Interview with Antoine Fuqua, director
Feb 23, 2010 Around NYC
Since the new Richard Gere/Ethan Hawke movie Brooklyn’s Finest, which filmed almost entirely in Brooklyn, is about to be released (March 5th), I’ve been republishing a series of posts I wrote for my other blog, Filming In Brooklyn. This is the last in the series, and my favorite: an interview with the movie’s director, Antoine Fuqua.
This post first appeared on July 7th, 2008.
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Director Antoine Fuqua didn’t grow up in Brooklyn. And he didn’t grow up in South Central L.A., where his other cop drama, Training Day, takes place. He grew up in Pittsburgh, and got his first taste of filming when a TV production moved into his neighborhood. According to Brooklyn’s Finest producer John Thompson, Mr. Fuqua went to the set every day, hanging around and figuring out what the different jobs were, and how things were done. He said to himself, I could do that.
Four teenagers from the Brownsville neighborhood where much of Brooklyn’s Finest is being shot are getting a similar chance to learn about filmmaking, but they’re not just hanging around the set: they’re actually being mentored by Mr. Fuqua. Mr. Fuqua chose four kids, based on their essays, to participate in the Fuqua Youth Film Program. They received high-tech camera equipment and instruction on how to use it, and were given assignments to complete. They got to meet with Ethan Hawke and Mr. Fuqua, and have been on the set learning how movies get made.
Below are three of the four participants in the Fuqua Youth Film Program. Shown L-R: Bryan Martin, Ethan Hawke, Lea-Sym Feyjoo, Antoine Fuqua, and Terrell Brown (not pictured: Marcus Underwood). [Photo credit: Phil Caruso]
Everyone Filming In Brooklyn spoke with was really excited about this program. They all wanted to give something back to the community that has embraced this production.
Mr. Fuqua was especially enthusiastic about giving back to the community, and about the importance of filming this movie in Brooklyn. Mr. Fuqua was able to take a few minutes during a break in shooting and speak with Filming In Brooklyn.
FIB: You could build a bodega set, and you could build a small apartment on a soundstage, and have complete control of the environment. Why was it so important for you to get into the actual spaces?
Antoine Fuqua: Well, it’s the details. You can’t build the details. You can try but you can’t really capture the details of the people, of the energy…It affects how I film, it affects the actors’ behavior, when you’re in the real environment, when you really can interact with the people who live here, it makes a big difference in what comes off emotionally on the screen.
FIB: And do you find that the crowds that gather to watch you, are they ever a distraction, or do they really just juice everybody up?
Antoine Fuqua: I mean they’re both, honestly, they’re both. They’re a good distraction. They’re always going to be a distraction because there’s some people who you’re getting in the way of their everyday life, and that’s to be expected. They’re just trying to go to work, or take care of their business. And we’re really in the way. But they juice everybody up because the majority of the people so far have been amazing. They’ve just been helpful and excited about it, you know, really cheering us on out here. And I’ve had a lot of guys come up to me and say, keep doing what you’re doing, thank you for shooting here, really appreciative. So, it’s been great.
FIB: The four teens that you gave the cameras to, are you going to follow that long-term? Are you going to see what they’re doing with those down the road?
Antoine Fuqua: Yeah, we’ll follow them long-term, absolutely. I mean, I did the same thing in the jungle, in South Central [L.A.] when I did Training Day. I took some guys with me and one of them went on and did the documentary Bastards of the Party, it was on HBO that I produced, and a few others been in a couple movies, so I always follow through with these guys. I like to stay in touch, see how they do. That’s part of the reason I’m here is to hopefully inspire other young people who don’t get to see it that often. Maybe they could find a love of filmmaking.
FIB: You’ve said about Training Day that L.A. was a character in the movie. Do you feel the same the way about Brooklyn?
Antoine Fuqua: One-hundred percent.
FIB: Could this have been done anywhere else?
Antoine Fuqua: No. Trust me, I’ve had financiers say, well, could you shoot it in Detroit? Or could you shoot it in Canada? I wouldn’t do it. I wouldn’t have done the movie. I would not have done the movie.
[At this point in the interview, Mr. Fuqua had to pause, because all sorts of commotion had broken out next to us, at the red light. A car was blaring hip-hop music, and as soon as the light turned green and that sound faded, it was replaced by an angry driver swearing and honking his horn repeatedly, trying to move along the drivers who had slowed down to see what all the people and lights and cameras were doing there under the El tracks.]
