October 8th, 2008 at 12:45 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
“CHERRY” SET TO BEGIN FILMING IN KALAMAZOO LATER THIS MONTH
Independent Film will also be a learning experience for Kalamazoo College and WMU students
We’re learning this week that principle photography for “Cherry”, a feature-length movie will be filmed on the campuses of Kalamazoo College and Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, with other scenes filmed at various locations around Kalamazoo.
Filming is set to begin later this month and go for about 24 days.
MICHIGAN TAX INCENTIVES ATTRACTED THE PROJECT
According to a press release, the movie’s writer and director Jeffrey Fine says “We were attracted to Michigan because of the new tax incentives offered to filmmakers. Kalamazoo College and Western Michigan University provide the perfect combination of picture postcard looks and high-tech facilities that our script requires. Plus, educators and local officials have been very supportive of our production goals.”
WEST MICHIGAN COLLEGE STUDENTS WILL BE INVOLVED IN PRODUCTION
The release says Students from Kalamazoo College and WMU will fill roles in front of and behind the camera during the filming of “Cherry”.
Fine says “We intend to (more…)
September 25th, 2008 at 2:14 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
UPDATE 9/25/08: “The Steam Experiment” is set to wrap this Saturday… one day later than first reported, but my sources say everything is on track and Grand Rapids has been great!!
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UPDATE 9/18/08:
The crew of “The Steam Experiment” will continue their closed-set shooting Friday, they are still on track to wrap September 26th or 27th.
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UPDATE 9/11/08:
from the set of “The Steam Experiment” (more…)
September 24th, 2008 at 4:44 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
Joe Pantoliano interview
Actor Joe Pantoliano talks to Laff at the Movies
GO TO THIS LINK TO SEE THE VIDEO
Joey Pants”, as he’s often called, also talked about a recent movie he filmed in Detroit
“The Job” with Ron Pearlman… and about making movies in Michigan.
He talked about his battle with depression and the organization he started called ”No Kidding, Me Too”, go to the website:
http://www.nkm2.org/.
September 18th, 2008 at 9:58 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
UPDATE 9/18/08:
The crew of “The Steam Experiment” will continue their closed-set shooting Friday, they are still on track to wrap September 26th or 27th.
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UPDATE 9/11/08:
from the set of “The Steam Experiment” (more…)
September 18th, 2008 at 1:01 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
Small budget movie “Fraternity House” that was shot in Grand Rapids premieres tonight… starring local actress Brittany Risner, an extra from “The Steam Experiment”
Tonight, a small budget ($100,000), but locally shot and produced movie
“Fraternity House” premieres in Grand Rapids… at 6:00pm at
Celebration Cinema! North… but the 550 seat theater is already sold out. Cast and Crew will arrive by limo.
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“Fraternity House” is a
24 hour look inside life at a wild college fraternity… written by
Hope College grads Joel Paul
Reisig of Grand Rapids and Scott Voshel of Holland.
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It stars Justin Isfeld, Johnny Lechner, Chris Stolte, and Brittany Risner…..
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“Fraternity House” and The Steam Experiment”
This movie business stuff… is a whirlwind… its a small world too… just last week
we were on the set of “The Steam Experiment” and now I get a press release for the premiere of a small budget movie tonight that amoung others, includes local actress
Brittany Risner, who
was in the background scenes inside the Bull’s Head Tavern filming last Thursday night for
“The Steam Experiment” movie starring Val Kilmer, Armand Assante, and Eric Roberts.
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I’m still working to learn the names of local actors and actresses involved in “The Steam Experiment”…
if you know, PLEASE POST A COMMENT!!!.
Back to
“Fraternity House”… $5 of each DVD sold, and $3 of each poster sold – before October 1st – will be donated to
A-T Children’s Project.
September 17th, 2008 at 3:01 am by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
Duvall to Direct and Star in TV project that will shoot scenes in West Michigan
UPDATED 9/17/08 4:00pm: Contrary to reports on other media website, Duvall is *STILL COMING*
… as per my original report… Robert Duvall is coming… and to add… he will be shooting mostly interior scenes, and some exteriors, that will all depend on the weather…. as the movie is set along the U.S.-Mexican border.
