| Photos of the current film site in Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Many thanks to Bobbo for the great video coverage and the photographs! Hopefully he will keep them coming Added February 19, 2008 |
Hachiko Film News Page II
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| Posted February 20, 2008 |
| Updated March 22, 2008 |
| Richard Gere gives a wave to the crowd watching the making of his movie, Hachiko: A Dog's Story outside the train station in downtown Woonsocket. People in the crowd shreiked "There he is!" as Gere quickly headed for a car and drove off the set. February 21, 2008 Journal photo / Bob Thayer |
| Actors work during a scene from Hachiko: A Dog’s Story outside the train station in downtown Woonsocket yesterday. The exterior of the station was extensively remodeled for the film — including clocks, lettering, parapets and other facade details. February 21, 2008 The Providence Journal / Bob |
| February 21, 2008 'Hachiko' downtown filming delayed Richard Gere won't be in Bristol Monday, and neither will film crews. Shooting in Bristol has been postponed and there is no word on when work will resume here. Richard Gere and Joan Allen fans hoping to linger on Hope Street next week to get close to the stars will have to wait. Filming, scheduled for this coming Monday, Feb. 25, has been postponed. Parts of downtown Bristol's historic district were due to be closed to traffic this coming Monday in anticipation of another round of filming for "Hachiko: A dog's story." But on Wednesday, Bristol Police Lt. Nick Guercia said location managers with the film told him they won't be in town that day. He doesn't know when they will, he said. "They gave no indication of when they'd be back," said Lt. Guercia. "No one in the downtown area will be inconvenienced this Monday." During a December meeting with the Downtown Bristol Merchants Association, location manger Colin Walsh said the Hope Street shots would mostly be used in transition scenes for Mr. Gere's and Hachiko's daily downtown trek from their house — a home on High Street already filmed, to the train station, which is being filmed in Woonsocket. "When they left High Street, they said they'd get back to us about filming on Hope," Lt. Guercia said. "We want to let people know ahead of time what roads will be blocked off and what routes to take." This isn't the first time downtown filming has been delayed. Crews were originally supposed to be downtown on Friday, Jan. 18, but that date was delayed because of inclement weather and the fact that the cast and crew were behind schedule. By Jeremy Rosen jrosen@eastbaynewspapers.com |
Richard Gere films scene in Woonsocket February 22, 2008 WOONSOCKET, R.I.—A movie starring Richard Gere has been filming at a Woonsocket train station. more stories like thisGere is playing a music professor who befriends a dog in a film called "Hachiko: A Dog's Story." It's loosely based on a Japanese film made several years ago. Film crews are wrapping up a shoot this week at Woonsocket's train station. Next week, Gere is scheduled to film several scenes at the University of Rhode Island in South Kingstown. Producer Bill Johnson says unpredictable New England weather set the production slightly behind schedule. Gere is best known for his roles in "Pretty Woman," "Chicago" and "An Officer and a Gentleman." |
| February 23, 2008 |
| Richard Gere wraps up filming in Woonsocket Friday, February 22, 2008 By Michael Janusonis Journal Arts Writer Richard Gere walks by crew members during the making of his movie, Hachiko: A Dog’s Story, outside the train station in Woonsocket yesterday as onlookers shrieked "There he is!" WOONSOCKET — Richard Gere is scheduled to wrap up his filming today for Hachiko: A Dog’s Story at the downtown railway station where the movie has been shooting for two weeks. But except for scenes that were filmed outdoors with Gere and the Akita dog named Chico, who has the title role of his faithful companion in the film, sightings of the movie star have been rare and brief. Yesterday, Gere barred the media from inside the gingerbread-style station. Several people standing 100 feet away on a street corner hoping for a look at Gere had to make do with the sight of him jumping out of an SUV and into the station. It happened so quickly that most missed him. Producer Bill Johnson, who has been back and forth between Rhode Island and Hollywood during the filming for his Inferno production company, said that despite some setbacks because of the fickle Ocean State weather, Hachiko is “a little bit behind schedule, but not too bad.” had big fans ready to create