Z Nation, the zombie TV show playing on Syfy and produced by North by Northwest Productions, has just been picked up for a second season.

Essentially, Z Nation has been performing well beyond expectations. So far this season, Z Nation has been Syfy’s third-highest-rated scripted show, behind Dominion and Defiance, with an average of 1.4 million viewers.

Rich Cowan, co-founder of North by Northwest had this to say:

We just aired episode six. They pulled the trigger because the ratings have been higher than anticipated.

And Spokane, where the series is being filmed, couldn’t be happier.

We’re showing the TV and film industry that we can deliver network episodic television directly out of Spokane. We’re thrilled and so happy for the crew.

Spokesman.com reported that the 13 episode first season created as many as 200 full-time jobs, and hundreds of extras (mostly zombies of course). They also indicated that as well as filming, the actual production work is being done in Spokane.