Hollywood comes to Horne Creek

Scenes shot for short film

A camerman lines up a shot.

Submitted photos

Members of the production team pose for a group photo,

Submitted photos

PINNACLE — Horne Creek Living Historical Farm normally is a laid-back setting where its serenity occassionally is interrupted by a braying mule, but was much more lively recently when filmmakers from Los Angeles paid a visit.

A crew spent three days at the state historic site in Pinnacle to shoot scenes for a short presentation called "Wild Animals." It will be screened at film festivals such as Sundance in the hopes of landing financing to turn the project into a feature-length movie.

"Wild Animals" is based on an original screenplay, with the plot concerning a fatal mistake that leads to an explosive rivalry between two mothers on neighboring farms.

The story is set in 1877, for which Horne Creek provided a fitting locale due to its mission of recreating life on a middle-class farm from the 1900 to 1910 period, serving as a working farm to give the public a glimpse of early agriculture.

Filming took place at the farm from April 21-23, said Shelby Malone, one of the producers for the project who is based in Los Angeles.

"We had a crew of about 35 people," Malone added.

The production was aided by a $100,000 grant from the Black List film support organization and the United Parcel Service.

Best location found

Malone said the area farm site was selected for "Wild Animals" after an exhaustive search by an advance team which centered on locations in North Carolina and Georgia to provide the appropriate look for the production.

"They were just looking up historic sites and found Horne Creek on the Internet," the producer explained. "And Horne Creek ended up being the best."

Its unique geography conformed nicely to the story involved, according to Malone, including a picturesque tree line and Horne Creek's overall look for a plot actually taking place in Pennsylvania. "Horne Creek was our only filming location," she said.

About 10 people flew from California, with other crew members coming from such places as Atlanta, Charlotte and Raleigh.

Once the Hauser family farm, the Horne Creek site features the family's original farmhouse, a tobacco curing barn, a corn crib, adjacent fields under cultivation and even a heritage apple orchard.

In addition to the topography of the Horne Creek grounds taking center stage during the production, all available animals at the farm were filmed, including a mule, chickens, sheep and goats.

Malone says the crew is pleased with how the project turned out after the three-day stay at Pinnacle and the assistance rendered by Lisa Turney, site manager there, along with other staff members.

"We’re very excited about it," she said. "And we really enjoyed our time at Horne Creek."

The project is in the final production stages. "It’ll be done and coming out in late June," Malone said of the short film.

"We call it a proof of concept," the producer added, which hopefully will reach the next level once screened at festivals.

"This will help us get financing for the feature film (version)."

Playing the female leads in "Wild Animals" are Marin Ireland and Olivia Thirlby.

Audrey Rosenberg directed the production.

Tom Joyce may be reached at 336-415-4693 or on Twitter @Me_Reporter.