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Cameras roll in Love Valley

By Lee Ann Sherrill

Published: October 6, 2009

When students from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem were looking for a location to film a Western about an outlaw, they found an ideal location in Iredell County.

Fifty students were in town over the weekend to film a senior project "Dying from Home" by screenwriter nathan Connolly.

The story is set in Colorado in 1912. The main character James has grown tired of robbing others and wants to leave his outlaw ways behind to return home and win back his girlfriend. When he arrives home, he learns his parents have been killed.

The students brought along 12 rolls of 60 mm film, plenty of costumes, makeup and talent. The crew was made up of all four grade levels, with students involved in every aspect of the movie from production to camera work, sound, acting, set design, set layout and extras.

Keean Jackson was the producer; Scott Freije, director; Tony Ziegler, director of photography; Alexander Roth, assistant director; and Nick McIntyre, production designer.

For the most part, the crew had worked together on other sets and projects.

Although students from the school shot footage in Love Valley in 1996, this was the first film shot entirely on location.

"This has never been done before," Jackson said of filming a senior project for a 15-minute movie. "the school is really watching over us and it's (the movie) turning out amazing."

McIntyre was inspired by classic Westerns directed by John Ford and modern TV shows like Deadwood to help in picking a style that would work for the movie.

"There is an art form to fill a frame with extras," Alexander Roth, assistant director, said. He was in charge of keeping all the actors and extras in line while filming was taking place.

Joshua Brocki, who lives in Fayetteville, was one of the main characters. He was sold on playing his part after discovering it was going to be filmed in a real cowboy town.

Filming took place over two weekends. The students logged 12-hour days with about an hour lunch break. The crew also relied on the town for helping with the location, the use of donated horses, lodging and even being extras.

"The town has really been helpful with everything," Jackson said.

In addition to showing the movie in class, the students plan to enter it in film festivals.