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For many, many years I’ve been trying to gain access to a particular abandoned mental institution but haven’t had any idea how I might go about this. I know a few film folks who have worked at this location, but this hasn’t really helped my quest especially since many aren’t wild about returning.

My wish had finally come true this week though! A friend asked if I’d be interested in volunteering for an independent filming that he and his crew mates were working on and low and behold it would be at the PLACE!

YEAH!!!! I’ve never seen a film shoot before so it was all going to be new to me.

The place is fantastic, eerily beautiful and creatively inspirational -I can see why it’s used in film so often. Often it’s hard to tell what’s real decay and what’s a set! As for being of any help, initially, I must admit to feeling more of a nuisance than anything, and felt a little guilty too  just wandering off to take pictures while everyone else was busting their backs. I did as much as I could and in the end I think I may have been of some help or so I hope.

Someone had to watch the front desk to make sure no patients from the other buildings came wandering in. If they did, it’s super easy to get lost in the maze of the place. Since I have no apparent skills in a live action shoot I figured I might as well do it, and yes, someone did come wandering in, but they just left after I said they couldn’t go upstairs.

I ended up talking with the filming/location liaison for quite sometime finding out all sorts of history bits as well as what you can and can’t do on a shoot there. The main “no no’s” seem to be this: NO BOOZE, NO UNATTENDED FRONT AND BACK DOORS, NO WANDERING, NO PHOTOS and NO POSTING PHOTOS ON THE INTERNET. *gulp*