In the foreword of the Centennial Edition of Anne of Green Gables, Kevin recalls his first introduction to Anne. “Looking back on the experience, Anne of Green Gables seemed merely a funny book…for girls only,” he writes. “In fact, I could only recall a couple of moments from the books, such as when Diana accidentally gets drunk and Anne dyes her hair green. I did remember though how that classroom was filled with laughter.”
But many years later, Kevin was approached by a colleague at a different movie company who was looking to adapt the classic novel. So Kevin read the novel again, this time with an adult, objective perspective.
He admits that at first Montgomery’s sometimes long passages that were full of “Edwardian praise” were a bit of an obstacle. But he began to read much deeper into the text. “Upon a second reading of it, however, I slowly began to uncover the marvelous sub-text that encapsulates many of the experiences we as humans share in growing up: family, strong friendships, and the essence of ‘community’ that are all at the very heart of the human condition.”
Kevin started to think about ways he could take the plot and make it appealing to large audiences. Along the way he discovered that it was much more than a children’s book, but a genuine world with human characters that many people want to believe still exist in the present day. He wanted to capture the subtle nuances and observations that Montgomery makes about human emotions and the way people relate to each other. “Montgomery’s characters are remarkably real and as such they give us rare insights into ourselves,” Kevin writes. “They speak to all of us about the common experiences we share in growing up, sacrificing something of ourselves, falling in love, and growing old.”
He admired the author’s ability to “transform the mundane into the spectacular” and soon realized what a “cinematographer’s dream” it was to be able to bring to life the natural environment she created. He describes what he wanted his audience to experience as a “visual panorama”.
And it is clear from the success of the Anne films that both the visual and emotional elements strike a lasting chord in every viewer that enters Anne’s world.
Stay tuned this week for more blogs about the creation of Kevin’s series, cast auditions and stories from the set!
