That's a Wrap...

I've been receiving emails from you guys asking me to please describe the film and my experience... Now that I am finally back home and have found time to do so, here it goes...

The past two months have flown by....I feel like we just started filming days ago, but in actuality it's been almost a month and a half now.... I've had the script for Sand Castles since earlier this year, and I have had months to prepare for the role of social worker Alison Paige once I received the news that I had landed the part. But nothing could have prepared me for the range of emotions that being part of such a worthwhile and fulfilling project as Sand Castles would become.

Even before filming began, the incredible way that this film came together was something people were already talking about....

Sand Castles had been written by Jordon Hodges a few years earlier. This screenplay among others he had written, had been extremely special to him and he felt that he needed to wait for the right time to set the wheels in motion for it. He got the green light earlier in 2012, and this film had to be done right.  The script was just that special. It had so much depth to it.  Tragedy, mystery, romance and hope.  The main characters were all very deep in their own right, and not one more central to the plot than another. They all played their own very significant part, and they would need to be cast with exactly the right individual who personified that characters specific traits.  

From the beginning of this film being cast, the characters just sort of found the people that were to play them......It was amazing to see the incredible talent that the actors brought to these characters. Also, the cast and crew could not get over how incredibly perfect the weather cooperated for every single scene. You could not have ordered more perfect weather if you had to, including the shooting of the beach scene at Silver Lake on Lake Michigan that was perfectly sunny and bright that morning when it had not been that way for months, but the clouds rolled in, as if on que,  for the afternoon scene which was very dark as that was the scene where little Lauren gets kidnapped. 

Everyone on the cast and crew were talking about how amazing it was and it was like "the universe had come together to make this film"! Day after day, we were blessed with perfect circumstances and very seasoned veterans in the film industry could not help but comment about how really professional this crew was and how incredible the making of this film had been.

It was and is special in SO MANY ways! The storyline, the characters, the talent and professionalism of the cast and crew, then the divine intervention that pulled it all together so seamlessly. My role wrappped on Friday and I was supposed to fly home on Saturday, but the cast and crew convinced me to stay for several extra days, so that I could be there to experience the final day of filming when the last scene wrapped. That was the best decision I have ever made! I know that in my lifetime, I may never have that perfect of an experience again. 

I have met, lived with and made lifetime friends on the set of Sand Castles, and bonded like a family with so many wonderful people.  Knowing that we would all go back to LA and go on to other projects was so bittersweet. So gratifying and then so sad.  We all experienced something truly special, almost magical on this set. Even now, it is hard to put words to it. I can hardly wait for it to hit the screen at the fim festivals in 2014.  Nothing would be more satisfying, than for others to experience for themselves just a bit of the specialness that made this film...........and for them to come away with the feeling that "the universe still comes together" every once in while, and makes something more beautiful and more perfect than we can ever do ourselves.

XO 

Daniella

We have been filming now for an entire week so tomorrow the crew & cast catch up on some much needed rest and come Monday it all begins again. The past week was insane... we started shooting at Lake Michigan on Silver Beach (top 10 most beautiful places I've seen) then straight into 13 hours filming at a hospital, then we drove back to Indiana to film at Oasis bar in Goshen. We are having such a blast though! Tonight we are all getting together for a bonfire and some beers so I have to make this short but I left you with plenty of photos introducing you to the cast and some photos from Michigan. 

Enjoy X

Randy Spence (Uncle Tommy) and his 67 mustang on set today 

Shot of Saxon Trainor from the monitor at Oasis Bar 

 Our Director- Clenet Verdi-Rose

Jordon Hodges and Clint Howard 

Little miss Anne Winters and Clint Howard on set today

Randy Spence (still trying to figure out if he's just been in character since he got here or he was just born a badass)

Filming at Oasis bar last night.

The rest are photos from Michigan

Train tracks in St. Joe

Coffee has been my saving grace with the early morning call times 

Silver Beach sunset

A few people from our AMAZING crew :)

Pretty sure we had all 3 of these on the beach.... ooops

Love these guys

Miss Anni and I

Coffee saving my life once again....

Hi everyone, sorry it's been a few days since an update but as you can imagine I don't have a whole lot of time right now... I'm actually sitting here on set posting this through my phone.. We are shooting in Saint Joseph, Michigan (hour from Chicago) for a few days then heading back to Indiana. I feel like I'm on vacation it's so beautiful here! Today was our first official day of shooting so it's loooong days from here on. I'll update as much as I can. Have to go now! Ciao

I know you've been seeing a lot of this little guy lately but I can't help it... I've never seen a dog this smart! He's only 7 weeks old and he already tells you when he needs to go outside, if you ask him his name he literally says Noah, and when you put a camera on him be prepared to make millions! 

