New film starts production in Oklahoma
Famke Janssen wrote and directs the upcoming film "Bringing Up Bobby," which will be filmed in Oklahoma. (AP Photo)
This story ran on the front page of The Oklahoman today.
Filming for the motion picture “Bringing Up Bobby” began this week in Oklahoma.
Milla Jovovich, Marcia Cross and Bill Pullman star in the film written and directed by Famke Janssen.
Newcomer Spencer List, 12, plays Bobby.
“Bringing Up Bobby” follows a European con-artist named Olive (Jovovich) and her son, Bobby (List), who find themselves in Oklahoma after an escape effort. Cross plays the role of Bobby’s foster mother.
On Tuesday afternoon, Jovovich wrote about her participation on Twitter, “Hey guys! Been crazy! Came home 4 a day 2 get ready 2 go 2 oklahoma tonite 2 start my new film ‘bringing up bobby’! will keep u updated!”
First-time executive producers are Edmond native David Johndrow, 42, and his wife, Maryann Johndrow, of Johndrow Vineyards in Napa Valley. The couple join several executive producers. David Johndrow said the entire movie will be filmed throughout Oklahoma City and metro areas such as Edmond, Guthrie and Luther.
David Johndrow said the budget for the independent film hasn’t been finalized. He estimated the movie will create roughly 60 jobs for Oklahomans.
“The one thing about bringing a film to Oklahoma is that Oklahomans are so gracious to the arts,” David Johndrow said. “It’s a fun, interesting proposition.”
List’s publicist Kelly-Marie Smith said in an e-mail that Monday is List’s first day on “Bringing Up Bobby.”
The film is the first directing role for Janssen. She is best known for her performances as the psychic mutant Jean Grey in the “X-Men” trilogy.
David Johndrow said filming in Oklahoma is to conclude in late August.
Video: The Whigs covering Sparklehorse’s “Painbirds”
The Whigs visited the Diamond Ballroom last weekend in support of the Hold Steady.
I managed to grab lead singer Parker Gispert after the show and he decided to play “Painbirds” by the late Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse.
If you enjoy the song then don’t hesitate visiting NPR to listen to “Dark Night of the Soul,” a collaboration between Sparklehorse and Danger Mouse.
The Flaming Lips, The Strokes, Danger Mouse and even David Lynch make cameos.
Weird is good.
P.S.
Here are some shots from The Whigs’ set.
-Poppe
Story behind the story: Visiting the Bowery
A couple weeks ago, George Lang invited me to shoot an interview he was doing with Stephen Kovash.
Kovash used to work as a bartender at the now defunct venue called the Bowery. In the 1980s it was an awesome rock venue that supported a zany cast of people who really cared about music. Make sure to read the feature about it.
Everyone from the Flaming Lips to REM played the venue.
I had no idea what to expect from the interview. All I knew was that no one had really been down inside the Bowery for like two decades.
I set down all of my camera equipment and was exploring the dark, dusty venue when Lang started his interview with the former bartender. Kovash was giving Lang a tour and didn’t give me a heads up to start filming. Rightfully so because Lang is good at interviews because he pays attention well.
So I grabbed my gear immediately and started filming as much as I could.
The lighting wasn’t choice and every sound made in the Bowery echoed like crazy, but I wasn’t afraid to move around my camera and audio equipment for different shots and interesting angles.
I think my favorite thing about filming this interview was learning how important it is to be flexible. It would have killed the interview if I would have asked Kovash to find a chair or move around. I just captured what happened without interrupting the process.
I edited the video during my Fourth of July break, but it was worth it. I think it’s one of the best things I have put together.
Let me know what you think.
P.S.
Check out all these crazy old pictures from the venue.
-Poppe
Photo Slideshow: The Hold Steady at Diamond Ballroom
Here are some shots from The Hold Steady’s Friday evening show.
The nerdy frontman Craig Finn reminds of a guy working at Best Buy who suddenly inherits the soul of Bruce Springsteen. He rocked.
Also, check back soon for video and photos of the talented opening act The Whigs.
-Poppe
Movie Review: “The Square”
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman. The film received 3 1/2 stars out of 4. The film is showing at the Oklahoma City Museum of Arts this weekend.
There’s a moment in “The Square” when the character played by actor David Roberts looks into a mirror after committing a horrendous crime. His reflection stares back with eyes that read, “I shouldn’t have done that.”
Those five words propel “The Square,” an Australian thriller set during a Christmas season full of murder and scheming instead of gifts and wrapping paper.
