Money earned by Amherst College from movie director Mel Gibson’s shoot last year is now paying, in a new program, to transport homeless people living in Amherst to warm lodging in Northampton, as well as periodically providing them temporary motel rooms.

With temperatures dipping well below freezing most recent nights, the town of Amherst, through its Community Development Department, has begun providing the free taxi service.

“Fundamentally, what we’re doing is offering, to those homeless who notified our related social service agencies, a ride to the shelter in Northampton,” said Town Manager Larry Shaffer. The town also used a portion of the money to rent rooms for homeless people last weekend at the Amherst Motel.

The money to pay for these rides and rooms comes from money donated to the town by Amherst College, which it collected from Gibson for use of its property for filming Edge of Darkness.

The locations that Gibson used included the former Strategic Air Command bunker near the Notch off Route 116.

Amherst College donated $40,000 to divide equally among social services, with $10,000 to both the Senior Center and Community Development Department, and $20,000 to the schools. Continue »

I’ve added some photos of from Aug 16 – Spring Awakening and On Set – Undated Boston.

The moral of the story, according to Littleton native Gretchen Wilson, is that you never know what will happen on any given day.

In her case, what happened is that the stage actress got to be in a movie with Mel Gibson that was filmed in and around Northampton.

Backing up a bit, Wilson said she lived in Littleton until she was 8 years old, then moved away and came back to raise two of her four children.

In about 1999, she started acting in plays put on by the New Life Fine Arts, a theater group connected to the New Life Community Church that meets in Concord. She performs under the direction of New Life producer and director David MacAdam.

Wilson said her friend, Littleton resident Tom Olson encouraged her to try out for bit parts in movies, so one day she took her headshot and resume to the production company for the Edge of Darkness, starring Gibson.

“Tom said I should try to get into movies, so I started auditioning at open calls,” said Wilson who lives out of town.

She drove to Northampton in June for the audition and to drop off her photo and resume. Then drove home to resume her daily life. She was told she’d be called back if they wanted her from August to December.

Then by chance one day recently she was doing the laundry and cleaning house when she got a fateful phone call.

“They did a rush call and asked if I could be in an athletic club scene,” said Wilson. “So I thought, ‘Do I finish the laundry or drop everything and rush out to Northampton.’”

She chose wisely, she said. She rushed out to the set and got in some scenes with Mel.

“From there, I was called back to be in a courthouse scene,” said Wilson. “They did many takes with Mel. He was a pleasure to work with; fun to be around. He was always joking with the cast and the extras.”

According to publicity about the movie, it is “based on a British television series, Edge of Darkness, and it tells the story of Boston police officer Thomas Craven and his search for truth following the murder of his daughter. The trail leads Craven, who is played by Gibson, to Northampton where Northmoor, the company where his daughter works, is headquartered.”

“Movie producers have been careful not to divulge too much of the plot, but some of it involves government cover-ups and corporate intrigue,” according to press reports about the movie. On Wednesday, extras hired as protesters chanted in front of the Hampshire County Courthouse and held signs that said “Bombs Away” and “Don’t listen to the man behind the curtain” as Gibson drove by. Others were positioned along Main and King streets, posing as pedestrians. In all, about 200 extras were in the scene, according to Blaise J. Noto, a publicist for the film.”

“So you never know where you will end up,” said Wilson. “I wasn’t really ready to rush out that day. I could have said no. I didn’t know I would be having that great a time.”

Source: Wicked Local

Cut. That’s a wrap.

Mel Gibson and company are packing up after a week of shooting in and around Northampton, but they are leaving behind them a trail of money and a gaggle of star-struck fans.

Edge of Darkness, which stars Gibson as Boston police officer Thomas Craven, commandeered the streets of downtown Northampton for most of the week, stopping traffic and drawing crowds of rubber-neckers hoping for a glimpse of Gibson. Although the city has been the setting for several movies over the past few years, this will be the first time Northampton will play itself.

In Edge of Darkness, Gibson’s character goes on a search for truth after seeing his 24-year-old daughter Emma gunned down in front of him. His investigation leads him to Northampton, where the mysterious corporation Northmoor is headquartered. GK Films also shot scenes in Deerfield and Amherst.

Although the film’s producers did not disclose their budget, Edge of Darkness did not flinch when it came time to pay its way. For a single day of shooting at the Hampshire County Courthouse, it paid $10,000 to use the building and the lawn, according to Pennington Geis, the administrator for the Hampshire County Council of Governments. Court officials said the company also paid the crew of Five Star Roofing, which is repairing the courthouse roof, to suspend their work for a couple days.

GK Films compensated the city for parking revenue lost during the filming on Main Street. Although parking commissioner William Letendre said the figure has not been calculated, he estimated that it would be about $1,000. Northampton police were employed to direct traffic during several of the scenes. The film company paid about $11,000 for their services, according to Capt. Joseph Koncas. In addition, four officers, Gilberto Jimenez, Deirdre Yasutomo, Steven Digiammo and Timothy Satkowski, were employed as extras.

