Daniel Maurer Mary Help of Christians earlier today.After serving as an after-hours club for one film and then a church in the Bronx for another, Mary Help of Christians is now being taken back to 1920s Little Italy, for a scene in “Boardwalk Empire.”
The Local spotted a film crew loading wooden panels into the church this morning, and Don Angst, an electrician, said that filming for the HBO show’s third season would occur Tuesday. But first, he said, carpenters will make adjustments to the endangered house of worship so that it resembles a church in Little Italy, circa 1923. The rounded pews, which are 1950s in style, will get more traditional caps, he said, and marbleized flats will be used to change the look of the altar.
“We usually make the place look better than it actually is,” said Mr. Angst.
So will the show’s star, Steve Buschemi, be making an appearance in his old neighborhood? Workers wouldn’t cough up any details about the scene, but we’ll keep an eye out as set-up continues tomorrow and Monday.
Daniel Maurer Henry Barrial (right) supervises camera set-up.A little over a month after “Girl on the Train” transformed the former Mary Help of Christians school into an after-hours club, a film crew is shooting inside the church itself today. Henry Barrial, the director of “Some Body” and “Pig,” described his latest film, “The House That Jack Built,” as an “ultra low-budget” production about a young man who buys a tenement in the Bronx using money saved up from dealing drugs out of his bodega.
So how does Mary Help of Christians come into all this? Well, it’ll stand in as a church in the Bronx where a baptism takes place in the beginning of the movie and a wedding takes place at the end. Other scenes are being shot in Jackson Heights and the Boogie Down.
Mr. Barrial found the church through Caryl Pierre, a production coordinator on the “Girl on the Train” shoot who also recommended the church for this one. The director, who is Cuban-American, said the movie will star Puerto Rican up-and-comer E.J. Bonilla as well as Saundra Santiago, best known for playing Det. Gina Calabrese on “Miami Vice.” The screenplay was written by Joseph Vásquez, the Bronx-born filmmaker who wrote “Hangin’ with the Homeboys,” starring John Leguizamo, before he died of AIDS-related complications in 1995.
Photos: Daniel Maurer, Stephen Rex Brown
Yesterday The Local spotted a fake throwback subway entrance being built on the corner of Bleecker and Mott Streets and today the Coen Brothers are using it as a prop for their film “Inside Llewyn Davis.” Moments ago, they were filming a scene in which the movie’s titular folk singer, played by a bearded Oscar Davis, ducks into a vintage car. Sprinklers were used to simulate rain, and ice on the ground simulated melted snow.
As in previous scenes, Llewyn was clutching a fake cat and a guitar case. During one take, the car only drove forward a few feet (not quite as impressive as a checkered cab coasting down Ninth Street), but there should be plenty more chances for action – the Coens are filming in the neighborhood through Friday.
Daniel Maurer A few weeks after filming at Hopper House the Coen Brothers are back, and taking advantage of NoHo’s cobblestone for their 60s flick “Inside Llewyn Davis.” A flyer on Bond Street between Lafayette and Bowery indicates they’ll be shooting Tuesday through Friday of next week. Cars must be moved by Monday at 9 p.m.
Stephen Rex Brown A camera dolly at East Fourth Street and Avenue D.
Stephen Rex BrownAn overturned motorcycle, an ambulance, and a fire truck would normally be cause for concern. Rest assured, the scene at Fourth Street near Avenue D was all part of a shoot of the new CBS drama, “A Gifted Man.” The show, starring Patrick Wilson (he was in “The Watchmen”) tells the story of “A brilliant, charismatic surgeon whose life changes forever when his deceased ex-wife begins teaching him the meaning of life from the hereafter,” according to its website.
Stephen Rex Brown The crew from “CSI” packs up its gear on Wednesday.The Local spotted the crew for “CSI: NY” filming on Eighth Street between Broadway and Lafayette Street all morning. And for all you would-be paparazzi out there, “Nurse Jackie” — starring Edie Falco of “Sopranos” fame — will be shooting on Thursday on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue, according to notices posted on the street.
Next time you see something like this, tell The Local.
Stephen Rex Brown Part of the film crew outside of Cafe Orlin today.Film crews have entirely overtaken Cafe Orlin (no stranger to cinema stars) and parts of St. Marks Place for the shoot of an upcoming NBC drama that takes a (fictional) behind-the-scenes look at the production of a Broadway musical.
A crew member outside the cafe near Second Avenue told The Local that they were shooting “Smash.” According to IMDB, the new series will depict the ups and downs of the cast and crew preparing a show about Marilyn Monroe’s life. Anjelica Huston is the biggest star in the cast, though she was not spotted today at around lunchtime. (There were few opportunities for paparazzi-style photos; the rain had forced most of the crew indoors.)
The show is set to premiere on February 6.
