This weeks semi-regular tale from the set takes place for a change in my home city of Hamilton. On Wednesday it was a complete pleasure to spend the day at Liuna Station, the old train station situated near the down town core. You can see a picture of the beautifully restored building either in the "Kenaz Vault" or click the link in the side bar to vistit "The White Oliphant", my photo blog, and scroll down until you get to the pictures of Hamilton.
Anyway, yesterday I played a press photographer covering the book release of Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Champion of Freedom by Conrad Black in a CTV movie of the week entitled "Shades of Black". I had a chance to meet Canadian actor Albert Schultz and watch Hamilton-born filmmaker director Alex Chapple (Prom Queen), DOP René Ohashi (Saint Ralph), production designer Tom Bider (Terry) make movie magic. All of whom I had the pleasure of working for on the aft mentioned projects.
Here is the summerary of the movie from Playback Magazine
Albert Schultz and Lara Flynn Boyle are in town this month for the second half of the Shades of Black shoot. The bio of embattled press tycoon Conrad Black is booked at the Dufferin Gate studios until mid-November, with Schultz (Drive Time Murders) in the lead and Boyle (Twin Peaks, Vegas) as Lord Black's wife, Barbara Amiel Black.
Also in the cast are Jason Schombing (Cool Money) as Black's longtime and recently indicted colleague David Radler, and Amy Price Francis (Our Fathers) as Shirley, Black's first wife. Jason Priestley also appears as a fictional investigator.
The $5-million MOW got underway in the U.K. early this month, filming exteriors, gala balls, the lovebirds' wedding and the strike at Black's Daily Telegraph newspaper. It was to begin filming locally on Oct. 19 and will shoot for one month in Toronto, Hamilton, Galt and Cambridge.
Alex Chapple directs for a bevy of producers including Mary Young Leckie and Heather Haldane, both of local outfit Screen Door (Shattered City, Prom Queen), and Gub Neal and Justin Thomson-Glover for Box TV, Screen Door's partner in the U.K.
Chapple (Torso: The Evelyn Dick Story) is working with DOP René Ohashi (Saint Ralph), production designer Tom Bider (Terry) and composer Christopher Dedrick (Torso, Childstar). The script comes from Andrew Wreggitt (In the Blue Ground), based on the book Shades of Black - Conrad Black: His Rise and Fall by Richard Siklos.
The movie tells Lord Black's life story through a series of flashbacks going back to his boyhood.
"He's a character of very complex, tragic and epic proportions," says Leckie. "I think the script and the film will do very good service to that." She adds that, due to the ongoing legal investigation into Black, the production needed to buy plenty of insurance, even though it felt it was on solid ground with its research.
The project is backed by CTV's Heroes, Champions and Villains stream, BBC Worldwide and Screen Door. Delivery is slated for mid-February 2006, with a local airdate expected soon thereafter. Sean Davidson, with files from Mark Dillon.
That's all for now, later.
Kenaz
