The Hudson Valley Film Commission spent much of the month of May referring locations, crew members, hotels, vendors and posting casting calls for a lot of upcoming projects. June 2021 will have more than ten projects in the region including four productions from HBO. Other featured productions will include Hallmark, Hulu, and four indie companies.
When the Hudson Valley FIlm Commission reported at the beginning of May that the floodgates had opened on regional Film & TV production, we underestimated the amount of work coming to and featuring the region. Additionally, past projects that were filmed locally, were released in theaters, and/or online. The economic development impact that has already resulted from the first quarter has eclipsed totals for all of 2020.
THE WHITE HOUSE PLUMBERS
Grant Wilfley Casting continues to seek Hudson Valley locals who are interested in working as extras in the upcoming HBO limited series “The White House Plumbers,” starring Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux. Filming will take place through September in the Hudson Valley and Capital district, in Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, Kingston, Albany).
“The White House Plumbers,” is a period show from the 1970s. Applicants must be ok working around smoke and have natural-colored hair. Applicants must also be willing to take 2 Covid Tests and attend a Wardrobe Fitting beforehand. Union and non-union actors are welcome to submit their information.
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Click here to read more about the series in Variety
THE SEX LIVES OF COLLEGE GIRLS
Mindy Kaling’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls” for HBO Max / Warner Bros Television is seeking Dutchess County locals interested in participating as students, faculty members or female soccer players. Filming will primarily take place at Vassar College, which was referred to the location team by the Film Commission in October of 2020. Other locations in the Poughkeepsie region will also be used.
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THE GILDED AGE
In addition to hiring many local crew members for the mid Hudson Valley for G&E, HMU and more, Grant Wilfley Casting posted for locals (men, women, and children) to portray various roles as extras in the HBO series "The Gilded Age," which takes place in the 1880s. Production will be filming in Troy during May and June. The transformation to the location around Monument Square has been stunning.
See photos in Times Union
Against the backdrop of change the was the gilded age, the story begins in 1882 — introducing young Marian Brook, the orphaned daughter of a Union general, who moves into the New York City home of her thoroughly old money aunts Agnes van Rhijn and Ada Brook. Accompanied by Peggy Scott, an accomplished African-American woman, Marian inadvertently becomes enmeshed in a social war between one of her aunts, a scion of the old money set, and her stupendously rich neighbors, a ruthless railroad tycoon and his ambitious wife, George and Bertha Russell. In this exciting new world that is on the brink of the modern age, will Marian follow the established rules of society, or forge her own path?
The series features Christine Baranski (“The Good Fight”), Cynthia Nixon (“Sex and the City”), Carrie Coon (“Strange Weather”), Morgan Spector (“The Plot Against America), Denée Benton, Louisa Jacobson, Taissa Farmiga (“Higher Ground”), Blake Ritson, Simon Jones, Harry Richardson, Thomas Cocquerel, Jack Gilpin and Jeanne Tripplehorn (“We Only Know So Much”) have all signed on.
REDEMPTION IN CHERRY SPRINGS
HBG Casting posted a casting call for “Redemption in Cherry Springs,” a Hallmark Mystery of the Week film, which will be filming in Newburgh and Beacon.
To be considered by HBG Casting, fill out the form at https://hbgcasting.com/join-our-database
A&H CASTING
As part of our weekly Monday Local Industry Referrals, we highlighted Dutchess and Ulster based A&H Casting Associates, which combines the skills and talents of Amy Hutchings and Heidi Eklund. Together (and separately) these two casting forces have worked on more local projects than any other group over the past 21 years. Recent projects include Brit McAdams’ “Paint,” with Owen Wilson, and Katie Holmes’ second movie as a director. In the still untitled movie, two strangers embroiled in bad relationships wind up in the same upstate New York Airbnb. They’re forced to confront quarantine and their disdain for one another in this unexpected and unlikely love story. The movie stars Holmes, and two actors very familiar to the Hudson Valley, Melissa Leo and Zosia Mamet.