the wind. But the real wind forced them to rethink things. “It was so windy that we had to shut things There is snow in the movie, but the real snow that has fallen during their stay in Rhode Island (filming started the third week of January) hasn’t been much help. “So we have to make our own snow for continuity,” Johnson explained. “It’s easier to make snow than to remove snow.” Johnson, a lanky man with an easy smile and a two-day beard, said that earlier yesterday they had shot scenes on the station platform with a train borrowed from the Providence & Worcester Railroad. “It was the first day we had the train and the dog together.” Hachiko: A Dog’s Story is based on a famous Japanese dog who would see his master, a college professor, off from home on his way to the railway station as the man left for his university job. In the afternoon, the dog would return to the station to meet the professor’s train. After the professor died, the dog continued to return to wait for him at the station every afternoon. It was a story that touched the hearts of the Japanese who turned the dog into a national hero and erected a statue to him that still stands outside Shibuya Station in Tokyo. The American film is loosely based on that story, which had been turned into a successful Japanese movie several years ago. In this version, Gere’s character is a music professor named Parker who lives in the suburban town of Bedridge. A large “Bedridge” sign now adorns the Woonsocket station. In real life, however, Parker’s house is on High Street in Bristol, while the station he walks toward to catch his train is some 30 miles away. Next Monday and Tuesday the movie crew is scheduled to move to the University of Rhode Island campus in Kingston to shoot scenes with Parker teaching his class. Johnson called making Hachiko in Rhode Island “a good experience.” So much so that he said his company is putting together a film fund to finance “18 movies that will be made over a three-year period in Rhode Island,” possibly beginning as early as later this year. For the moment, however, there’s Hachiko, which is scheduled to complete production on its winter scenes at the end of the first week of March. But Johnson said that the movie crew will be back at the end of June to shoot scenes that are set in the spring. |
| Richard filming in Woonsocket February 25th Thank you Anita McMullen for sharing your photos! |
| More video from Bobbo4462 Filmed February 25, 2008 |
| For Sharman Weeks - Web designer of... Richard Gere ~ The Power of One Happy Birthday February 24th By: Bobbo4462 |
| Richard Gere film 'Hachiko' turns Kingston campus into movie set Issue date: 2/27/08 Section: Media Credit: Amanda Neves Actor Richard Gere waves to a small crowd outside of Quinn Hall yesterday between filming scenes for his movie, "Hachiko." Media Credit: Nora Lewis Hachiko" film stage crews work on the set as the scene is explained to the film extras assembled in Edwards Auditorium yesterday. 02/27/08 - Bursting at the seams with cameras, cables, lights, monitors, crewmembers and one celebrity, the normally spartan Edwards Auditorium transformed yesterday into a movie set. About 100 students and Richard Gere arrived in the early morning to film scenes for "Hachiko: a Dog's Story." The movie, a remake of a 1987 Japanese film, stars Gere, and chronicles the bond between a college music professor and a stray dog. Gere, known for roles in "Pretty Woman," "An Officer and a Gentleman" and "Runaway Bride," is also one of the movie's producers. The URI students cast as extras to play Gere's students began filing into the lobby around 7 a.m. After signing release forms, students waited in the auditorium's balcony as the crew put finishing touches on the set and Gere ran lines. Sophomore Stefanie Catanzano, who read about the opportunity to be an extra in an e-mail, said she responded a few weeks ago and got word that she was selected Monday night around 7:30. "The first person I called was my mom, but I was speechless. She probably thought something was wrong," Catanzano said with a laugh. Twelve hours later, she found herself in Edwards along with Gere, preparing for her film debut. "I've known Richard Gere since I first saw 'Pretty Woman' with my family," she said. "I've been a fan ever since." She said playing a student might seem second nature to most of the university's population, but the role comes with challenges. Catanzano said crewmembers instructed the cast when to laugh and how to react so the finished product would appear natural. Because the main character is a music professor, the stage was set to look like something