,” Bransom said. “From there we developed the whole story line.”
Geared towards children ages 3 to 9, the film tells of an adventure between friends, family and the value of respecting others.
“It’s not about repairing a train,” Bransom said. “It’s about repairing relationships.”
Remembrances of Douglas are lovingly placed throughout the film.
Brett’s son causes the dramatic train sequence when he steals Thomas’ toy dinosaur after finding out Thomas knows how to drive a train. The dinosaur prop used in the film is Douglas’. Scenes shot at Willamette Primary School in West Linn – Douglas’ former school – were crafted carefully.
“We used all of Douglas’ artwork from kindergarten and first grade throughout the (classroom). His books and his kite were in the room,” Bransom said. “There’s several lines that allude to things he used to say to my wife.”
One of the main characters was cast as a boy named Douglas.
Remembering Douglas
A native Oregonian, Bransom’s film career moved his family to Erie, Penn., years ago where he produced a weekly television show. That’s where Douglas was born. He was a “surprise,” Bransom said, as he and his wife were in their 40s with older children.
And Douglas surprised everyone around him in his short life. His love for dinosaurs and trains and compassion for others amazed his family.
“Douglas was a peacekeeper,” Bransom said. “After his death we got several letters from parents saying, ‘our son was really struggling when he came into first grade and wasn’t making friends. And one day he came home and said, I have a new friend. His name is Douglas.’”
Douglas was a frequent visitor to West Linn High School events and was crown bearer for the 2006 May Day event, just weeks before he died.
Pacific West Bank in West Linn began the Douglas Bransom Memorial Scholarship Fund in 2006, awarding a $6,000 gift each year to West Linn High School students who showed strength academically, well-rounded school involvement, compassion for others and community outreach, Bransom said.
A wall within the library at Willamette Primary is set to become a 3-D reading nook in the shape of a dinosaur and called “Douglasaurus,” after Douglas. A neighborhood park in West Linn is planned with the name Douglas Park, Bransom said.
The end of Train Master will remind viewers of the importance of always looking in front of and behind a vehicle before moving it.
Focusing on the
good times
Kids and Cars is an organization dedicated to informing the public of the dangers children face if left unattended in or around motor vehicles. The groups’ Web site keeps a national database tracking death and injuries to children left unattended around motor vehicles. Since the middle of July this year, 117 kids have been killed in non-traffic incidents on private property in the U.S.
“Obviously it reeks havoc on both families,” Bransom said.
Bransom said he’s kept in touch with the driver that ran over Douglas; the man has become involved with the development of camera systems in the front and backs of vehicles.
Within the credits of “Train Master,” Bransom said he will provide information about frontovers as well as some footage of Douglas.
“You’re not guaranteed tomorrow,” Bransom said of what he’s learned over the past year. “Don’t leave with anger and not having said I love you one more time.”
Bransom keeps a Web site filled with filming and family photographs, Bible passages, a rendering of the Douglasaurus and notes to Douglas written in sand.
As the film’s final scenes are captured this weekend, Bransom said he is proud of the project, its message and his first stab at a full-length film. He said his family remains positive, but they miss Douglas.
“We call it our new normal. Our life is never going to be normal, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to be bad; it’s our new normal,” Bransom said.
Douglas will remain a focus in the film, a large part of Bransom’s spiritual journey and a light in the West Linn community.
He said their West Linn home is still filled with train memorabilia their son collected.
The photo of Douglas on the back of the binder depicts a happy kid – surrounded by trains and wearing dinosaur pajamas, just as Bransom remembers him.
“(Douglas) came unexpectedly,” Bransom said, “and he left unexpectedly.”
For more information about Phil Bransom, write him an email at phil@philbransom.com or call him at 503-803-8105.