Wednesday, March 9, 2005

Bosque Farms couple lends home to Hollywood

Clara Garcia News-Bulletin Staff Writer; cgarcia@news-bulletin.com

Bosque Farms When Fred and Lee Hansen walked into their Bosque Farms home over the weekend, they didn't recognize it. All the furniture was different, wallpaper and paneling had been installed, and they didn't know any of the people in the pictures that hung on the walls.

No, the Hansens hadn't entered the wrong house, they just lent their house to a film crew shooting the feature film, First Snow. The movie, staring Guy Pearce (Momento), Piper Perabo (Coyote Ugly) and J.K. Simmons (Spiderman 2), tells the story of a man who falls into a psychological tailspin when a psychic predicts his death.

"It's really about whether or not you can cheat destiny," said Dave Gare, an associate producer of First Snow. "Is destiny just destiny or can you cheat it?"

While the film is set in Albuquerque, El Camino Productions decided that the interior of Hansen's house was a perfect location to shoot some of the scenes. Fred Hansen said when he was first approached by a location scout who wanted to use his home about a month ago, he wasn't sure he wanted to do it.

"We really weren't sure about it, but they really wanted it," Hansen said. "They told us they would restore everything as it was before."

After giving their blessings, the Hansens literally moved out of their home and handed the keys to the production company last week. As soon as everything that the couple owned was taken out of the living room, the kitchen and a bedroom, Hollywood went to work.

"All our furniture is in storage and they brought in all new furniture and all new decor — it doesn't look like our house at all. I didn't realize how many people are really involved in this," Hansen said on Friday, the first day of shooting. "To be truthful, the whole thing is interesting and it's exciting to see how a film is made, but I'll be glad when it's over."

Crews began shooting on Friday at the Hansens' and wrapped up the next day. Gare said the movie, which does not yet have a release date, has been filming in Albuquerque and Moriarty since mid-February and is at the half-way point.

"First Snow was written to be shot in Albuquerque, not only because of the city's environment, but also because of the attractive production incentives, including a talented crew base," Gare said. "This house here is Mrs. McClure's house, a character in the film. We looked at quite a few houses and this is the house we liked best."

Gare explained that while the site location team picked the Hansens' home for the movie, they still had a specific vision in mind of what they wanted — meaning the set decorators and art department went in and changed everything from knickknacks on the shelves to stacks of local newspapers placed on the floor.

"In the movie, Mrs. McClure has a wine cellar, so we also put in a lot of wine," Gare said. "All the wine, of course, is a local wine, Gruet, which is made in Albuquerque."

One of the main reasons First Snow is being shot in Albuquerque is because the writer-director Mark Fergus once lived in the Duke City, Gare said.

As for the Hansens, when the first day of shooting was complete and Saturday rolled around, their initial doubts about giving up their house for the sake of art had somewhat diminished. The couple was not only able to hobnob with the cast and crew throughout the filming and ate lunch at a gourmet, catered, road-side buffet, they also realized that this was the opportunity of a lifetime.

"As I get to reminiscing and I think of all the good times here, it has far exceeded the discomforts we went through," Hansen said. "Now, I would have to say that we would possibly ... maybe think of doing this again.

"This has given us a chance to explore something new," Hansen said. "Despite the fact that we've been out of our house and it's been turned inside out, we find it pretty exciting."

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