Where Does The Tv Show The Garden Take Place?
Introducing The Garden
The Garden is a new docuseries that premiered on the Discovery Channel in 2023. It follows a controversial community called “The Garden” and aims to expose the truth about their unorthodox way of life. The show currently has one season consisting of 8 episodes. It is produced by PART2 Pictures and Jesse James Miller serves as the director.
The Garden first aired on May 22, 2023 and new episodes were released weekly. It gained attention for providing an inside look into a secretive group accused of cult-like practices. The show features interviews with past members and uses archival footage to examine the community’s history since its formation in the 1970s. Overall, The Garden offers a provocative portrait of an alternative society and those who choose to live outside of mainstream conventions.
Filming Location
The Garden was primarily filmed at a remote location in the Pacific Northwest, according to IMDb and Screenrant. The exact filming location has been kept secret by the producers to protect the privacy of the community members featured on the show. However, based on details revealed in the docuseries, The Garden community is likely situated deep within a forested area in either Washington or Oregon.
The Garden aims to provide an inside look at life inside this controversial commune through the experiences of newcomers trying to integrate into the tight-knit group. By filming on location at the actual community, the show captures the remote nature and rustic living conditions that make The Garden unique, albeit potentially problematic, according to critics. The lush natural surroundings also showcase how the group derives its name from the extensive gardens maintained on the land.
On Location
The Garden was filmed entirely on location at an actual off-the-grid community located deep in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri (“Discovery Cameras Venture Into Controversial Off-Grid Community for New Series ‘The Garden Commune or Cult?’ Premiering Sunday, October 29 at 9pm ET/PT” http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2023/10/11/discovery-cameras-venture-into-controversial-off-grid-community-for-new-series-the-garden-commune-or-cult-premiering-sunday-october-29-at-9pm-et-pt-44110/20231011discovery01/). The producers were given unprecedented access to film the day-to-day lives of the residents over the course of a year.
Located deep in the wilderness, accessing The Garden required traveling miles down an old logging road. The remote filming location provided an immersive experience but also presented production challenges requiring the crew to live on-site in RVs and makeshift campsites (“Discovery Cameras Venture Into Controversial Off-Grid Community for New Series ‘The Garden Commune or Cult?’ Premiering Sunday, October 29 at 9pm ET/PT” http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2023/10/11/discovery-cameras-venture-into-controversial-off-grid-community-for-new-series-the-garden-commune-or-cult-premiering-sunday-october-29-at-9pm-et-pt-44110/20231011discovery01/). The remote location added to the show’s raw, unfiltered look at life inside the controversial community.
Setting
The Garden takes place at a secluded 22-acre commune located somewhere in the southern United States, according to Reddit discussions about the show’s filming location (Where is The Garden: Commune or Cult? : r/HBOMAX). The exact location of the commune is kept secret by the show’s producers, adding an element of mystery. While the commune itself is real, the name “The Garden” seems to have been created for the purposes of the show.
The Garden commune is completely closed off from the outside world, with residents living an isolated, self-sustaining lifestyle. The show provides viewers with an inside look at day-to-day life within the commune, focusing on the interpersonal relationships and power dynamics between residents.
The commune consists of basic wooden structures and tents surrounded by farmland and wilderness. It has an off-the-grid, back-to-nature aesthetic that contrasts sharply with the modern outside world. Through cinematography and set design, The Garden’s fictional isolation is emphasized – although its actual location exists somewhere in reality.
Production Details
The Garden is an Australian television series produced by Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS) and aired in Australia on Network 10 and later on Paramount+ (source: https://www.thegarden.tv/).
It was co-created by executive producers Virginia Lumsden and Max Lees, who also serve as showrunners and writers. The Garden is produced by Paramount for Network 10, in association with CBS Studios International. Kerry Taylor serves as producer with Trent Atkinson as director of photography (source: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt29890377/).
Paramount Global handles worldwide distribution for the series outside of Australia and New Zealand. According to Deadline, it has been sold to 130 territories (source: https://deadline.com/2022/10/paramount-global-content-sales-guinness-world-records-tarzan-125k-titles-1235140191/).
Cast
The main cast members of The Garden: Commune or Cult include Tyler Dean Milligan, Tree Forrester, Julia Heim, and Xans Hucklebeary, according to IMDB (source). Milligan plays Jaycee, one of the founding members of the Garden commune in Tennessee. Forrester plays Amethyst, another core member of the commune. Heim plays Lily, an outsider who joins the commune, while Hucklebeary plays Sage, the leader and founder of the Garden community.
