An Andover teacher’s epic memoir is about to become the next Channing Tatum vehicle. Richard Farrell, whose novel What’s Left of Us, looks deep inside his troubled years of heroin addiction and a stint at rehab before becoming a teacher at Andover High School and adjunct professor of English at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell. The book, which was released in July of 2009, gained almost instant critical acclaim, and attracted the eye of those in Hollywood. Tatum is being tapped to star, and was most recently seen in Dear John with Amanda Seyfried.
Christian Bale
Farrell has already gained Hollywood clout by consulting on the screenplay for The Fighter, which was filmed in Lowell last year with Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg. That film is set to hit theaters this November. He also wrote, filmed, edited, and directed the documentary High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell, which aired on HBO in 1995, and received the duPond award from Columbia University. He also co-authored the book, A Criminal and an Irishman; The Inside Story of the Mob-IRA Connection. He currently lives in Milford, New Hampshire.
A slew of Massachusetts-filmed movies began hitting theaters in February and continue to roll out this summer. Furry Vengeance hit theaters last Friday coming in at number five in the box office. The kid flick chronicles a standoff between titan real estate developer Brendan Frasier and some cute and not-so-cuddly woodland critters fighting to keep their habitats preserved. Furry Vengeance also stars Brooke Shields. The Lightkeepers, starring Richard Dreyfuss, opened in March. Set in early 20th century Cape Cod, Dreyfuss plays a reclusive lighthouse keeper who has sworn off women.
Summer blockbusters Grown Upsand Knight and Day are both due out June 25th, but that’s not the only thing they have in common. Both were filmed in Massachusetts, but that’s about where the similarities end. Grown Ups features a star-studded cast headed by Adam Sandler, Salma Hayek, Steve Buscemi, Chris Rock, Kevin James, Rob Schneider, David Spade, Maya Rudolph, and Tim Meadows (whew!). The group reunites as adults after their high school basketball coach dies and inevitably hilarity ensues. Knight and Day pairs up Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz on an action-adventure with a tinge of comedy. The two play a globetrotting fugitive couple on the run who realize nothing is what it appears to be, even each other.
There may not be many New England actors who can say they’re scheduled to appear in three feature films in 2010, so when we found local actress, Erica McDermott, we couldn’t wait to tell you how she did it. She may not be a household name yet, but she’ll soon be recognized for her work as a feature extra inKnight and Day, an extra in TheZooKeeper and a principal role inThe Fighter. McDermott told us that she got “bit with the acting bug” after doing community theater and signed up for acting classes. At the same time, McDermott was actively looking for work in her field of nursing, when everything seemed to fall into place.
McDermott sat with Hollywood East Connection reporter, Mary Pierce and talked about her journey of auditioning and how she landed the principal role, playing along side Christian Bale, Mark Walberg and Amy Adams in The Fighter. Watch it here:
McDermott will be back on stage for Momologues on January 29th at the Scituate High School. Tickets are available at the Front Street Book Store located in downtown Scituate. Not only is McDermott working with local Director Lisa Rafferty on Momologues this winter but she’ll also appear in her new production, The Pink Ribbon Overdose.
We’ll be looking out for McDermott on the big screen this year and wish her continued success in Hollywood East.
With stars like Tom Cruise, Christian Bale, Adam Sandler and Amy Adams being seen around Beantown, we New Englanders are witnessing the new Hollywood: Hollywood East. We began to notice celebrities in 2008 when 13 movies were filmed around the area. However, Hollywood East got its start back in 2006 when the Commonwealth passed the 2006 Film Tax Credit (FTC), which helped find film executives that were interested in Massachusetts. Prior to this, movie productions looked pass the Bay State for more economically friendly states like New York or Connecticut. Today, Massachusetts is feeling the economic benefits from the FTC with increased employment and the millions of dollars generated by direct spending into the Commonwealth.
Although film productions aren’t required to hire in-state workers, it behooves them to do so as it saves production dollars on hotel rooms, airfare and rentals. Schools specializing in editing and postproduction such as Future Media Concepts in Cambridge are even finding it necessary to expand their locations to accommodate the overwhelming increase in enrollment. The Boston branch manager of Future Media Concepts, Keri Wilson, told the Boston Globe that they didn’t have the room to schedule all of the classes offered in their previous location.
