Hatteras Hotel

I worked today on an independent feature shooting in Rockport Mass, "Hatteras Hotel". I was one of just six extras, all the other guys were cops and I was the criminal. I guess that is a step up from being just a thug. It was a good day and a fun cast and crew (saw a couple guys I met working on Illegal Aliens again). The lead is Wade Williams, he said I looked like a real con; since he was a regular on Fox's "Prison Break" I took that as a compliment. I was handcuffed and marched through the station on a perp walk. At one point the camera was moved and I was sent through a door we hadn't been through before. The "cop" behind him shoves me along with my hands cuffed behind my back. We get to the door and he pauses to turn the knob then kicks the door open and shoves me in. What I didn't see was the step down into this area and I almost went down face first to the ground. Would've been the best performance for us - but the door slammed shut behind us ruining the take. Hours later my wrists are still red and sore from being shoved around in the cuffs. I should've gotten hazard pay.


Here is a recent story from Gloucester Daily Times

Rockport to star in 3rd movie of year

By Jonathan L'Ecuyer
Staff Writer
November 03, 2008 10:46 pm

ROCKPORT — The silver screen spotlight will shine on Rockport for the third time this year. Filming is expected to start next week on "Hatteras Hotel."

The movie company plans to film at numerous locations around Rockport between Nov. 10 and Dec. 18; sites include the old and current police stations, T-Wharf, the Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockport and Pigeon Cove.

While few details have been provided on who will star in the movie, Emerson Inn by the Sea general manager Molly Andrew Williamson did confirm the inn would play a major role in the mystery drama — the part of the Hatteras Hotel.

According to Town Administrator Michael Racicot, the film is about a Boston police officer who grows tired of city living and decides to finish out his career in the fictional community of Salem Harbor, portrayed in the film by Rockport. The man becomes sheriff of Salem Harbor and is faced almost immediately with the mysterious death of an upper-class teenager who is found dead after a night of partying at the Hatteras Hotel.

The England-based production team has offered to donate $10,000 for affordable housing in Rockport. The money will go to the Rockport Housing Authority, Racicot said.

Racicot said Wade Williams, who has portrayed Brad Bellick on Fox's hit series, "Prison Break," for the past three years, is set to star in the film.

Film location scout Tiffany Kinder and about a dozen members of the crew met with police Chief Tom McCarthy at the Rockport Police Station yesterday morning. The crew plans to transform Rockport's station into the Boston Police Department on Monday, Nov. 10, and shoot several scenes inside the station's community and locker rooms, booking area, and cell block on Nov. 11, McCarthy said.

Rockport's old police station, located on Broadway, will portray the Salem Harbor Police Station, McCarthy added.

Attempts to reach Kinder yesterday were unsuccessful.

At the Emerson Inn by the Sea, 1 Cathedral Ave., Andrew Williamson said owner Bruce Coates and the entire staff is "thrilled" that the inn was selected as the movie's title setting.

"This will be the most filming the inn has ever seen," Andrew Williamson said, yesterday. "They're just fabulous and excited about coming to Rockport. The gentleman who wrote the script lit up when he came to the inn. When he saw it, he knew (the inn) was exactly what he had pictured in his mind. His excitement made me realize what kind of a gem we had here."

Williamson said portions of the script have been rewritten just to allow for the inn to remain as the prominent location. The crew will transform the inn into the Hatteras Hotel later this month and begin shooting early next month, Andrew Williamson added.

Meanwhile, C.P. Casting Inc. of Boston is busy hiring background extras for the movie.

According to the company's Web site, www.cpcasting.com, it is looking for extras to portray hotel guests and staff, tourists, fishermen and deckhands, and many other types.

The most important factors in being chosen to work as an extra on the film will be the person's ability to provide their own transportation to Rockport and their availability during the shoot. The movie will not be filming on weekends, nor on the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday during Thanksgiving week.

Most extras will only work one day, the site said, but being able to get to the set early in the morning and stay all day is critical. People interested in being an extra are also asked to consider letting the movie film their car for some scenes.

Those interested in applying can visit the company's site online and fill out a "size card" via a "Hatteras Hotel Extras" link.

The movie is expected to draw a PG rating, Racicot noted.

The film is the third to film in Rockport this year.

In April, Walt Disney Pictures came to town to shoot scenes for the romantic comedy, "The Proposal," starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. Then, in August, Mel Gibson was filmed on Cape Hedge Beach for his next film, "Edge of Darkness," due in theaters next year.

Racicot said the movies are a great thing for the town and the film company's donations are benefitting good causes.

Jonathan L'Ecuyer can be reached at jlecuyer@gloucestertimes.com.

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