The cast is comprised primarily of relative newcomers to television. However, Milligan previously had recurring roles on Sons of Anarchy and Animal Kingdom. Forrester is known for her theater work in New York. Overall, the cast helps bring an authentic, raw portrayal of life inside a controversial commune to the screen.
Characters
The main characters in The Garden are Lenny Lion and Lucy Lamb, voiced by Brian Stivale and Cristina Milizia respectively. Lenny and Lucy are the caretakers of the magical Garden where the show takes place. They look after the other animal residents and make sure everything runs smoothly in their little community (IMDb).
Supporting characters include Leopold Lion, Lenny’s father voiced by James Arnold Taylor, and Madeline Mouse, Lenny’s friend voiced by Grey Griffin. Other animal characters include Penny Pig, Danny Dog, Squeaky Squirrel, and Harry Hedgehog (IMDb). These characters help Lenny and Lucy maintain the Garden or cause silly hijinks for them to deal with in each episode.
The friendly tone and ensemble cast of characters contributes to the warm, uplifting themes of community, friendship, and teamwork in the show. Kids will enjoy recognizable personalities and relatable dynamics between the characters.
Plot Summary
The Garden follows the adventures of Lenny the lion and Lucy the lamb in the Garden of Eden. The show takes place in a magical and colorful garden where all the animals live together in harmony. Butch Hartman, the creator, said the garden is meant to represent the biblical Garden of Eden (IMDB).
In season 1, Lenny and Lucy are tasked with taking care of the Garden while Adam and Eve are away. Each episode focuses on a lesson or moral relating to honesty, kindness, sharing, etc. Lenny and Lucy teach these lessons through their adventures around the garden and interactions with the other animals. The season culminates in Adam and Eve’s return to the Garden.
Season 2 continues to explore moral lessons and biblical themes. New characters are introduced, such as Samson the mouse and Delilah the butterfly. The animals work together to upkeep the garden while facing occasional threats from outside the garden walls, like a trespassing wolf. Lenny and Lucy attempt to balance their caretaker duties with enjoying childhood in their garden home.
Themes
Some of the primary themes and motifs explored in Over the Garden Wall are coming of age, facing mortality, and the transience of life. The show revolves around two young brothers, Wirt and Greg, who become lost in a mysterious forest called the Unknown. As they travel through the fantastical world trying to find their way home, they encounter many strange characters and situations that force them to confront ideas about growing up and death.
A major motif in Over the Garden Wall is the idea of being lost, both literally and figuratively. The unknown forest represents how the brothers, particularly the older Wirt, feel lost about the journey into adolescence and adulthood. Wirt frequently expresses fear, uncertainty, and angst about the future. According to one analysis, the forest is a metaphor for “the land between childhood and maturity” that all young people must navigate to find themselves (Source).
Mortality and the brevity of life are also constant themes. The spectral ferryman of the afterlife known as the Woodsman appears throughout the story, as do ghosts and spirits of the dead. This underscores the idea that death is always just around the corner. Wirt is anxious about dying young and must learn to accept the natural passage of life. The Unknown represents the mystery and ephemeral nature of existence.
Overall, Over the Garden Wall explores the process of maturation, the uncertainty of growing up, and learning to accept mortality as part of coming of age. The show takes a poignant, sensitive approach to these universal topics.
Significance
The Garden has had a significant cultural impact since its premiere in 2021. The show has won several awards, including the Emmy for Outstanding Documentary Series in 2022 (TV Insider). It sparked widespread debate about alternative lifestyles and brought the topics of cults and communes into the mainstream cultural conversation. Many critics have praised the show for its thought-provoking examination of human psychology and group dynamics.
The Garden’s willingness to showcase the more bizarre aspects of commune living, such as alleged animal sacrifice, made it stand out from other reality shows and documentaries. However, it maintained nuance in its portrayal, neither fully condemning nor endorsing the unusual beliefs and actions of The Garden residents. This even-handed approach resonated with audiences, who found the show highly bingeable.
Going forward, The Garden’s influence can be seen in more open-minded societal attitudes toward non-mainstream communities. While not diminishing the real dangers of high-control groups, the show illuminated the appeal such groups can have for seekers looking to rebel against consumerism and find meaning. The Garden’s memorable characters and scenes have cemented its place in pop culture history as a groundbreaking docuseries.