from a combined theater and music department. A forest-like backdrop and stone-looking walls played host to a baby grand piano and one talented Gere. After a quick solo on the piano, Gere sat casually on the stage's edge and began to lecture students. Auriane Koster, a fifth-year senior cast as an extra, said filming the short scene was not a quick job. "We probably did [one scene] like 20 or 30 times," she said. Tom Luse, one of the producers, said it's essential to film the scene several times using different camera angles. Throughout the almost six-hour shoot, some cameras filmed the master shot, a very broad shot, while others shot what's called coverage, or close-up. Yesterday, crewmembers in the lobby monitored footage from two cameras in the auditorium. But to get the perfect shot, the lighting must be just right. "The human eye sees much more selectively, more subtly than the camera," Luse said. To combat this problem, a few large lights were set up on the stage to shed light onto Gere. Outside two jenny lifts equipped with beaming bulbs that shown through the windows provided the appearance of a sunny day on an overcast Tuesday. "It's very hand crafted," Luse said. "We spend 80 percent of the time setting up the shot and only 20 percent filming it," he said. But for students, the set up time provided an opportunity to catch a more glimpses of Gere. Koster said seeing Gere was her first celebrity sighting. "I grew up in South Kingstown and [being in the movie] was really exciting," she said. "We don't have these things happen around here very often." She added that Gere seemed very focused during filming, and between takes he would sit quietly to the side of the auditorium. "You could definitely tell he was trying to stay in character," she said. "The students were respectful of his privacy, and were being professional." It was a busy day on the Kingston campus as crews began preparations for filming long before the sun came up. Some crewmembers arrived as early as 3 a.m. and several large trucks parked along Ranger Road were filled with equipment. Working on the set was one familiar face. Ron Augustus, a URI film studies student taking a semester off to work in the field, was working as a location assistant. "It's exciting because this is my first real gig," he said. Augustus started his day around 5:30 a.m. and expected to continue until at least 6 p.m. He said being on campus as an employee rather than a student was a strange feeling. "Coming back, you feel like more of an observer," he said. "But at the same time you've still got roots." In fact, the fifth year senior ran into several of his former classmates while doing maintenance around campus. As a location assistant, it's part of his job to make sure the grounds are safe. Yesterday one of his tasks was to shovel snow near the entrance of Green Hall for a scene to be shot there later. Others who work on location, like Eoin Walsh, a crewmember from Jamestown, R.I., said he helped hunt down a good spot for filming. Earlier this year, Walsh and others toured the campus, taking pictures and passing them on to the director and the producers, who eventually decided the campus' classic architecture would make a nice setting. He was on set yesterday to make sure things were running smoothly. "The film business is a business of problem solving," he said. "Things are constantly changing." With a crew of more than 150, a lot could go wrong. "We're a three-ring circus," Walsh said. "And to be able to accommodate that kind of thing while you have an operating campus, it's a really positive thing." He added that the school has been very accommodating to the chaos a movie set can bring. "URI has been unbelievably helpful," Walsh said. Within the last two weeks, "Hachiko" is the second movie to be filmed on the Kingston campus. Last week, URI played host to the movie "The Clique" for two days. Both movies have paid the university only for the cost of incidental expenses like electricity and security personnel. The administration hopes the movies will attract positive publicity for the university. Within the last year, several feature films have been shot within Rhode Island after the state passed a law allowing motion pictures companies to receive a 25 percent transferable tax break on all Rhode Island expenditures. |
| Media Credit: Amanda Neves Actor Richard Gere waves to a small crowd outside of Quinn Hall yesterday between filming scenes for his movie, "Hachiko." |
| Media Credit: Nora Lewis Hachiko" film stage crews work on the set as the scene is explained to the film extras assembled in Edwards Auditorium yesterday. |