James Caan will be in West Michigan, providing he is in the scenes shot here, but that’s still up in the air !!!
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Original report 9/17/08 3:01am: Another project attracted by Michigan’s film incentives is a TV miniseries with a working title of “La Linea” (or “The Line”)… as in the borderline between the U.S. and Mexico.
Veteran actors Robert Duvall and James Caan are confirmed to be part of the project… Duvall will Direct and Star in the miniseries and Caan reportedly “begged” to be a part of the project after he heard about it.
Duvall has appeared in more than 75 movies and more than 50 tv shows and miniseries, his most recent tv miniseries project “Broken Trail” won 4 Emmys, and was nominated for 3 Golden Globes.
Caan may be best known to today’s audiences as casino operator Ed Deline from NBC’s “Las Vegas”… Caan has appeared in more than 60 movies and more than 30 tv shows and miniseries.
Jerry Zandstra from American Saga Productions says Duvall (more…)
September 16th, 2008 at 11:18 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
“Station House” editing and looking for a network
In August, we told you about a new reality TV series “Station House” that was filming inside the LaGrave Avenue fire station in Grand Rapids.
Now we know that crews have completed shooting the documentary about the lives of Grand Rapids firefighters.
Jerry Zandstra from American Saga Productions, the Production company behind the project says they have 3 pieces to put together… first, a promotional piece (which is done)… a background/demo piece that runs about 6 minutes that they will use to sell the documentary to the networks…. its expected to be finished editing on Friday.
Then, there’s the main piece, the “Station House”, a documentary that runs 90-95 minutes… they hope to have that complete by next month.
Zandstra says they are hoping for a mid-October Premiere for the documentary… and trying to work out something in conjunction with Loeks Theaters for a benefit to raise money for the firefighters.
The “Station House” documentary will be for TV and also released on DVD.
Producers are having initial discussions with multiple broadcast and cable networks, inlcuding CBS, ABC, NBC, Zandstra says FX and Discovery Channel are also “natural fits”.
http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty
September 11th, 2008 at 1:31 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
On the set of “The Steam Experiment”
“Quiet on the set” !!!
We’ve all probably heard those words before on tv, movies, or in documentaries…. but it sounds totally different when you are standing on the set that they are asking people to be quiet for!!!
That’s just part our experience of being on the set of “The Steam Experiment” last night… as the production worked on its 6th night of shooting in Grand Rapids, at the Bull’s Head Tavern.
Photojournalist Evan Linnert, my wife, and I were 
caught up in the middle of everything as the movie was being shot around us.. literally.
The biggest challenge wasn’t shuttling tape out to Brian Sterling for the 10pm & 11pm newscasts… it was staying out of the way as the production crews scrambled around between shots setting up lights, cameras, gear, and moving cables around.
Unfortunately, Val Kilmer had finished shooting all of his scenes for the movie and was reportedly out of town before we even arrived on set last night.
We did have the chance to interview Director Philippe Martinez, his actress daughter Sarah Martinez, local stand-in actor Craig Powers from Grand Haven, and actor Armand Assante.
VIDEOS:
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Also, check out Brian Sterling reports outside for 10pm
and Brian Sterling outside report for 11pm.
September 8th, 2008 at 9:55 pm by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
A sad update today to the 1st movie project I started following back in April…. “The Fifth Mafia” movie will not be coming to Grand Rapids.
It was going to be the first movie shot in West Michigan since the April tax incentives offering movie makers up to 42%… but now, we have to report that “The Fifth Mafia” will NOT be filming here.
In an email that somehow slipped through my inbox over the weekend… Producers of the movie say: “Executives have decided to shoot our film in New Mexico… (they) would rather have come to Grand Rapids. …. Unfortunately, we have run out of good weather in Michigan. We are planning toshoot in Nov-Dec., and since we need to simulate a Guatemalan scene, we cannot do it at this time of the year in MI.” (more…)
