Hollywood Across the Street

I went to a 4th of July party at a friend of Karen's this weekend. This party was mostly attended by people who are production and crew members for all sorts of commercials and movies that get shot in Dallas.

I asked this one guy who's a producer what he's working on. He says "I'm shooting an indie movie at a house on Swiss Avenue." And I say "You mean the house that's got the sign in the front yard that says 'Please excuse the grass, it's growing out for a feature film' " And he say's "That's the house. I made the sign."

I run past this house every morning on my morning jog. It's located only about 400 yards from my own house. So this week, Tom Wilkinson and Nick Stahl of the very great "In The Bedroom" will be plying their craft in a house a street over. The movie will be called "Night of the White Pants". It's about some disfuctional family with all sorts of problems. The house on Swiss is very stately, but they're making it look purposely messed up for the movie.

So this week, I may walk over and watch the movie being filmed. I'm sure I won't be able to see much and I'm expecting a less than satisfying experience. But back in the late 80's my buddy Rob lived in a house in Austin that Richard Linklater used as a location for his first movie "Slackers." He actually walked in the house and messed up a scene. I think his roommate volunteered the use of the home. But it was Rob's right to walk in and mess up the scene seeing as he lived in the house. But I'll let him tell that story. Meanwhile I can only aspire to mess up a scene of a movie.