Unhappily married Raymond Yale (Roberts) is an overworked construction foreman who finds time to cheat on his wife twice in one day with the much younger Carla Smith (Claire van der Boom). Their affair goes awry when Smith discovers her husband hiding a bag of money in the attic, and the unfaithful spouses decide the cash is their ticket to freedom.
But “The Square” takes itself too seriously for anyone to get away easily.
This is a film about the severity of brash decisions, and several dastardly characters will do whatever it takes to retrieve the money.
Director and stunt coordinator Nash Edgerton ensures every cause has an effect. Performing stunts for projects ranging from “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie” to “The Matrix” must have trained Edgerton to handle action well, because he crafts moments tense enough to match the best scenes from crime films from Joel and Ethan Coen, including “Fargo” and “No Country for Old Men.” When Yale arms himself with a flashlight to snoop around a house, it’s impossible not to jump at his discovery.
The acting in “The Square” is superb, which is important because characters handle situations way bigger than themselves, and that’s what makes this movie so watchable.
And it’s a challenging film because multiple conflicts boil from a simple plan to steal money.
Luckily, the movie isn’t all crime and mayhem. The intense moments balance well with some scenes of crushing subtlety, such as when Yale’s wife watches helplessly as her husband secretly meets his mistress.
This makes up for a messy third act, but what can you expect when fire, death and greed are involved?
— Nathan Poppe
Photo Slideshow: Sherree Chamberlain survives car accident and plays Wormy Dog Saloon
Only a few hours after a car accident, Sherree Chamberlain made it the Wormy Dog Saloon to open for Taddy Porter.
Hardcore.
-Poppe
Veteran’s Memorial (Norman, OK)
Just a little piece I put together for the4th. Could be better, but it was for fun.
Veteran’s Memorial from Daniel Simon on Vimeo.
Photo Slideshow: Taddy Porter CD Release Show
Stillwater rockers Taddy Porter visited Wormy Dog Saloon on Saturday to celebrate the release of its self-titled debut album.
The quartet has had a quick rise in popularity thanks to music spots in everything from “Monday Night Football” to “Entourage.”
Check out Gene Triplett’s story where he interviews frontman Andy Brewer.
Also, Taddy Porter handed out Taddy Porter beer at the show, which made this the most Taddy Porter ever to be at a concert.
That’s a refreshing record.
-Poppe
Let’s Do More than Clap for Our Soldiers…
Photo by Daniel Simon
Today, I worked from Norman, Oklahoma. I chose to do some reporting on the Vietnam Memorial that is currently set up in Norman (a replica of the one from D.C.). I went in with my professional demeanor, and left a human being.
I interviewed three individuals who were willing to tell me a little bit about themselves. They were willing to open themselves up to a complete stranger, and I am grateful for that. The first individual I talked to was vitising the site because he and his wife knew two people who had died in the war. The second individual was a volunteer for the war, and the third individual is someone that changed my life forever, and I changed his.
This guy had never talked to anyone about his time in Vietnam, but he opened up to me! At first, I tried to get the gentleman on camera. I asked him what were his emotions and what he thought about this special memorial. He stared into the camera, at a loss of words for nearly 30 seconds. He then shook his head and said he couldn’t do it, but “thanks.”
So we chatted “off the record.” He said I could use his information for a piece, but he just did not want to be on camera. He told me the hardest thing for him was to come back to the “world” (the world is what veterans refer to as the U.S.), and having people spit on him and call him a “baby-killer.” He said he never expected to get anything in return for serving his country, but he definately did not expect the reception he and his friends received from fellow Americans.
He cannot celebrate the 4th because the fireworks and the loud cracks remind him of the front lines. He told me he thought he was “the toughest son of a….. in the world,” but he didn’t know that some 40 years later he would be emotionally distraught from the war.
He is now having night terrors and panic attacks for the first time in his life.
He told me he was grateful for people like me, that generally cared (we talked off-camera for almost 30 minutes) about soldiers. He paused for a while, turned away from me, shed a couple of tears, and told me he was going to shake my hand and give me a hug.
I told him, “of course!” Really I was at a loss of words, but it felt good to help someone who was in trouble. He needed someone to talk to, and he felt I was the person. After we hugged, he showed me a little something he wrote down in a notebook/scrap book for the veterans to vent. Again, he hugged me. I told him, “stay strong” and the last thing I saw was him tapping his chest twice with his fist, a universal sign of strength and perseverance, and waving goodbye.
Two men changed forever.
