I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell - August 20, 2008

Being a narcissist, I usually don't think much about how I affect other peoples lives. It's not as a matter of malice, it's just that it doesn't occur to me. That's why I found this article about how our movie affected the life of someone not associated with it so interesting. A lot of this stuff, I didn't even know:

A Broadmoor resident walked into her home last Tuesday and wondered where she was.

A strange, colorful couch was in her living room, decorations were missing and her walls were green. But the homeowner didn't panic. And she wasn't frightened by the dozens of strangers walking about.

It's simply all in a day's work, and Theresa Bryant's home is the location. Last week, Bryant gave up her home on Archer Avenue to crews for the filming of the upcoming movie "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell," based on the bestselling book by Tucker Max. And she's enjoyed every minute of it.

Bryant's romance with the movie industry began one day at the end of June.

"I came home and got my mail, and I saw a calling card and it said, 'I hope they serve beer in hell,'" Bryant said.

After calling the number listed, Bryant found out her home had been selected as the ideal location for the home of one of the characters, a bohemian single mom with a small boy. Russell Strickland, locations manager, told Bryant he liked the outside of her home.

"He said it just looked like a happy home and like a place with a mother and child," Bryant said.

Next came a visit from Strickland, who toured the inside of Bryant's home and told her the background of the movie.

"Then they began setting up," she said. "I never realized so much is involved. When you look at TV shows and movies, you never really think about what's in the background. They bring that stuff in."

Bryant, whose home was full of antiques, said crews arrived and cleared out all of her furniture before they began transforming her home into that of the character.

"When they came the first time, they took pictures of everything. They note everything, take pictures of everything and everything is wrapped in bubble wrap and labeled," Bryant said.

But Bryant, who's lived at her address for about half a year, said it only took eight days total to set up, including the time it took to move her things out.

"There's a ton of people," she said. "It's like, where were you five months ago? It took me three months to find (the house) and three months to unpack."

As far as the horror stories of movie crews trashing houses, Bryant said that's hardly been her experience.

"The people are wonderful. They don't use the homeowner's things. They don't use your air conditioning. They use generators. They went out of their way to make sure I wasn't inconvenienced," Bryant said. "They're just as kind as can be."

In addition to the kindness of crew members, Bryant is also getting a few bonuses out of the deal. Her hardwood floors were redone and bland walls painted.

Before filming, Bryant's walls were stark white. Now there's various hues of green throughout her home. When asked whether she wanted to keep her new wall colors or choose another, Bryant's answer was clear.

"My walls are lime green," she said. "The very last wall of the kitchen is pear green. It's just as bad. I said never again. I'll never have green again," Bryant said. "So I get a new paint job and I thought, 'Wow, this is exciting."

In the end, Bryant chose malted milk, a taupe color, for the living room and peanut shell, a light gold, to accent her kitchen.
Quiet on the set

Filming at Bryant's home began at 5 a.m. Aug. 11 and was scheduled to wrap up after only a couple of days. During the week, no calls came through, as phone lines were cut. Bryant's bedroom was filled with cameras and equipment, cardboard lined her floors, her middle bedroom served as the character's bedroom and children's toys were strewn about.

Bryant was given the option to stick around during filming but opted out.

"I said, 'Honey, my life's too busy for that. I don't have kids, and it's summer. So I can stay at my parents'."

Bryant, though temporarily displaced, did not have trouble being away from her home. She was happy to spend the time with her parents. And shooting didn't conflict with Bryant's active role as grandmother, baby sitting her granddaughters, 2-year-old Emma Grace and 10-month-old Maggie Elizabeth Krefft, during the school year when their mother returns to teaching.

"I don't think I could do it for three months, but it didn't hinder anything," Bryant said. "And I'm glad it happened during the summer so it wouldn't disturb the environment the girls are used to."

Filming was scheduled to wrap up by the end of the week, just in time for Bryant to return to baby sitting without having to be away from home.
After the cameras, crews

Once filming wrapped up, Bryant said everything was brought back in and returned to normal. And for Bryant, life too has returned to normal.

Yet, now she has her memories of meeting a movie set designer, best-selling author, director, other crew members and security guards, who Bryant happily treated to home-cooked breakfasts and dinners.

"The people are so nice. They're really professional. They're just working people like you and me. They're job is just lighting or set design for a movie," she said.

But it was more than hospitality to Bryant. To her, the industry is a great boost to the area by providing jobs and supporting the local economy.

"I don't want the industry to think we're bad people. I want them to stay."

Though happy to have her home back, Bryant enjoyed her rendezvous with the movie industry.

"It's been fun," Bryant said. "It's been an adventure."

This part stood out to me:

"Yet, now she has her memories of meeting a movie set designer, best-selling author, director, other crew members and security guards, who Bryant happily treated to home-cooked breakfasts and dinners."

Yes, the people in Shreveport are indeed so nice that they cook and bake for us.

The location this article is referring to is where we shot on Day 16 and 17. The pics are on the Flickr account.

Comment and discuss.

Posted by Tucker Max at 3:44 AM