Readers, you have been warned. From the words of Lorenzo di Bonaventura : “A very important piece of information is revealed in this scene,”. “The movie makes no sense without it.”
But, to view the spoiler-ish bits, you still have to read on for the full article by Post Tribune.
GARY — The soldier knelt in the dirt beside a rusted-out industrial factory ringed by a dusting of Russian snow. He examined an item on the ground, then looked to the sky to demand answers.
Looking down on him was the face of Optimus Prime, an alien robot. But it was only Prime’s two-dimensional face, attached to a tall pole held steady by a member of a movie crew.
The soldier was really an actor, Josh Duhamel. Even though “snow” was on the ground, a brutal sun ran the thermometer up beyond 90 degrees. And Majestic Star Casino stood just over the horizon.
A “Transformers 3” film crew spent hours Wednesday in Gary making their next blockbuster movie outside the former Lehigh cement plant on Majestic Star’s property. Director Michael Bay could be seen there, leading actors like Duhamel through a scene they filmed again and again.
It’s the second time members of the “Transformers” crew visited Gary this year, and it’s the second year in a row a big-budget movie came to Northwest Indiana’s largest city to film. The crews are lured partially by a resource unlikely to make Gary residents swell with pride.
“We were looking for a place to emulate a foreign country with a series of abandoned buildings,” Producer Ian Bryce said.
Nevertheless, the film crews these movies bring with them spend money in the community and create a small but welcome revenue stream at City Hall. Ben Clement, who runs Gary’s film office as a volunteer, said filming in Gary has picked up significantly in the last four years. He doesn’t mind why they’re showing up in Gary, he’s just glad they’re here.
“If you’ve got lemons, you make lemonade,” Clement said. “And if that’s the reason they’re coming, so be it.”
“Transformers” might move their shoot next to City Methodist Church, a crumbling cathedral found at West 6th Avenue and Washington Street. Last year a crew filmed “Nightmare on Elm Street” there.
Today, praise from that movie’s assistant location manager, Nicholas “Shady” Jamison, can be found on the website of Film Indiana, a division of the Indiana Economic Development Corp.
“City personnel, police departments, residents and business owners were more than enthusiastic during our film shoot and extremely cooperative throughout the entire process,” Jamison wrote.
“Transformers” producer Lorenzo diBonaventura said good word-of-mouth referrals and helpful city officials are the kinds of things Gary needs if it wants to secure more major motion pictures. He said Gary officials have been accommodating and “encouraged us to be here.”
“They want to help us make it work,” diBonaventura said.
However, if Gary wants to be a serious filming attraction, “Transformers” location manager Ilt Jones said it might ask for help from the state.
Film Indiana says the Hoosier state offers a maximum tax credit of 15 percent for movie makers, but Illinois offers them a credit of up to 30 percent to produce there, according to its film office.
“If Indiana outdoes Illinois,” Jones said, “that’s when the fun starts.”
Clement said Gary is benefitting not because of tax credits but because of its proximity to Chicago. diBonaventura said about 500 people might have been involved in Wednesday’s shoot in Gary, and it costs money to move all of them.
“We’ve begun to get a lot of referrals” Clement said.
A few members of the “Transformers” cast spent a night at Majestic Star’s hotel, officials said, but most of them made accommodation in Chicago. Nevertheless, Clement said filmmakers bring money to Gary’s economy.
Paramount Pictures and DW Studios Productions will pay for the handful of Gary public safety workers on the set Wednesday. Clement said there are also opportunities for neighbors to earn money when movies come to town. For example, when “Nightmare” filmed on Tyler Street last year, a few nearby residents were paid for the inconvenience.
When documentarian Spike Lee came to Gary last year to make a film about Michael Jackson, Clement said, Lee paid to rent a church where food was set up for his crew.
“There’s significant economic impact,” Clement said.
Finally, Gary created a set of filming fees last year that moviemakers are required to pay. “Transformers” paid City Hall $1,550 to film here this month. Before Gary created the fees, Clement said not having them gave Gary a competitive advantage. However, he said their creation hasn’t been a problem.
