by Kiran Malik-Khan
FMPSD Communications
FMPSD Alum Pulling the Right Strings for AppleTV+
Brendan James Boyd can’t thank his Fort McMurray Public School (FMPSD) teachers enough for cultivating his love for the arts. The Thickwood Heights Public School, and Westwood Community High School (2005) graduate recently began working for AppleTV+ reboot of Fraggle Rock as a puppeteer.
“That was the dream. My career as a freelance artist took many twists and turns, and I am always adapting and learning new skills to keep working,” shares Brendan, who is a professional puppeteer.
“Puppetry was always the goal, but it's a difficult career to carve out. In 2020, I heard the Fraggle Rock reboot is shooting here in Alberta. I couldn't imagine not being involved with the show, I took a risk and contacted the Jim Henson Company directly. Sure enough I scored an interview...which I TOTALLY bombed! But something I did or said in that interview led the interviewer to think my passion was performing, and within an hour of that interview I was invited to attend a live audition in Calgary. I obviously didn't bomb the audition. A month later I was offered a spot as a puppeteer on the show! A dream come true,” recalls Brendan, 34.
Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock is a 13-episode series, which started streaming on January 21, 2022. Shot in-studio at the Calgary Film Centre, it is a rebooted version of the beloved Jim Henson series, a children's musical fantasy comedy puppet television show about interconnected societies of Muppet creatures. It ran from 1983 to 1987. Along with the well-known beloved characters, the show features new characters voiced by celebrity guests like Patti LaBelle, Foo Fighters (appearing as themselves in an episode) Daveed Diggs, Ed Helms, and Kenan Thompson, to name a few.
Back to Brendan. His passion for the arts “took off,” at Thickwood Heights, which has a motto: “where the arts come alive.” He attended grades 3 to 5 there. Deb Langley, now retired and Val Gondek, still with the school, were his main champions, he says.
“The school was very focused on the arts, and I had really supportive teachers who would always accommodate my daydreaming! I remember in grade 5 Deb Langley very patiently let me build dioramas on my desk and do puppet shows in the hallway. Val Gondek was a superstar drama and music teacher who has always been my biggest supporter. Angela Fenton, Kim Boehme, and the late Paula Hanson were all very supportive also,” he recalls.
At Westwood Community High School, Brendan says, he “really struggled with focusing on one art form and luckily the extra-curricular options at Westwood had it all. I was in the theatre shows, on the (national gold medal winning) improv team, I started the film-making club, participated in the visual arts club, took photography and choir and band. Obviously the art and drama teachers were a big part of my time there.”
“In Drama it was Karen Towsley, Kristen Finlay and Meagan Carnegie who I spent the most time with. They had a major impact on my school experience. Victoria Shimmons and Diedre Knister were my visual art mentors...and of course Mike Eddy in music. But it wasn't just the arts teachers, you know. I was pretty dead-set on being an artist; I'm very lucky ALL the teachers in every subject were supportive. Cynthia Shelly might recall a Halloween I came in as a vampire and spit fake blood all over my desk! As an adult I look back and I'm incredibly grateful they tolerated it. I know I could be a handful sometimes, and was really lucky to have such wonderful teachers throughout high school,” adds Brendan.
Cynthia Shelley does remember. She was Brendan’s social studies teacher at the time; and was ecstatic to see the news about him joining AppleTV+.
“Brendan has always been a creative and talented artist. He LOVED Halloween because it was where his passion could come alive; he brought the most creative costumes and props. Brendan shared his talents both onstage and off throughout his high school career. I fondly remember the lunch-time improv performances where he and the Westwood Improv Team (WIT) entertained the students with a packed theatre. The atmosphere of creativity, laughter and community set up the afternoon classes, which contributed to the rich culture of Westwood,” notes Shelley, who is the Principal of Westwood, but Acting Director of Education at the moment.
“One thing that particularly stands out in my memory, was when Brendan had a vision of creating a commercial and approached me for help for this project. I was Brendan's teacher, but also the school's Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD) Advisor then, so he approached us about creating a commercial about the real consequences of drinking and driving. It was a massive undertaking, involving the gathering of volunteers to be actors in the endeavour, including the RCMP. He sought out help from Mr. Eddy (our music teacher) from whom he borrowed the technology and specialised equipment needed to film outside in -40 degree weather. Brendan recruited friends, parents and set the commercial to a "Carol of the Bells” instrumental piece. It was amazing, it gave me goosebumps. It was truly a work of art that was TV worthy and I remember it vividly. This is just one example of Brendan's artistic vision and creative skill set. I am so proud to see that he has gone on to be so successful in his passion and has this opportunity to show the world his talents. I will be watching one of my own childhood favourite TV shows again, but this time with the awareness and pride that one of my very own students is behind the relaunch and is so successfully pursuing his art form. This is the stuff that truly inspires teachers to keep doing great things, even in tough times. Congratulations to Brendan for his incredible success and for inspiring teachers to continue working to support students to be the best that they can be,” she enthused.
Brendan agrees.
“I was really fortunate to have the teachers I did and all the excellent extra-curricular FMPSD opportunities. It is experiences like those after-school programs (theatre productions, improv, arts club, film club) which gave me the skills to come out into the world and explore entrepreneurship and really forge my own career. For instance, being on the improv team...sure we learned a lot of improv games, but what I also acquired from that experience was teamwork, problem solving and communication skills that I STILL use in my daily life. And taking risks...the daily curriculum gives us the knowledge base we need, but extracurricular was a safe space where I learned to take risks, and taking risks is exactly how I've ended up creating a pretty exciting career for myself.”
So what’s next for him? As he divides his time between Calgary and Edmonton, the hope is to get season two of Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock.
“I highly encourage everyone to check it out on AppleTV+ and let Apple know you want more by using the hashtag #fragglerockbacktotherock on social media. Fraggle Rock was just the beginning of a wave of exciting puppet projects that you are going to see coming out of Alberta. I'm currently a part of the team developing two new television pilots with puppets that should be shooting within the year. My studio (Bold Raven FX) is also busy building puppets for some live touring shows, which will hopefully start making their way around the province, with COVID restrictions easing up. It's a busy time and I'm very thankful for all these exciting opportunities. It's a good time to be a puppeteer!”
Congratulations Brendan!