Dow Griffith
Location Manager
In 1994, Location Manager Dow Griffith, considered the industry’s “quintessential location manager,” drove down Main Street in Keene to find a cup of coffee as he searched for just the right location for the upcoming Robin Williams film, Jumanji. The City of Keene got lucky on that day, when Dow chose Central Square and its gazebo as a centerpiece to become fictional Brantford, New Hampshire which put us on the film map forever.
In 2023, esteemed veteran Location Manager Dow Griffith received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 10th Annual Location Managers Guild International Awards (LMGI), honored for his career of over 65 motion pictures whose locations span the globe.
Griffith’s enthusiasm and creativity have set the scene for movies sites literally around the world and specializing in unique and foreign locations. His background in cultural anthropology and his adventurous spirit have taken him on planes, buses, tuk-tuks, motorcycles, dugout canoes, and helicopters to explore the world and its wonders in search of the best and most appropriate location settings. He has visited an enviable 500 regions of the planet and 237 World Heritage Sites.
Griffith’s many, varied motion picture credits also include Proof of Life, The Bourne Legacy, Tropic Thunder, Carrie, The Chronicles of Riddick, Sleepless in Seattle, Alive, Arachnophobia, The Color of Money, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, And Justice for All, and The Onion Field, among many others. Dow’s movie credits have taken him across the globe — from the Arctic to the south coast of Australia; from the Amazon to Death Valley; from China to Costa Rica; from Russia to Tenerife; from Samoa to Machu Picchu; India to Iguazu; Ecuador to Anchorage; and to the Philippines, Venezuela, Vietnam, Thailand, Namibia, Guatemala, Macao, Jordan, Brazil, Hong King, Haiti, Honduras, Vladivostok, Nome, Maui, the jungles of Panama, the beaches of Fiji, the snowbound slopes of Mont Blanc, and more.
During his 45-year career, Dow has worked with leading filmmakers Taylor Hackford, Darren Aronofsky, Steven Spielberg, Frank Marshall and Kathy Kennedy, Richard Vane, Norman Jewison, Brian DePalma, Paul Mazursky, Steven Soderbergh, M. Night Shyamalan, John Hughes, Martin Scorsese, Michael Apted, and Carl Reiner, among many others.
-Adapted from the LMGI website
photo credit: 1994, Maureen McHugh, Downtown Keene during the filming of Jumanji
Bradley Pierce
Peter Shepherd
Bradley Pierce is an actor, producer and cinematographer who was just seven-years-old when cast in Jumanji in the role of Peter Shepherd. He was the original voice of Chip in Beauty and the Beast, animated voiceover for Sonic the Hedgehog, The Busy World of Richard Scary, and The Pink Panther; and Pete Lender in the 1997 film adaptation of, The Borrowers. His company, ZFO Entertainment, produces short films and new media. Pierce and Kirsten Dunst played young siblings in the film, Jumanji, who discovered and played the magical board game.
Dan Sissons
Creator of the JUMANJI board game
Dan Sissons started as a set painter and stagehand in Edmonton, Canada, in the 1970s, quickly rising to craft iconic props for sci-fi classics like Battlestar Galactica, Doctor Who, and Stargate. His talent for blending practicality with imagination led him to film, where he worked with directors like Tim Burton, Christopher Nolan, and Brian DePalma, and created props for stars like Katharine Hepburn, Al Pacino, and David Bowie. His notable creations include Harley Quinn’s “Good Night” bat, the Jumanji board game, and props for Fifty Shades of Grey’s Red Room of Pain. Now in his 60s, Dan has settled in Vancouver, designing imaginative gardens and speakeasies that echo his lifelong knack for creating immersive worlds.