“Our little piddly film fees are nothing,” Clement said.
Clement points out Gary has more to offer filmmakers than abandoned buildings, including beach locations and an inner-city urban atmosphere. And crew members Wednesday said they don’t intend to associate Gary with the empty Lehigh plant.
However, Gary residents might recognize their hometown when “Transformers 3” hits theaters. Producers said they’re confident the scene shot Wednesday in Gary will make the final cut.
“A very important piece of information is revealed in this scene,” di Bonaventura said. “The movie makes no sense without it.”
Thanks to Post Tribune.
Poho
Ouch. lol
Kaijumaster
Heh, course it doesn't say the movie makes sense WITH that scene either….
rhinox1701
Snooze
B O R I N G… wake me up when they announce some real news.
Orion Prime
I think I figured it out, this recent spoiler mentions that they needed a location to “emulate a foreign country with a series of abandoned buildings”. Prior to this line it stated that a “soldier knelt in the dirt beside a rusted-out industrial factory ringed by a dusting of Russian snow” while he looked up at a prop that would essentially represent Optimus Prime and that the soldier “examined an item on the ground, then looked to the sky [(Optimus)] to demand answers.”
In previous spoilers we were told that some sort of activity would take place at or near a nuclear power plant and elsewhere we were told that the Transformers played a key role in the Space Race back in the 1960s. The first movie mentioned that much of our current technology was reversed engineered from Megatron. Something is going to occur or threaten the human race (most likely nuclear related and Shockwave will be involved) via Cybertronian technology and the general populace is going to react negatively. Since the Autobots are the most public or will be outted in some fashion everyone is going to blame them.
Cyber Star
the last sentence in the article bugs me: "A very important piece of information is revealed in this scene," di Bonaventura said. "The movie makes no sense without it."
i dont like the idea of having a piece on info from a certain scene that makes the whole movie go round. cause you know a lot of people are gonna not pay close attention to that scene, and theyre gonna be lost through the rest of the movie, and then theyre gonna bitch about how the movie made no sense.
dragon
did they try and make joke or was that or was that coinsecidence If Indiana outdoes Illinois," Jones said ( indiana jones if no one got what i was talking about ).
i only read 1 sentance that has to do with film everything else i read was how they setup scenes & locations and how they get extras in the film not to much of spoilers thanks for sharing
DominusPrime
Wow. Earth-shattering spoiler there. Exaggeration much? At least Prime and Lennox have some kind of real on-screen mano-a-mano interaction this time. Still, I can't wait for the meatier rumours to surface.
LUGNUT1995
i wonder what it could be, like someone said it could be a transformers artifact, think of all the ones from all the series, Omega lock (TFC), Vector Sigma (G1) or Maybe Even a piece of The Ark .
ErbFan28
I hope they don't use the same formula again. I want to see something new!!!!!!!!!
jaimanstone
^^^absolute gold^^^
Hotwire
Chopperface
Hmm… interactions between Lennox and Prime in Russia. So they're using Gary for Russia, like White Sands for the Middle East/Egypt, and Bethlehem Steel for Shanghai. Hmm. No idea, too soon to tell with this scene.
TFfan08
Another McGuffin? *yawn
krawky95
I see its important because Optimus always wanted to see Michael Jackson hometown and Skids and Mudflap leave because they fit in great in Gary…..Maybe I went a little too far there….
harrismonkey
So Gary is supposed to be Russia.
This must mean that Cybertron never existed and Optimus prime is actually a communist relic from the cold war sent to America to taint our precious bodily fluids with fluoride.
Why else would Prime be colored red?
VaderPrime1
This is the McGuffin scene.
B’Bantor
ah, the movie is one scene away from not making any sense.
combaticon164
There is a saying in Chicago———–If you want to kiss a girl where it stinks——–You take her to Gary!!!
seven
Is Gary still a shithole? As a Hoosier we've been taught that Gary is a frightening place to be avoided.
Gary is a spectacular place for Urban Exploration, I'm just to frightened to venture there.
bumblebear
Key to grimlock? HOPE SO!! Haha