A&H Casting Associates is currently working on various current and upcoming film projects. They are specifically seeking multi ethnic actors from Putnam County to Albany County. If you are interested, email amyheidicastingassociates@gmail.com
OTHER PRODUCTION DEVELOPMENTS
In addition to the numerous casting calls, the Hudson Valley Film Commission was busy looking for, and referring locations in the region. Several will be used by some of the many productions coming to the region.
Several projects are still seeking locations and other film related needs for several projects. All referrals are forwarded directly to film productions. The most pressing current LOCATION NEED is for two neighboring homes…
The main house is an "aspirational" home for a young newly married couple with a newborn. They get married in the backyard at the start of the film. It's their first home. The neighbor's house is owned by an older couple who have lived there most their lives. The house is well kept and pretty, but it hasn't been "done-up" the way someone would if they were flipping the home for new buyers.
The neighborhood needs to feel open enough that everyone can see through each other's yards to the natural surrounding beauty. Not a lot of natural barriers between houses. The less tree-lines, the better. It should be the kind of place you walk your dog at night and wave hi to the neighbors who are out in the front.
Both homes must be willing to allow interior filming. If you have any of the following, please email us at locations@hudsonvalleyfilmcommission.org or fill out our location form.
The Hudson Valley Film Commission is also currently looking for PICTURE CARS including a police cruiser, an ambulance, an older (80s-2000) Mercedes, and a beat up minivan for 2 days. All other types of vehicles are catalogued for potential use in local productions. If interested, send picture car photos with year, make, model and contact info to locations@hudsonvalleyfilmcommission.org
DISTRIBUTION NEWS
For a full list of films produced in the Hudson Valley, visit STREAMFEST
A QUIET PLACE II
On May 28, the sequel A Quiet Place II,” opened in theaters only. Filming this time around was limited in the mid-Hudson Valley but you should be able to recognize several locations in Dutchess and Ulster Counties.
Click to see Times Union article
“A Quiet Place Part II,” the horror-thriller sequel featuring John Krasinski and Emily Blunt, opens in theaters on May 28 during Memorial Day weekend. Often seen as the start of the summer blockbuster season, Memorial Day weekend will be a particularly important bellwether for the movie industry this year, now that moviegoers can return en masse to theaters.
The first movie, which earned $341 million worldwide against its $20 million budget, follows a family who lives in silence to avoid mysterious creatures that hunt by sound in a post-apocalyptic world. The sequel follows the family as they face the outside world and venture into the unknown while continuing their fight for survival in silence. Both feature scenes from the Hudson Valley.
The cast and crew for the sequel only spent a total of three days filming in the region, compared to the 2018 production that spent a month of production days and nearly a year of preparations. Nonetheless, the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail bridge in New Paltz — which saw a surge in visitors since the first movie, said Laurent Rejto, executive director of the Hudson Valley Film Commission — will reappear in the Paramount Pictures sequel along with the movie family’s home in Pawling.
PANIC
On May 28, "Panic," a new series premiered on on Amazon Prime. The series filmed part of its pilot episode in the Hudson Valley over three nights during late September of 2018. The featured location, Minnewaska State Park, features some of the lead actors appearing to jump off a 60-foot waterfall into a pool below. The "Panic" waterfall shoot was plot-related. The full series began filming in late October 2019 in the Austin, Texas area. The series was created and written by Lauren Oliver based on her 2014 novel of the same name. The series stars Olivia Welch, Mike Faist, and Jessica Sulathe and revolves around a group of graduating high school seniors who compete in a dangerous game for prize money and the chance to escape their small town.
The production company, Picrow ("The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,") booked hundreds of rooms in Kingston and the Town of Ulster for cast and crew. More than 75 young adults were booked through Grant Wilfley Casting, and a dozen local crew members joined the production team. Local vendors that provided support included Partner Rentals.
"Minnewaska State Park has been a key location for dozens of projects over the years," says Hudson Valley Film Commission executive director Laurent Rejto. "Some of the movies that have featured the location gloriously include Vera Farmiga's "Higher Ground," Bruce Beresford's, "Peace, Love & Misunderstanding," and Derek Cianfrance's "I Know This Much is True."