Some things never change.... I walk into the living room and see some of the props for the movie have arrived. The guys didn't waste anytime :)

Ended the night with a great one on one meeting with our director Clenet just going over scenes and my character. I'm so excited for the cameras to start rolling! I could not imagine a better cast and crew to be working with. Blessed & Thankful

Took the little one on a run with me... Didn't think it would last long but he actually made it 1/2 a mile! Thought it'd be a great way to burn most his energy and I was right, he's been sleeping like a baby ever since. Hmmm think I might have to do this with him more often...

Indiana

I've finally made it to Indiana! I can't tell you how good it feels to finally be here... Filming starts next week so I have a little time to settle in and get used to the town and everything...  Here's a few pictures of my first morning here. Going for a run now.. I'll post more pics once I get back!

Leaving LA. Early morning flight

Little Noah was happy to see me. (Yes he was hugging my arm)

Scotty AKA man of the house 

Jordon in work mode.

I woke up to this.... Good morning to you too boys

The star of the movie..

A cover and a black eye

So a few months back I did another seasonal catalogue shoot with Bearpaw and Sportie LA..  Every time this crew gets together it's nothing but good times and non stop laughter...  we all just get along like a family.... The shoot was held in Lake Tahoe (my hometown) and you can imagine how happy I was about that. Yeah well it was a 4 day shoot with a crew of almost 20 people and by day 2 guess who ended up with a black eye?  Me.
With still sooo much product to be shot, locations reserved, hotel rooms booked, all the people who flew in, aka all the money invested... It was a nightmare. But with the help of numerous bags of ice, advil and the best makeup artist in the business, we all came together and made it happen. Oh and we ended up with a cover in the end! ;) Never a dull moment...

Here's the article:

"Our final day of the BEARPAW shoot we got a very late start. Since this was our last day, and flights needed to be caught later in the evening, our call time was 7 AM. I think whoever chose that early in the morning was also a masochist, but that is pure conjecture.

Sublime was in town the night before which of course means a lot of debauchery…. for everyone else, classic music performed by a classic band was all the excitement that we were looking for. Unfortunately, some people can’t handle theirs, and our model found that out first hand. An unprovoked punch to the face and a black eye later, caused for a little bit of anxiety on our final morning in Tahoe. During our morning meeting not only did we have to do “damage control” to a model’s face, but our photographer was sick in bed with the Flu. Not to worry, the resilience of BEARPAW & Sportie LA Media couldn’t be stopped no matter what curve balls were thrown our way. We had an amazing make-up artist who worked her magic, and there was no sign of a black eye or hurt pride to be found. Phew!! In typical BEARPAW style we had plenty of talent waiting for the opportunity if situations came about like this. Oh yeah, and we found not one, but two fill-in photographers! They were an awesome married couple that worked beautifully together. Double phew!!

We eventually pulled out of the hotel to head to our location around 11 or so. Keep in mind, the shoot had to end no later than 5 so flights could be caught. The drive to the location took about 30 min. The sight of the snow covered mountains and the crisp blue lake really had a calming vibe during the drive. Cue nature’s beauty to tell us to relax … It made me wish all commutes to work looked like this. If you can be stressed in this surrounding, please call a professional.

We finally arrived at Ehrman Mansion, and it was truly beautiful. This was our first lakeside shoot, and the lake’s backdrop was perfectly matched with the crisp day. The shots look like our models were painted into a Thomas Kinkade painting. The grounds of the Ehrman Mansion property not only consisted of the mansion, a boat house, a pier,  but a water tower built by William Mullholand as well. Yes, the same Mullholand that the famous Los Angeles drive is named after.

Since this was our 3rd day, most of the boots had already been shot. We just wanted a change of scenery with each boot, and the shots came out great. As day 3 came to a close it was ever so clear that the BEARPAW and Sportie LA crews really do live life comfortablly. We worked hard, but laughed and joked just as hard. The BEARPAW Footwear x Sportie LA Media Tahoe 2012 Photoshoot really was an amazing journey with the perfect ending (ok, sans the punching of the model part). Special thanks to the models, photogs, make-up, wardrobe, all of the participating set locations, crew members, and last but certainly NOT least, Randy, Isack, & Mikey!

It is said that all good things must come to an end… until next year, Live Life Comfortably!"

                                                                                                   Ciao!