People are more technology oriented and finding that they need more training in the field of new media. Future Media Concepts was launched in 1994 as the world’s first Avid authorized Training center. It’s is now the nation’s premier digital media training center, exposing students to programs such as Final Cut, Apple and Adobe. Even production service companies such as Powderhouse Production in Somerville, MA whose clients include the Discovery Channel and TLC, are finding it necessary to expand their offices to accommodate upcoming projects. Tug Yourgrau, co-founder of Powderhouse, told the Boston Globe that he likes to refer to the tax credit as “Miracle-Gro.”
Even though companies like these are finding it necessary to increase square footage to train local talent, even more expansion will be needed if either of the two proposed movie studios, Plymouth Rock Studios or the former South Weymouth Naval Air Station, breaks ground. These two studios are estimated to cost a combined five million to build. Not only will more jobs be available for actors, filmmakers and trained software technicians, but construction companies and landscapers will be able to find their niche in the industry as well.
The commonplace practice of aspiring actors and movie-makers heading to the Big Apple or LA to fulfill their dreams may prove to be a thing of the past. Hollywood East has even gotten the attention of California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who publicly complained about Massachusetts taking all the film industry jobs. Read spending highlights of the FTC from the MA Department of Revenue report.
Wednesday morning at the Charles River Plaza Whole Foods on Cambridge Street in Boston, Christian Bale was spotted with wife Sibi Blazic, the sometimes celebrity assistant. The star, who appeared thin to onlookers, satisfied his visual appetite atleast by admiring the store’s display cases, while his wife got herself a hot beverage from the speciality counter. The happy couple continued to shop and look around the store for awhile before moving on their way. Bale is currently in the Boston area shooting scenes for The Fighter, a true story about boxer Micky Ward during the early days of his career in Lowell, MA. The film costars Mark Wahlberg and Amy Adams, and is set to be released in 2011. In addition to being set and filmed in the greater Boston area, the film has made good use of local talent, as casting calls for extras have been regularly held throughout the summer.
Sibi Blazic and Christian Bale Courtesy PR Photos
Bale and Blazic married in 2000, and have one child together, Emmaline, who was born in 2005.
The Residence Inn in Tewksbury has been playing host to the advance crew for the soon-to-be filming flick, The Fighter, starring none other than the Dark Knight himself, Christian Bale. The movie co-stars Boston’s own Mark Wahlberg as “Irish” Mickey Ward fighter and his journey to the world lightweight championship, and his relationship with his half-brother Dicky Eklund, another fighter, played by Bale. Actress Melissa Leo will play the pair’s mother. Filming is taking place through the summer in and around the Lowell area, as Wahlberg and Bale were spotted earlier this month touring possible filming locations. Bale was actually guided around town by the real-life Dicky Eklund, and the two were reportedly spotted shadow boxing around the streets in the Highlands section of Lowell. Director David O. Russell of the HBO documentary High on Crack Street, Rich Farrell, producer of Lost Lives in Lowell, and other crew members were also on hand for the tour, making stops at various locations around town, including homes on Wilder, Smith, Westford and Shaw streets, as well as Ramos Package Store on Branch Street. Actual filming should commence this July.
Boston Casting is holding an open call audition for a new feature film called The Fighterstarring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale on Saturday, May 30th from 10:00am – 4:00pm at the VFW Hall, 190 Plain Street, Lowell, MA.
Directed by David O. Russell, The Fighter is a drama about a Lowell boxing champ “Irish” Micky Ward and his half-brother Dicky, a boxer-turned-trainer who rebounded after nearly being destroyed by drugs and crime. The audition is open to everyone 18 years and older and to both union and non-union actors. You must bring a current photo and bio to the audition. Boston Casting is looking for people to play the following roles:
Boxers and fighters in their 20’s and 30’s
Trainers
Women in their 20’s and 30’s with blonde or red hair
Residents 18 years and older from Lowell and surrounding communities
There may not be many New England actors who can say they’re scheduled to appear in three feature films in 2010, so when we found local actress, 
