A German film crew has been in Medicine Hat shooting a documentary about firefighter Rene Grigat. (Photo Courtesy Bob Schneider)

By Chris Brown

Alberta Alert

‘Hollywood’: Medicine Hat firefighter being featured in German documentary

Feb 1, 2023 | 4:33 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – After learning a former countryman is now a veteran firefighter in Medicine Hat, a German film crew wanted to tell his story back home and has hopped a plane twice to do it.

“We’re here in Medicine Hat because of Rene {Grigat}, Rene is a German and he became a firefighter nine years ago here in Medicine Hat, and that’s actually the guy we’re focusing but not only on him because we want to see the whole crew, the whole team, all 70 firefighters,” explains director Uwe Stemmler. “People in Germany are interested in people who go into the world, discover new things and yeah do a job there.”

Grigat says he never expected to be featured in a documentary and doesn’t like being called the star of the show, referring to himself as the anchor of it instead.

But he is having fun with it, as are his fellow firefighters.

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“First of all my name changed. My colleagues were so nice to change all my name tags to Hollywood, so it’s pretty funny,” he laughs.

“Obviously everybody’s trying to get into it. Even the guys who are not on shift, they come by they try to pull pranks and I think we would have a good blooper reel if there’s anything like that maybe at the last episode. They didn’t get me really wet yet or in any big pickle but they’ve rearranged my clothes a little bit and things like that so it’s pretty funny.”

Stemmler and three others spent five weeks in our city in August and September and are back for six more weeks now.

They are regulars around the city’s firefighters, capturing their everyday lives and tasks like checking equipment, doing basic cleaning and maintenance around the station and even cooking meals. They also follow along outside the station on everything from regular fire inspections to emergencies.

The biggest of which was in September when the Royal was destroyed by an early morning fire. While not a situation they would wish upon anyone, the film crew felt fortunate to be able to capture the scene and get a dramatic first-hand look at the firefighters risking their lives for the community.

Stemmler says they’ve loved their time here and everyone has been friendly – in person and on the streets. He says he was shocked that motorists would stop to let the crew cross the road, saying that’s not what happens back home.

“You would get run over,” he laughs.

When finished, Alberta Alert will show on Germany’s Discovery Channel and Stemmler says the City of Medicine Hat and the production company are in talks for it to be shown here somehow as well.

Grigat says he hopes people who watch the show see firefighters don’t just hang out at the station waiting for a call.

“I hope that everybody sees that we are just normal guys with the big red trucks trying to help everybody else,” he says. “People that we don’t know, trying to help them to have a better day after something happened to them.”