Antoine Fuqua: See? You can’t- You can’t get that in- This is Brooklyn. Brooklyn style.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Antoine Fuqua, Brooklyn's Finest, Brownsville, Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere, Training Day
Conversations with “Brooklyn’s Finest”
Feb 18, 2010 Around NYC
This week I’ve been republishing some posts from my other blog, Filming In Brooklyn, about my set visit in 2008 to the soon-to-be-released movie Brooklyn’s Finest. The movie will be released on March 5th, and I couldn’t be more excited. Antoine Fuqua, who directed Brooklyn’s Finest, also directed Training Day, one of my favorite movies. And both movies star Ethan Hawke. See why I’m excited? To top it off, this movie was shot almost entirely in Brooklyn. In a world where Vancouver shows up in just about every movie and TV show, I have a deep appreciation for directors and producers who understand that a good location can give a movie a soul.
This post first appeared on July 6th, 2008.
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Last week, Filming In Brooklyn got the opportunity to spend a day on location in Brownsville with the cast and crew of Brooklyn’s Finest. This movie is being shot almost entirely in Brooklyn, and almost all of it is on location. We were lucky enough to be able to speak at length with several of the people responsible for getting this movie made, including director Antoine Fuqua, producer John Thompson, and screenwriter Michael C. Martin.
Filming In Brooklyn is very used to seeing jaded residents of neighborhoods like Carroll Gardens, Fort Greene, Williamsburg, and Dumbo complain about all of the negatives that accompany a film or TV shoot. Those parts of Brooklyn, with their beautiful rows of brownstones, picturesque bridge views, cute shops and restaurants, and Manhattan vistas, do get the bulk of the on-location shoots that occur in Brooklyn. It’s not unusual to see two or even three productions filming within blocks of each other, their trailers and trucks taking up blocks of valuable parking spots, their crews and equipment blocking the sidewalks. Those residents have largely gotten over the excitement of seeing stars in their midst.
Antoine Fuqua and Richard Gere under the tracks in Brownsville:
So, it was nice to see an entire neighborhood react with curiosity and excitement to a production moving in. People of all ages crowded around to see what was going on. A young man pointed across the street nonchalantly and said “Yeah, that’s Richard Gere over there.” An old man walked up to a production assistant and said “I’m ready for my close-up. Where do you want me?” And rather than keep residents far back and under control, Brooklyn’s Finest has gone out of its way to include the people of Brownsville in the process. Many of the extras live in the neighborhood. Several speaking roles went to locals. Many days, the crew sets up extra chairs and headphones so that neighborhood kids can listen in as scenes are being shot. And everyone we spoke to had great things to say about the reception that Brownsville has given the production.
Screenwriter Michael C. Martin (pictured above) told us that the neighborhood has been “incredibly cool” about hosting the production. Sitting in the shadow of the Van Dyke Houses, he related how he grew up ten blocks – two subway stops – from where they were shooting, and was excited to be there as part of the production, inspiring others in the neighborhood to follow their dreams.
Many local businesses have been used in scenes, and an apartment in the Van Dyke Houses was a key location. The Van Dyke Community Center was used repeatedly as the meal spot for the cast and crew. According to Nick Bernstein, the locations manager, donations were made to neighborhood organizations and parks, and the production will be installing grills at the Van Dyke Houses as a way of saying thank you.
Filming this production in Brooklyn was very important to all involved. Producer John Thompson mentioned that just a few years ago, economics would have prevented this movie from being made. However, he explained that New York State recently tripled its tax incentive for productions filming in New York State. Added to the tax incentive that the City of New York provides, filming in New York has become not only possible for many productions, but preferable. Previously, many TV shows and movies set in New York would do most of their filming on an L.A. soundstage, and then come to NY to shoot just a few days on location. But according to the L.A.Times, shows such as Life on Mars, Ugly Betty, Kings, and Fringe will be doing all of their filming in New York this season.
According to Thompson, the new tax incentives can represent the entire difference between a project making money or losing money. And in the case of an independent film company, which doesn’t have the finances of a huge studio to fall back on, the incentives can make a project like Brooklyn’s Finest possible. “Everybody would prefer to film an entire movie in New York City, not Toronto.”
Coming up next: Antoine Fuqua speaks with Filming In Brooklyn
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Antoine Fuqua, Brooklyn's Finest, Brownsville, Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere
On location with “Brooklyn’s Finest,” bodega edition
Feb 17, 2010 Around NYC
In the summer of ‘08 I was lucky enough to spend a day on the set of a Richard Gere/Ethan Hawke movie, Brooklyn’s Finest, for my other blog Filming In Brooklyn. I’m reposting what came out of that visit in anticipation of the movie’s March 5th release. You can see the first one here.
This was originally posted on Filming In Brooklyn on July 4th, 2008. I’ll be posting another one each evening for the rest of the week.
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Yesterday we posted pictures of a scene being shot for Brooklyn’s Finest, of Richard Gere’s cop hearing a gunshot and running into a bodega. After several takes of that shot, they then shot the scene from inside the bodega, looking out to where Mr. Gere’s character was drinking a bottle of water before the gunshot.
