Over the last few years, the First Coast area of northeast Florida has been used more and more frequently by the film industry for parts in major motion pictures, television productions and even music videos. The newest blockbuster release from Academy-Award winning director Jonathan Demme is set to open this summer, and I'll bet you didn't know that some scenes of the movie were filmed right here on Amelia Island. With summertime being the biggest season for moviegoers and film companies alike, we should be very excited Amelia has made it once again to a local movie screen near you.

Recently, Paramount Pictures had a production crew here on Amelia Island and Jacksonville for the movie remake of a military thriller called The Manchurian Candidate. The film is set during the Gulf War of the 1990’s and stars Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep and Jon Voight. The original 1962 version of The Manchurian Candidate starred Frank Sinatra, Lawrence Harvey, Angela Lansbury, Janet Leigh and James Gregory, and took place during the Korean War.

The Steamboat House at Ash & 10th Streets was used
in the filming of The Manchurian Candidate
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The Steamboat House, located on Amelia Island at 10th and Ash Street , was one setting used in the film, as well as Huguenot Beach in Jacksonville. Huguenot Beach Park was selected because the beach and ocean landscapes were great backdrops for the Persian Gulf scenes in The Manchurian Candidate. The beach park area has lovely white sand and great views of the Atlantic Ocean and the St. John's River Inlet. Huguenot Beach was also used in Ridley Scott's G.I. Jane in 1996.

The film crew of The Manchurian Candidate consisted of 60 local men and women who made up the crew and technicians and about 15 local actors and actresses. The movie is expected to leave an economic impact of $500,000 on the local economy, according to Todd Roobin, film and television chief of the Jacksonville Economic and Development Commission. "The positive economic effects of The Manchurian Candidate spill over to peripheral industries like hotels, food services, equipment rentals and technical labor, not to mention the increased national and global awareness of the First Coast, including the potential for increased business relocation and tourism."

The Manchurian Candidate is just the latest production in a growing list of major motion pictures filmed in northeast Florida. Another recent movie that selected the First Coast as a major setting was Basic, starring John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Connie Nielsen and Harry Connick, Jr. This movie was filmed at many local locations such as Camp Blanding, Cecil Field, Herlong Airport, Continental Club and the Orange Park Kennel Club.

Director John Sayles on the set of Sunshine State
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In 2001, noted director John Sayles filmed Sunshine State almost entirely on Amelia Island. The movie starred Angela Bassett, Edie Falco, Timothy Hutton and Mary Steenburgen, and encompassed local settings such as American Beach, Centre Street, the Palace Saloon and Fort Clinch. It also used a Jacksonville setting featuring Regency Square Mall and the Atlantic Boulevard median in front of the mall.

Tigerland, starring Colin Ferrell and Matthew Davis II, had northeast Florida locations for filming including Camp Blanding and an alley behind the Florida Theatre.

G.I. Jane, starring Demi Moore and Viggo Mortensen, had local locations at Huguenot Beach Park, Craig Air Field, Camp Blanding, Big Talbot Island and Dunn's Creek Fish Camp.

The Devil's Advocate, starring Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron, used a location here on the First Coast that was an interior design business.

Last but not least, who could forget our local favorite, The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking. This movie starring Eileen Brennan and Dick Van Patten was filmed in 1987 and 1988 at many locations on Amelia Island, including Centre Street and Old Town, and also in Jacksonville at the WJCT Soundstage.

Not only has Amelia Island been used as filming locations for some of these movies, but it has also been a place movie stars enjoy while getting away from the set. While filming Basic in Jacksonville, John Travolta stayed at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, and even flew his private plane out of our local airport.

Many key scenes in The New Adventures of
Pippi Longstocking were filmed on Centre Street
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The recent film that featured the island most predominately is Sunshine State, which was filmed here from March to July of 2001. Director John Sayles discovered Amelia Island while scouting out locations for another project he was working on based on a short story he had written about treasure hunters. As he recalls, "I was struck by how changed the small towns there were from my last extensive visit fifteen years earlier. The Florida I had written about didn't exist anymore. I came across a mention of Amelia Island and the American Beach community in a guide. I'd always been fascinated with the American Beach phenomenon and decided to go there and give the Florida idea one more shot. What I found was an island with all the elements, old and new, 'Mom and Pop' businesses and corporate chains, gated communities, history as myth and tourist attraction, real estate as the hotly-contested central issue in politics and parallel racial enclaves, all crammed into a relatively small area." The characters for Sunshine State were then born. "They evolve from the idea of black and white people living parallel lives that occasionally intersect. One woman, Marly Temple, played by Edie Falco, is realizing she needs to leave, while the other woman, Desiree Perry, played by Angela Bassett, is discovering that she may be able to return.

A local member of our community, Mr. Charles Albert Jr., had the enjoyment of being selected and cast with a small speaking part in Sunshine State. During my conversation with Mr. Albert, he let me know how he was selected for the film. "I was doing some things at the Recreation Center the day they had sign-ups for the movie. I noticed a line to sign up for movie extras and started talking to and joking around with some of the people standing in the line when Maggie Renzi, the film's producer, overheard me joking around and came up to me and said I should sign up for a part in the film." Mr. Albert quickly told her no thanks, but she just kept insisting. He went ahead and signed her sheet. About a week later someone called and told him he had been selected to tryout for a part. He also recalls going to rehearsal and not memorizing his lines for the run-throughs. "I thought I didn't have to learn the lines perfectly, and I would just ad lib as I went along. Being a schoolteacher for many years, I had to ad lib sometimes in the classroom, and I thought this would be the same situation. I was wrong. They wanted my lines down pat so we had to rerun the scene a couple of times" All in all, Mr. Albert said he had lots of fun on the set and would love to be in another local movie if the chance comes his way again. To some of us in the community, he is a famous movie star now.

The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking also gave island residents a chance to see themselves in the movies. This production gave many locals an opportunity to participate as extras. Also, several residents and businesses provided props and buildings used in the film. In fact, all of Centre Street in downtown Fernandina Beach was transformed into the setting of a New England town. The display signs of retail shops, banks and churches were changed into fictitious names, causing some confusion among unsuspecting visitors who were on their first trip to Amelia Island and were unaware of the movie project! The movie incorporated so much of our town it was really a treat to see on the big screen.

So, if you happen to see The Manchurian Candidate this summer, you'll likely catch a glimpse of Amelia Island and the rest of northeast Florida. And don't be surprised if you see a lot more of this area on the silver screen for many years to come.

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