The website,
yvrshoots.com, has images and some information about the first day of filming for Brad Bird's secretive film,
Tomorrowland. While no stars were on hand, the scenes that were filmed involved the child version of George Clooney's character, Frank Walker.
An 11-year-old version of his inventor character Frank Walker is the star of the day’s shoot at the 1964 New York World’s Fair set on UBC’s Main Mall. The boy actor (who filmed a quick scene at the Greyhound ticket booth set when filming started on Wednesday) arrived at the fair on a Greyhound $3.00 Grand Sightseeing Tour bus this morning. Tomorrowland shot a scene of him disembarking and staring in wonder at the sheer spectacle of the fair. And then a technocrane shot which started behind young Frank and swept up above him to give the full perspective down the mall to what will be a computer-generated effect of the Unisphere on the inflatable bluescreen at the south end.
Apparently Bird got all the shots he needed, as the film crew dismantled the set a few hours later. This 1964 New York World's Fair set was incredibly impressive, capturing the 60's vibe down to a down to a tee with retro concession stands and billboards. The only thing missing was the 12-story high, stainless-steel model of the Earth called the Unisphere, but that will be added in post.
Photo Credit: yvrshoots.com
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Photo Credit: Elena Pederson
RUMORED SYNOPSIS - When Frank Walker was a young man, he first encountered the promise of Tomorrowland at the 1964 World's Fair. David Nix was there, showing off his own work, and he told Walker to come back when he was older and his inventions actually worked. A girl named Athena saw great promise in 11-year-old Frank, though, and she snuck him into Tomorrowland. Eventually, Frank was discovered by Nix and thrown out, but not before learning that the girl he loved, Athena, was actually a robot.
By the time we meet Frank in the film, he's much older, and George Clooney is set to play the part. Nix is the role that Hugh Laurie is signed for, and by the point the main story of the film kicks in, Nix has been in charge of Disneyland for many years, and he's become rotten, corrupt. Athena, unchanged since Frank was a young man, plays a key role in the film, and the hero is a girl named Casey who has a quick scientific mind that becomes important as the story unfolds. Nix is a guy who values technical accomplishment over creative thinking, and when he throws Frank out of Tomorrowland, he's not alone. Every creative thinker is banished, allowing Nix to focus purely on aesthetics and technical advancement for its own sake.
There's inter-dimensional travel, human-looking robots, and a quest for revenge on the part of Frank. He is a bitter adult, and the film is not just about Casey's adventure, but also about Frank rediscovering the kid he used to be. It sounds like young Frank actually plays a decent-sized role in the film, so we may see both timelines play out to some extent.
Tomorrowland will be released domestically on December 19, 2014. George Clooney ("The Descendants") and Hugh Laurie ("House") are set to star, along with Judy Greer, Britt Robertson and Raffey Cassidy. The film is written by Damon Lindelof and Brad Bird, from a concept by Lindelof and Jeff Jensen. Lindelof ("Star Trek," "Lost," "Prometheus") will produce and Bird ("The Incredibles," "Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol") will produce and direct.