Edge of Darkness used 700 extras, many of whom are local residents. They include area lawyers, court officers and several employees of Tully O’Reilly’s Pub on Pleasant Street, where one of the scenes with Gibson was shot. Tully J. McColgan, who is one of the owners, said he got up at 4 a.m. on Monday to let the film crew in.

“It was a great experience,” he said. “I got to watch the whole set-up.”

McColgan’s cooks whipped up a variety of dishes for the scene and one of them served Gibson’s character. For verisimilitude, the film company also used several regulars in the bar scene.

GK Films rented several city lots for staging areas, including the parking lot at Paradise City Tavern on Main Street. Restaurant owner Claudio Guerra said he was paid $500 for the use of the lot, but didn’t otherwise profit from the presence of the film crew.

“There was zero increase in business,” he said. “Not a dime.”

For some reason, the film’s big wigs headed across the river to dine. Cliff H. Loeb, a manager at Judy’s Restaurant in Amherst, said Gibson ate there at least three times in parties of four to eight. The restaurant let him use a side room.

“We made sure no one came in and bothered him,” Loeb said.

Script writer William Monahan, a University of Massachusetts graduate, is no doubt familiar with Judy’s, but Loeb did not know if he was among those who ate with Gibson.

Gibson also dined at Green Street Cafe in Northampton, which is gaining a reputation as the feeding place of the stars. Owner L. James Dozmati said Alec Baldwin, Nicole Kidman, Tom Cruise and Michael Caine have eaten there in the past while filming in Northampton.

GK Films hired its own caterer to serve breakfast and lunch to the cast and crew. The staff at the Hampshire County Superior Court was invited to have lunch with Gibson and the rest of the crew one day last week as a courtesy to Clerk of Court Harry Jekanowski, Jr.

“We watched him go up and get dessert,” said clerk Elaine Jandu. “It was so exciting.”

The court staff also had a brief encounter with Gibson as he was coming up the inside stairs after slipping out back for a smoke. Jekanowski described him as a joker.

“I don’t know how much acting he really does, because he’s as wired as the people he plays in the movie scenes,” he said.

Executive producer E. Bennett Walsh said GK Films was drawn to Massachusetts in part because of the financial incentives the state offers. Massachusetts offers a 25 cent credit for every dollar a film company spends in the state. This year alone, seven films have been shot in the state.

According to a Massachusetts Department of Revenue report cited in The Boston Globe, the incentives have cost the state almost $120 million in lost tax revenues over the past three years. On the other hand, the film productions have generated $545 million in direct spending and resulted in hundreds of new jobs, the report said.

Source: Mass Live

“Mel Gibson is one of my favorite actors, and it’s a really fun thing to come down and watch them shoot,” says Anna Dagarin.

In the film Edge of Darkness Gibson stars as a Boston Police Detective investigating his daughter’s murder. And Northampton isn’t just a location for filming, but will be referred to by name and visited by Gibson’s character several times in the finished product.

“Even though we’re only shooting here two weeks, what we’re going to get, and the personality of it, is throughout the whole film,” says Executive Producer Bennett Walsh.

Tuesday the crew took over Main Street, using the inside and out of the Old Courthouse. The location was suggested by the film’s writer, a Massachusetts native.

“Given the architecture, and the unique stone, we felt that it was just going to give us what Northampton is,” says Walsh.

But it’s not only the town that will make an impression on the big screen. About 700 local extras will get a chance to be in the movie, and nearly 200 will be on the set on the streets of Downtown Northampton.

“It’s easy to bring people in, but it’s also nice to be part of the community,” says Walsh. “For me a big part of film making is trying to make it less mysterious.”

Part of that mystery was uncovered for fans as they watched Gibson tape numerous takes. And though the star didn’t greet the crowds outside, he did take time to thank the staff who helped secure the scenery.

“He was very gracious, and very kind and he shook my hand,” says Hampshire County Clerk of Courts Harry Jekanowski. “It was quite exciting to meet him, because he is quite a star.”

Gibson is expected to film at least one more day in Downtown Northampton, before moving to locations in Deerfield later in the week.

Source: CBS 3 Springfield

You might need a really powerful telescope to see them, but some local folks earned a place in the film Monday as the star-making machine from Hollywood shot several scenes for the new Mel Gibson movie in Northampton.

The cast and crew of GK Films are in town this week filming Edge of Darkness, a thriller based on a British television series of the same name. Gibson plays a Boston police officer whose investigation of his daughter’s murder takes him to Northampton. With about 700 extras ready for their cues, local viewers are bound to spot some familiar faces when the finished version hits the silver screen, although they will be mostly in the background.

Gibson was not much in evidence Monday as a crowd gathered outside Tully O’Reilly’s Pub on Pleasant Street hoping for a glimpse of the star of the Mad Max and Lethal Weapon movies. Instead, they got to see a half dozen extras walk up and down the street numerous times while police intermittently stopped traffic. Publicist Blaise J. Noto explained that the shots had to do with a scene in which Gibson is eating inside the bar and sees something on TV that gets his attention. The street scenes were filmed from inside, through the bar windows.

Source: Mass Live

You might need a really powerful telescope to see them, but some local folks earned a place in a movie today as the a film crew from Hollywood shot several scenes for a new Mel Gibson thriller in Northampton.