Here’s the bodega as they get ready to light it.
All of the equipment had to be relocated from across the street.
This is Mr. Gere’s stand-in, taking Mr. Gere’s place during the lengthy lighting process.
Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get inside during the shoot, because it was cramped in there and absolutely nobody was allowed in who didn’t need to be there. But here’s a peek inside during the set-up (that’s director Antoine Fuqua second from the right, in the baseball cap).
It was during this set-up that Mr. Fuqua took the time to answer some questions for Filming In Brooklyn. We’ll be posting that interview tomorrow.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Antoine Fuqua, Brooklyn's Finest, Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere
On Location with “Brooklyn’s Finest”
Feb 16, 2010 Around NYC
In the summer of 2008 I got to spend a day on the set of Brooklyn’s Finest for my other blog, Filming In Brooklyn, and it was quite a day. It’s been a year-and-a-half, but I’m finally starting to see commercials for the movie. It will be in theaters on March 5th, and since I got a handful of great posts out of my set visit, I thought I’d re-post them here for a new audience in anticipation of the movie’s release.
I’m really excited about this movie. It’s directed by Antoine Fuqua, who got an absolutely amazing performance out of Ethan Hawke in Training Day. I can’t wait to see what they do when reunited for Brooklyn’s Finest.
This was originally posted on Filming In Brooklyn on July 3rd, 2008. I’ll be posting another one each evening for the rest of the week.
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Filming In Brooklyn had exclusive access yesterday on the set of Brooklyn’s Finest, director Antoine Fuqua’s movie about NYPD cops, set in Brooklyn. The interweaving story lines (which have been described as “Crash meets Training Day“) center on characters played by a handful of big name, talented actors: Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke, Don Cheadle, Wesley Snipes, and Ellen Barkin.
When filming wraps up, the cast and crew will have shot 40 days on location in Brooklyn, with another two days in a Brooklyn studio and a small number of days outside of Brooklyn.
Filming In Brooklyn was able to speak at length with several of the talented people responsible for this film, and we’ll be posting our interviews soon. First, some pictures from the set.
Director Antoine Fuqua, discussing a scene with Richard Gere. Mr. Gere plays a cop near retirement.
During our time on the set, we saw a scene being shot from a couple of different viewpoints. Mr. Gere’s character, standing near his cruiser, hears a gunshot from inside a bodega and runs into the building.
Here’s the crew, kitty-corner from where the action is taking place.
Mr. Gere, waiting for shooting to start.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Antoine Fuqua, Brooklyn's Finest, Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere, Wesley Snipes
How did this happen?
Sep 13, 2008 What's Going On
So last night was the first time I’ve attended an event with press credentials. I was covering the opening night of the New York Television Festival at New World Stages in midtown. And as I stood behind the card announcing which media outlet I was with (it was laminated and everything!), I had to reflect on how I got there.
I started Filming In Brooklyn less than four months ago. I really had no idea what I was doing. I just started showing up at movie and TV shoots asking questions, trying not to annoy anyone too much. I had started websites before that had fizzled within a couple months, but this one felt different. I actually liked working on this one.
My wonderful husband, whom I affectionately refer to as The Ass, was annoyed at first by how much time I was spending on it, but realized very quickly that I was diving in headfirst, trying to make something successful out of it, not just treating it like a hobby – I really hadn’t invented it as a way to get out of folding laundry. He gave me one year to work on it grief-free. I set a goal for myself: that the site would support itself in one year, including travel expenses, equipment, and any babysitting I would have to pay for as part of working on the site.
I started cold-calling studios, trying to get interviews. I landed an interview with Antoine Fuqua, director of one of my favorite movies, Training Day. I talked my way onto the sets of several big TV shows. Word started to get around within the very small NY film community that, while I might be annoying, I wasn’t looking to get any embarrassing pictures of actors or sell any pictures to tabloids, and I behaved well on set. I started getting more access.
And last night, I found myself doing red-carpet interviews, a few spots down from E! and ABC News, interviewing the creators of shows like Desperate Housewives and Samantha Who? And with five more days left of the festival, I’ve got a lot of work to do.
But as excited as I am by all of this, Filming In Brooklyn is at a critical point. It grew fast, but readership has now leveled off, and I really have no idea how to get it to the next level, how to reach a broader audience. I’m only making about one-tenth the money I need to make to break even. I have no idea where to go from here, what to do other than try to get more and better content up on the site. But at least I’m having a great time!
Originally posted on Selfish Mom
Tags: Antoine Fuqua, Desperate Housewives, New World Stages, New York Television Festival, Samantha Who, Training Day
