Lights, Camera, Action!
Local residents joined with cast and crew from far afield in Cedartown this weekend to make a 10 minute teaser to take to Hollywood in hopes of making a feature length film in Polk County.
Cedartown Humane Society president and volunteer harlotte Harrison, along with Tracy Sargent, who runs both a local search and rescue dog training facility, Star K-9, an animal acting agency and is also a producer on the film, worked together with many others to help bring what is being titled as “Black Mountain” with writer-director Michael Lucker.
The story, according to Harrison, revolves around a boy genius from a small town finding
a cure for cancer in dogs and the ensuing intrigue around this newfound medical miracle. She said it will likely be marketed to a younger audience.
A 3-day shoot in and around Cedartown for the film took place over the weekend to put 10 minutes of shots into a teaser film, which Lucker and producers will take to film executives in hopes of funding a longer production.
Sargent first became involved in the film when Lucker approached her about his need for a lot of animal actors. She said once she read the script she couldn’t believe how similar the setting sounded to her hometown.
“I offered up my farm and told him I would help find other locations to shoot here if he decided he wanted to come,” she said.
And so on a outing earlier this year, Sargent said Lucker fell in love with the place. The two got the ball rolling and enlisted the help of local officials and volunteers like Harrison to get the production going.
Over the weekend, a film crew of more than 50 ventured around the area at places like Mundy’s Lake, downtown and even Cedartown commission chair Dale Tuck’s home to produce the shots.
And how did the outof-towners react?
“They were overwhelmed with the city itself, and stunned at all the cooperation and support they got,” she said. “They couldn’t believe that a county commissioner drove them around on a bus.”
Commissioner Scotty Tillery took up the task of driving a borrowed church bus from location to location over the Friday, Saturday and Sunday schedule, and others like First Presbyterian’s Dave Grove offered up areas where the cast and crew could get ready or gather for meetings and meals.
Those meals were provided by local restaurants including Cedar and Smoke, Russell’s Diner, Bojangle’s and Trey Glanton.
Even the sheriff’s department got involved, providing vehicles for some of the shots needed for the short film.
Sargent said the cast and crew were appreciative of all the hard work local residents put in to make the first round of filming a success.
“People here showed the meaning of true southern hospitality, which is what it’s all about,” she said. “They also got to see that small town America still exists right here.”
“It took a community effort to make this happen, and we can’t thank people enough for their help,” she said.