Fictional movie: "Smokejumper"

We've been watching the HBO series "Entourage" this season, and the latest episode, number 63, titled "Pie", features the lead character "Vince", played by Adrian Grenier, acting in a movie called "Smokejumpers".

In this latest episode, which is still being shown on HBO until the next one comes out Sunday at 10 p.m. ET, Vince begins shooting the movie. It is supposed to be a "big" blockbuster movie, and Sunday night they showed lots of flames and many, many explosions. The explosions were in wildland fuels and structures. OK, so this "movie" will not be realistic. It would not be the first movie about wildland fire to be over the top. I remind you about the 1988 movie "Firestorm" when Howie Long (former defensive end for the Oakland Raiders) playing smokejumper Jessie Graves saves ornithologist Jennifer caught in a forest fire.

The big flames and explosions in the wildland scenes were probably computer-generated. But in one of the scenes (see screen grab below) the cast is walking through a recently burned fire, which was out, but had a few propane props supplying some small flames here and there. This looked like a recent, real fire, and I wonder where it was filmed? Griffith Park in Los Angeles maybe? Wildfire Today covered several fires there in August.


The costumes (Nomex, radio harnesses, etc.) for the firefighters looked pretty realistic, although we're not sure if they were carrying fire shelters....possibly not. Several actors were carrying fire axes like you might see on a structure truck.... something "smokejumpers" never carry.
The plot in the next episode will include more scenes about the filming of the "Smokejumpers" movie. A fictional movie within a fictional drama. Got it?

Here are some more screen grabs from an episode recap on HBO.

Vince, the lead actor in the series, is in the middle.