SWEET TOOTH
Although “Sweet Tooth” was not filmed locally, it was created by filmmaker Jim Mickle and produced by Linda Moran. Both are part-time locals who have made three previous films in the Hudson Valley region including "Stake Land," "We Are What We Are," and "Cold in July," with Michael C. Hall, Don Johnson and Sam Shepard.
“We wanted to make a show that offers escape and adventure, where nature is reclaiming the world and in many ways it feels like a fairytale,” Mickle said in a release. “‘Sweet Tooth’ is a new kind of dystopian story, it’s very lush and hopeful. We want people to come into this world where there’s beauty and hope and adventure. This is a sweeping story — we ride on trains, climb mountaintops, run through forests. This is a show about what makes a family, what home really means, and why it’s important to keep faith in humanity.”
The Netflix series, which was filmed in New Zealand, is based on the American comic book limited series written and drawn by Canadian Jeff Lemire and published by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint. On a perilous adventure in a post-apocalyptic world, a boy who's half-human and half deer searches for a new beginning with a gruff protector. In addition to Mickle and Moran, executive producers included Susan Downey, and Robert Downey Jr.
SWEET TOOTH premieres June 4 on Netflix! Click here to watch the trailer.
For more info, visit https://www.sweettoothmovie.com
WHITMAN IN THE WOODS
Taylor Mac’s “Whitman in the Woods” features Walt Whitman as the “turbulent, fleshy, sensual, eating, drinking and breeding” bard in his book of poetry “Leaves of Grass.”
Produced with Pomegranate Arts, “Whitman in the Woods” was filmed in Putnam County in July 2020 at Clarence Fahnestock State Park, Glynwood Center for Regional Food & Farming, and Saunders Farm.
To screen the series, visit Thirteen
WEREWOLVES WITHIN
In conjunction with IFC Films, the Hudson Valley Film Commission will present a special screening of the locally produced comedy-horror, WEREWOLVES WITHIN, at the Greenville Drive-In on June 20.
FOR TICKETS, CLICK HERE
After a proposed pipeline creates divisions within the small town of Beaverfield, and a snowstorm traps its residents together inside the local inn, newly arrived forest ranger Finn (Sam Richardson) and postal worker Cecily (Milana Vayntrub) try to keep the peace and uncover the truth behind a mysterious creature that has begun terrorizing the community.
Director Josh Ruben will be in attendance to introduce the film, which was produced during February and March of 2020 in Fleischmanns, Phoenicia and Woodstock Film Studios. Local cast and crew members will also be in attendance. WEREWOLVES WITHIN, which will world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 18 and open in theaters on June 25, stars Sam Richardson, Milana Vayntrub, George Basil, Sarah Burns, Michael Chernus,Catherine Curtin, Wayne Duvall, Harvey Guillén, Rebecca Henderson, Cheyenne Jackson, Michaela Watkins, Glenn Fleshler, Anni Krueger...
For details, visit www.hudsonvalleyfilmcommission.org/werewolves
OBITUARY
Sad to report that Walden, New York's very own Samuel Edward Wright passed away on May 24, 2021after a three-year battle with cancer, which he fought with unwavering strength, grace and his trademark sense of humor. An American actor and singer, Wright played Mufasa in the original Broadway cast of "The Lion King. He may be best known as the voice of Sebastian in Disney's "The Little Mermaid," for which he provided the lead vocals to "Under the Sea," which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Among other roles, he played Dizzy Gillespie in Clint Eastwood's 1988 biographical film about Charlie Parker, "Bird."
In 1994, Wright and his wife Mandy helped open the Hudson Valley Conservatory and The New Rose Theatre. Touted as the cultural epicenter of Walden, Sam and Mandy dedicated their lives to teaching thousands of young students dance, drama, and the idea that even the most foolish and irresponsible dream can come true with determination and heart. To honor the life and continue the mission of their beloved leader and mentor, the New Rose Theatre Group will be starting The Samuel E Wright Scholarship Fund to support the children, school and community of young artists he created at the Hudson Valley Conservatory.
The Hudson Valley Film Commission is a 501(c)(3) non profit organization that helps productions secure local crew, cast, locations, vendors, post production facilities, and more.
Please consider supporting our continued efforts at www.hudsonvalleyfilmcommission.org/support
