O'Fallon ballpark becomes movie set
Indie flick filmed at T.R. Hughes
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| Cinematographer Chris Chambers filming a scene with actor Jacob Fishel. |
The movie, "How I Got Lost," has been a dream project for director and Kirkwood native Joe Leonard for the last five years. With the help of his parents, friends and colleagues, the story is finally being told.
The New York University graduate who makes his living editing film for television shows like Nip/Tuck in Los Angeles started work on the script in 2002."It took a couple of years to develop it into a full movie idea," Leonard said.
Producers Sam Mestman and Jared Parsons have been with the project since its inception.
Parsons said he remembered giving notes and feedback about the script when Leonard and Mestman were college roommates.
Leonard shot a rough short film of the project in order to drum up funding in 2004.
After moving to Los Angeles in 2005, Leonard briefly tried to pitch his finished script to other directors, just to keep it from languishing in a drawer.
"Usually people loved the script, but then wanted to take it in a direction that didn't sit well with me," Leonard said.
In 2006, the script for the full length feature "How I Got Lost" was awarded a grant through the Richard Vague Film Production Fund from the Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.
Leonard said the grant validated his persistence and helped him pitch the project to investors.
Parsons said the story begins in New York City in the wake of the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. It follows two friends who travel across the country to attend the funeral of the father of one of the travelers.
Mestman said the movie is definitely not about politics.
"I think some movies focus on the bigger picture and forget about the people who went through it," said Mestman of other films that address U.S. policy during and after attacks. "It does not touch on the politics, I think that's been done to death."
O'Fallon represents a part of America the characters thought was lost, Parsons said.
Joe Leonard's father helped him find the perfect locale for a pivotal scene in the film, T. R. Hughes Ballpark.
The park, located in the Ozzie Smith Sports Complex and home to the River City Rascals baseball team, was built in 1999 to have an old-fashioned feel.
"I wanted it to be a cool little park that would be all about baseball," Leonard said of his choice of location.
Leonard said he responded to the park's beauty and the way it felt like an "all-American place."
"We love the scene, we went out there to scout, it's such a perfect minor league ballpark," Andy Leonard said.
Andy Leonard said his son has been making movies since he was a kid with cameras he bought at garage sales.
"He'd cast kids at the school; they're actually pretty good," Andy Leonard said.
Of the many people who have helped Joe Leonard bring the story from an idea to a tangible reality, his mom and dad top the list.
Andy and Karen Leonard have opened their Kirkwood home to cast and crew members of the production.
There are crew members staying with the Leonards to save on costs, and they are editing some footage there as well.
"It's really a family production," Joe Leonard said.
Friends of the family are housing other members of the cast and crew.
"My parents have been unbelievable," Joe Leonard said,
The filmmaker's dad had equal praise for cast and crew members.
"They're unbelievably dedicated and unbelievably competent," Andy Leonard said.
J. R. Hawbaker is the costume designer for the shoot; Hawbaker worked on the AMC television program Mad Men, which has been acclaimed for its iconic fashion.
"She's putting aside large, paying jobs to work with us," Parsons said.
All of the crew associated with the project have worked on higher-profile films.
Editor Sarah Brosher was the assistant editor on the Spiderwick Chronicles.
Musician and friend Kaki King, has also committed to the project. King has received national attention and performed on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.
"How I Got Lost" does not have a distributor yet, so the producers are gearing it for the festival circuit, Mestman said.
They are scheduled to finish a cut of the film in September for admission to the Sundance Film Festival, Mestman said.
The Sundance Film Festival, held annually in Park City, Utah was started by actor Robert Redford and helps promote independent film.
