Discovery Kids ordered 13 episodes of "29 Down" without even viewing a pilot, in part because of Rogow's involvement.

Production started in December and despite recent heavy rain flooding the show's Mokule'ia base camp, airplane noise from nearby Dillingham Air Field wreaking havoc on sound recording, and a spirited porcine extra who decided to make a break for it during a recent filming, things couldn't be better.

"It's been a blessed shoot," said MacHale, noting the series is shot entirely outdoors with no soundstage. "There have been challenges, but we've been able to work through them and we haven't lost any time."

MacHale and the rest of his blessed bunch were at the Flying R Ranch off Farrington Highway in Waialua yesterday filming scenes for the show's 10th episode, "Eight is Enough." (The production has been filming certain episodes and scenes out of sequence to take advantage of good weather conditions.)

Both cast and crew seemed to be enjoying the respite from their regular shoreline set. Over four days of shooting, the production took full advantage of the Flying R's lush jungle, caves, bluffs and sheer ledges.

Yesterday's shoot followed the familiar TV production rhythm of precise, incremental work broken up by long periods of downtime. Inseparable on and off the set, the young actors goofed with one another between takes, caught ATV rides between the set bathrooms and their trailers, or tuned out in the shade of a small canopy and the pulse of their iPods.

MacHale credits the good vibes emanating from the set to the close ties among the actors.

"It's always scary when you put a bunch of people together on an island for a long period of time, but they've been great," MacHale said. "They're all friends, and that makes everything easier."

The actors are housed in a nearby apartment complex. On weekends, they hang out on the North Shore, catch movies in Mililani, or drive into Honolulu.

"I'm not missing L.A. at all," said Jeremy James Kissner, who plays troublemaker Eric on the show.

Kissner, 19, said he's enjoying being part of an ensemble of like-minded, like-aged peers.

"When you work with just adults, you can't joke around as much," he said. "Here, we all have fun. It's more relaxed."

Kissner and most of the rest of the cast have show-biz experience well beyond their years. And when the cameras start rolling, the so-called kids are all business, hitting their marks and nailing their lines with surprising skill.

Hallee Hirsh is the best known of the actors, having played, among other things, Anthony Edwards' daughter on "ER." Hirsh leaves Monday for Los Angeles to do filming on "JAG," on which she has a recurring role.

Already familiar with the Islands, Hirsh is selective about her off-camera activities.

"I'm not going all touristy," she says. "There's a snorkeling spot nearby that I like to go to. Otherwise, the weekends are my time to rest."

Producers have forwarded early cuts of the show to Discovery Kids, and Rann Watumull, who co-founded Hawai'i Film Partners with his wife, Gina. Watumull said the response was enthusiastic.

"They think they have a hit on their hands," he said.

That would be good news for Watumull's fledgling film business and, he says, Hawai'i's film industry as a whole.

"The way you build a viable, sustainable industry is by giving the community ownership and control," Watumull said. "There are productions that come in for one-off projects and they're just concerned about making their money and going home."

By creating, developing and distributing original projects, Hawai'i Film Partners serves as a model for growing a self-sustaining film industry, one that can adequately weather the comings and goings of large Hollywood studio productions, Watumull said.

"We have a sense of family here," Watumull said. "And that's the difference."