The Unofficial "Signs" Movie Site

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Site Update Oct 09 01: Shooting takes place today and tomorrow in Newtown PA on South State Street. Local Mayor Glenn Hains said "No one's going to become an extra in this movie by walking up and down the street, there are times the street's going to be shut down, so the actors can do their things. But for most of the day, the stores will be open and pedestrians will be able to get through." The cast and crew are camped in trailers on the outskirts of town and are being brought in as they are needed. The producers will be covering the cost of local police services who will be on site to deter the army of Joaq and Mel fans!

The old billiard hall at 201 S. State St, which is currently vacant, has been converted into an army recruiting station, a new sign "Army Recruiting Office" is now hanging on the building since it's refurbishment by set decorators at the weekend.

Site Update Oct 08 01: The movies set dressers have been busy in Newtown PA. Regular diners at Mom's Bake at Home Pizza might have noticed a few changes this weekend. The restaurant interior has been redecorated and a new sign has been hung outside in preparation for this weeks upcoming shoot. According to the new sign for the duration of the shoot Mom's Bake at Home Pizza will become "Two Aldo's". Autograph hunters will probably be disappointed as parts of State Street will be closed during the shoot and crowds kept well back.

We've had an unconfirmed report that scenes will be shot Thursday morning at the Family of God Lutheran Church on Byecroft Road in Buckingham.

The production team are trying to keep a lid on the shooting locations to avoid disruption from curiosity seekers and the army of Mel and Joaquin fans who are in the area, but unperturbed seekers such as Leigh who runs a forum dedicated to Joaquin have been on the trail of the production since it kicked off back in mid September. Read Leigh's account of her first attempt at Joaquin spotting!

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Site Update Oct 06 01: Whilst we're waiting for the next trickle of information about the movie, for all those film anoraks out there - be you a budding or active filmmaker or just an interested observer - here are the technical specifications of the camera equipment being used to shoot Signs. They are shooting on Panavision Cameras, with Panavision Primo and C-Series Anamorphic Lenses. They're shooting on 35mm Film and the cinematographic process is Panavision (anamorphic) with an aspect ration of 2.35 : 1.

Site Update Oct 04 01: Thanks again to Paula, Steve Wartenberg and Ram Pages for the following info. Frank Marshall who is one of the producers working on "Signs" spoke to an audience of around 700 at Delaware Valley College last night. Marshall talked about his career the process of bringing a movie to fruition and filming techniques but didn't give much away about "Signs" other than the fact that finding the right corn field was essential to picking the location. Wish someone would have asked why they're in corn not wheat! Marshall did hint at a possible release date "The Sixth Sense was released on August 6th, Night is superstitious and he might opt for that date again, even though it's a Tuesday and movies traditionally open on Fridays" he said. The shoot will apparently run into mid-November with much of the shooting taking place in a series of interior sets constructed in a warehouse in Bensalem. Pictured above right, Marshall surrounded by autograph hunters, photo courtesy Laurence Kelly.

When they're not on site at the Farmhouse Set in Doylestown, the crew have been shooting scenes in secret at a warehouse in Bensalem PA. Shooting at the Farmhouse will wrap this week and the Farmhouse Set will be dismantled, so if you want to see it, better make that trip soon! The crew will be moving over to several locations in Newtown, including the Newtown Book and Record Exchange (pictured right, larger version here), Mom's Bake-at-Home Pizza, Newtown Hardware (pictured here), The Brew Pub and the American Billiards store.

Pictured Right (larger version here) is a shot of State Street in Newtown, on the left of the image is Mom's Bake-at-Home Pizza. Thanks to Rick Fletcher for this and the above photo. Back in Doylestown they are apparently using irrigation and hydroponics to grow corn at various stages from knee-high up to over head-height in order to portray the fields at different times of the year. They'll also be shooting at Burns Pharmacy in Morrisville next week as mentioned below.

Site Update Oct 03 01: Photos of the farmhouse set are coming in thick and fast now! Thanks to Paula one of our covert ops out there in Doylestown - who also sent us through the first photo of the set, see below - we now have a wide angle image (pictured right, larger version here) of the set showing the road that leads up to it with two traffic cones blocking the way, "The other entrance to the site had two cop cars (empty) and a rent-a-fence" said Paula, hardly the ring of steal the production company described! The farmhouse is located in the center of the image and to its right you can see the white tents that have been set up for the crew and catering, there's not a seven eleven for miles in this part of town, corn dog anyone?

Thanks to Bubba who is one of our contacts at Delaware Valley College we now have a second photo (pictured right, larger version here) of the Farmhouse Set, taken this time from within the corn (maize) field looking back towards the house. Bubba has also promised us some aerial photos of the set in the near future.

Brazilian born Nelson Machado has joined the cast of Signs. He's 22 and can speak fluent Portuguese... cue subtitles! Just how are all these Portuguese speaking actors going to fit into the plot?

The following casting call went out recently from Mike Lemon Casting: "Tall Woman for "Signs". She must be very agile and limber, with dance, stunt or athletic experience preferred and must be 6' or over, Caucasian , and over 18." Last Tuesday was the deadline for applicants, so if you're tall, female and flexible you've missed it!

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