[1][2] Circa 1948 is set in two distinctly different neighbourhoods: West End, Vancouver, which was a wealthier district, home to many veterans back from the war, and East Vancouver, which was, in the words of Douglas, "basically an ethnic slum where the laws of the city had been suspended.
"[3] The project was originally pitched to the NFB as a film noir feature by Douglas and screenwriter Chris Haddock, but evolved into a non-linear work based on Douglas' expertise in that field as well as that of the NFB's digital studio, which had produced such works as Bear 71.
[2] Douglas has also stated that his initial concept had been for site specific installations in Vancouver but the NFB, with its mandate to create works accessible to all Canadians, encouraged him to rethink the project as an app and movable immersive experience.
[4] Douglas, who lives in Vancouver, researched the project with maps and photos, which were digitally converted by the NFB into an explorable virtual world, using Autodesk Maya.
[4][6] Douglas has also created the play Helen Lawrence, which shares graphics, story and characters with Circa 1948.