Friday, Jul. 18, 2008

Ready, Set ... Action: Movie Filmed in Highland Village

By John English

Contributing Writer

Highland Village residents have one more reason to be proud of their community. The city was recently chosen as one of the locations to shoot a movie called A Tangled Web.

The Independent film was written and produced by Ed Bird, who said he selected Highland Village for a couple of reasons.

"We have some friends that live there, and they were generous enough to let us shoot at their home," Bird said. "I loved the nice homes in Highland Village, because the couple in the movie is wealthy and live in a big nice home."

Director John Thomas said Highland Village allowed the crew to do more in the area than he thought they would be able to do.

"We shot at several houses in Highland Village, and it just proved to be a very handy area for us," Thomas said. "We were able to find several of the important and difficult locations."

Thomas said his crew shot some scenes at the Slalom shop on Lake Lewisville as well.

Bird said the movie was a thriller of sorts, and said he utilized some local talent.

"The movie is kind of a murder mystery ... film noire kind of thing," Bird said. "There’s a couple, and they’re cheating on this guy’s wife and things just kind of go awry."

Bird said his idea is to get the movie into film festivals and eventually try to market it to the public.

"We have four principal roles, and those are all part-time or full- time actors by trade," Bird said. "Then, there are a lot of supporting roles and extra roles, and many of those are filled by friends, some with acting experience and some who didn’t have any."

One such person was Highland Village resident Doug Morrow, whose home served as the setting for a significant portion of the movie.

Morrow said it was a treat to have some of the scenes shot at his residence and said the shoot has totally changed his perspective on movies.

"Filming A Tangled Web has been a very rewarding experience," Thomas said. "After seeing the production process first hand and having acted in some of the scenes, it makes you appreciate how much work goes into shooting even a small scene. I find myself watching movies much closer and looking for details more than I have in the past."

Bird said he hopes to have the movie finished by the end of the year.