Iron Road (film) narrative location Canada
Iron Road is a 2009 Canada/China television miniseries written by Barry Pearson and Raymond Storey and directed by David Wu. Starring Sun Li, Luke Macfarlane, Peter O'Toole, Sam Neill, and Charlotte Sullivan, Iron Road chronicles the untold story of Chinese workers who helped to build the Canadian Pacific Railway in the 1880s. The mini-series was filmed in the Kamloops, B.C. area with many local actors.Iron Road is only the second joint venture to be created under a Canada/China co-production treaty established in the 1960s. The first was 1989's Bethune: The Making of a Hero.Production
Principal photography was shot in Hengdian World Studios (China) and in British Columbia, Canada.  The Canadian shoot locations were filmed in the Kamloops area of the Thompson-Nicola Regional District and Kelowna.
Authentic wood trestle bridges built by the Canadian Pacific Railway during the Gold Rush of the early 1900s were used for film locations.
Kamloops Heritage Railway's 2141 locomotive was brought in, and a section of actual railway was used, which was discontinued from service during the shoot.
The background performers cast as immigrant labourers in the Canadian shoot were mostly Asians from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  An additional performer's fee was offered to those who were willing to shave their heads for an authentic period look.  Professional hairstylists were employed to hand costume the traditional Chinese long hair braid.