Hairspray to be shot in Toronto?

[JudasIscariot]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 12:27pm

Wow, the movie completely based in Baltimore will be shot in Toronto? That's kind of... insulting? Not that I take it personally, but don't you think that a musical based on Baltimore should be shot in Baltimore?

I suppose I can understand their reasons for not doing it there, budget wise. Drats, I was hoping to go to the filming see Travolta in drag on the streets of Baltimore.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 12:38pm

Exteriors are being shot on location in Baltimore, but interiors are being shot in Toronto.

This is the norm for all films. Interiors are always shot on soundstages.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 12:43pm

If the Dallas movie can be shot in Florida anything is possible

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 12:54pm

Half of RENT was shot in San Fransisco.

Almost ALL of CHICAGO was shot in Canada.

SUPERMAN RETURNS was shot in Australia.

Movies rarely are shot where the story takes place.

[dutch46mill2]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 12:55pm

In Line is shooting in Toronto because its good luck I guess because the same people did "Chicago" in TO a few years back. Probably use the Elgin for some scenes, generic outdoor scenes and the soundtrack will be done at Metalworks studios in Mississauga On
TO by the way has more Soundstages than Hollywood, and are now in the process of building a $100 million soundstage that has every toy known.At least 3 majors and 4 minors are shooting at any time with many tv movies,music videos, and commercials done here.

[mateo]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:00pm

Hairspray is to be shot mostly indoors anyway- and Baltimore just can not accomodate the needs of the production.


They will probably do some CG work, so I dont think we will miss anything really, unless you are a Baltimorean.

[JudasIscariot]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:01pm

I am a 'Baltimorean'.

[mateo]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:03pm

well there ya go!

It is a shame, but i understand why it is being done.

[pab]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:07pm

I'm sure that residents in other galaxies were pissed that the Star Wars series was shot on sound stages.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:07pm

"In Line is shooting in Toronto because its good luck I guess because the same people did "Chicago" in TO a few years back. Probably use the Elgin for some scenes, generic outdoor scenes and the soundtrack will be done at Metalworks studios in Mississauga On
TO by the way has more Soundstages than Hollywood, and are now in the process of building a $100 million soundstage that has every toy known.At least 3 majors and 4 minors are shooting at any time with many tv movies,music videos, and commercials done here."

It has NOTHING to do with luck. It's cheaper to film a movie in Toronto than it is in any of the states. And, really, the story would be the same in any other city, there's nothing remotely unique about Balitimore in the storyline.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:15pm

"...there's nothing remotely unique about Balitimore in the storyline"

Miss Baltimore Crabs??

[James885]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 1:26pm

I think part of the reason they are shooting in Toronto is because the soundstages there are much bigger than any they could find in Baltimore.

There's an article in The Baltimore Sun about this:


"Baltimore loses role as itself in movie"

[DefyingEDCT]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 2:55pm

"Miss Baltimore Crabs??"

That song was cut.

[mejusthavingfun]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 3:54pm

With big stars like Travolta, Latifah and Pfifer they have to cut corners somewhere. It's shame though, John Waters has been shot most of his work in and around Baltimore. There are a lot of great production people there that need work.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:04pm

"Miss Baltimore Crabs??"

But that isn't a real title. It could easily be changed to Miss America or something equally stupid. The point is, the setting isn't the important part of the story. It could take place in practically any good-size city. So it really doesn't matter if they don't film in Baltimore.

[mejusthavingfun]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:24pm

Foose76 you are dead wrong. Hairspray is set SPECIFICALLY in 1962 Baltimore. The political climate and cultural significance of that year of Baltimore are essential to the story in the film and show.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:27pm

It's a shame that, according to that article, they aren't even shooting the exteriors in Baltimore. At least "Rent" did that.

But anyone that knows anything about the movie industry knows that most movies are shot in Canada, due to cost and location.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:33pm

The show was not a hit in Toronto. It seems unfair to reward them with the production funds for the film version. We have plenty of sound stages in the USA.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:35pm

mejusthavingfun-you are soooo right. The Baltimore piece is huge. The politics of Hairspray were personal to John Waters when he was growing up. John Waters is very adamant that Baltimore is very special and unique, and it is if you have ever been to the parts of the city that John frequented as a young director. The neighborhoods and people are distinct. It is a character. It's like filming Sex and the City in Boise. It's just baloney to say Baltimore is inconsequential. Obviously, the studios think like Fosse. To hell with art, this is commerce people. Forget artistic integrity, there's dollars at stake.

[Tag]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:44pm

"The show was not a hit in Toronto. It seems unfair to reward them with the production funds for the film version."

No one associated with the mounting of the theatrical version of Hairspray is going to profit from the film production. Theatre and film in Toronto (for the most part) are two completely different industries.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:44pm

Good grief, people. Very few movies or tv shows are actually filmed in the city represented in the works! More movies are filmed in Toronto than anywhere else, other than L.A. Get over it!

[jimnysf]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:47pm

"More movies are filmed in Toronto than anywhere else, other than L.A. Get over it!"

It's attitudes like yours that take jobs away from Americans and outsource them to other countries. Get over it yourself.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 4:52pm

Thanks for the empathy Erin :) The reason this is being discussed in the first place is that Baltimore was going to be used (which was important to Waters-it is after all his film the musical is based on and he refers to his films as "Love Letters to Baltimore.")For most films, it does not matter where they are are filmed, this is true.

However, for a man who filmed all of his films in Baltimore it did mean something. Like I said, if Sex & The City shot in Canada for its 6th season b/c it was cheaper people would be outraged. Think about CONTEXT before telling people to get over it. We are not stupid, we know that often films are not shot in the cities they take place in. This was a different circumstance. And although Waters is not directing, it was a preference. It's called having integrity and being true to where you came from and investing back into it.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 5:11pm

The movie is being filmed in Toronto because of the facilities available. I never knew that Baltimore was under serious consideration for the filming. If it was, it was certainly very early on, because there was much discussion of the filming in Toronto even several months ago. Did Waters have any say in it? Seems to me that it would have been one of those things which were negotiable from the start but perhaps he relinquished final say on that when the rights were negotiated.

jimny, it has nothing to do with my attitude, nor that of anyone else. Studios choose to shoot films in Toronto and Vancouver because of the advantages, financial and otherwise. This is a smart business move. It's been the case for a few decades now. And it has absolutely nothing to do with the stage production not being 'a hit' in Toronto. That isn't how these decisions are made.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 7/19/06 at 5:20pm

It's a Baltimore story and should be filmed in the USA. If the producers looked around they could have gotten incentives just as "Rent" did (filmed in San Francisco. Jobs for Americans. If Toronto or Vancouver wants to make films, let them start their own film business and produce films of their own that take place in their cities. Hands off ours.