The cast and crew of GK Films are in town this week filming Edge of Darkness, a movie based on a British television series of the same name. Gibson plays a Boston police officer whose investigation of his daughter’s murder takes him to Northampton. With some 700 extras ready for their cues, local viewers are bound to spot some familiar faces when the finished version hits the silver screen, although they will be mostly in the background.

Gibson was not in evidence this morning as a crowd gathered outside Tully O’Reilly’s Pub on Pleasant Street hoping for a glimpse of the star of the Mad Max and Lethal Weapon movies. Instead, they got to see a half dozen extras walk up and down the street numerous times while police intermittently stopped traffic.

Publicist Blaise J. Noto explained that the shots had to do with a scene in which Gibson is eating inside the bar and sees something on TV that gets his attention. The street scenes were shot from inside, through the bar windows.

Although people waited in the hope of seeing Gibson emerge from the bar, he had left the set early in the morning, according to police. A stand-in was on hand to take his place for lighting and camera-angle purposes.

During a break in the filming, Maurice DuBois, a Northampton resident hired as one of the extras, stepped outside for some air. DuBois, 59, said he had spend several hours sitting at a table in the bar nursing a “beer” that he thought might have been ginger ale.

“We were told to be extremely quiet and not look at the camera,” he said.

DuBois, who works as a window-washer, has a face the camera apparently loves. He said he has appeared as an extra in two previous films shot in Northampton, Cider House Rules, and In Dreams.

Source: Mass Live

A car will go flying off a river bank and into the Merrimack River sometime soon. But when it will happen remains a secret.

As filming of Edge of Darkness starring Mel Gibson continues locally, an accident scene involving a car going into the river has been cleared through the Merrimac Conservation Commission. A publicist for the film has said it will be a closed set and the timing will remain a secret. Much of the filming has taken place near the Rocks Village Bridge and at a house on River Road in West Newbury.

To get permission from the town, the production company had to guarantee little to no environmental impact. The car will have no engine or fluids, and the production crew will have to install their own vegetation to be plowed over and make sure native vegetation isn’t seriously impacted. The scene is expected to be at night.

Source: Newburyport News

Lights … camera … Mel Gibson!

Camera crews likely will descend on the area within the next few days to film scenes for Edge of Darkness,  crime thriller starring Gibson, according to Blaise J. Noto, a publicist for the production company, GK Films.

“We probably will be in the Northampton area by the end of the week,” Noto said today.

He cautioned that production here could be delayed by a number of factors, but the present plan calls for filming to start in the Northampton area soon.

Boston Casting Co. expects to call on 700 people to appear as extras in the Northampton shoot, according to Julie Arvendon, marketing director for the Boston-based firm.

Extras typically receive the call to show up on the movie set just two or three days before they are needed, Arvendon said.

Hundreds of people turned out for an open casting call at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in Northampton on Aug. 9. Producers were looking for people to play doctors, nurses, lawyers, court officers, police and old hippies.

Citing the production company’s policy, Noto said he could not confirm what local spots will be used in Edge of Darkness. However, the Hampshire County Courthouse has been mentioned by court officials as a possible site and the state Department of Conservation and Recreation has announced it will close Mount Sugarloaf State Park in Deerfield on Oct. 8-10 to accommodate filmmakers.

Crews are building a temporary structure that covers much of the observation tower at the top of the mountain and has changed the look of the mountain from the valley below.

Principal photography on Edge of Darkness began six weeks ago and should conclude by Thanksgiving Day, Noto said.

“Everything is terrific,” he said. “People have been wonderful.”

The movie has undergone a casting shakeup, with Ray Winstone of The Departed taking over a role vacated by Robert De Niro.

Based on a British television miniseries of the same name, Edge of Darkness tells the story of a Boston police officer, played by Gibson, who descends into a world of intrigue and government cover-ups after the murder of his daughter.

The movie will be directed by Martin Campbell, whose film credits include the James Bond blockbuster Casino Royale. Producer Graham King and writer William Monahan both won Academy Awards for their work on the Martin Scorsese movie The Departed last year.

Source: Mass Live

It’s not every day that a major Hollywood production is filmed on the North Shore.

But with Matthew McConaughey, Michael Douglas and Mel Gibson in our midst this summer, it becomes clear those days are becoming more common.

As Edge of Darkness, starring Mel Gibson continues shooting this week in Merrimac on River Road, the possibility of more star sightings and movie crews in local communities continues to build.

But how does a Mel Gibson decide that the Rocks Village bridge in Merrimac would be the perfect setting for his film?

It starts with a call to the Mass. Film Office.

With much of the film being shot in Northampton, the company was looking for a site that resembles the Connecticut River — which the Merrimack does.

Nick Paleologos, the executive director of the Mass. Film Office, said he’s proud that Hollywood isn’t just coming to the state and just staying in Boston.

“It isn’t just Boston, it’s everywhere, and that’s the most gratifying part of this,” he said, adding that the Edge of Darkness has also filmed in Deerfield, Taunton and Beverly, among other places. “It’s everywhere, and the more, the merrier.”

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