"Friday Night Lights" - First Hand Report!

This just in from "Friday Night Lights" on the scene correspondent, Teresa McMahan:

Friday Night Lights: Behind the Scenes
by TMcMahan
Copyright © 2004 Teresa McMahan

Filming "Friday Night Lights" last week was grueling. On the first day, arrival time was 2:30pm for those of us who had to do driving scenes. We filmed out by the "Cotton Patch Lounge" off of 61st and Golder for a few hours, then we moved to 1st and Hancock until near dark. The following picture is at the second location.

Derek Luke

Then, we had to move to Ratliff Stadium to film football scenes. We had to stay through the night until 6:30-7:00 am for all of the stadium scenes to be completed. Last week, the schedule ran from 4:30pm until 7:00am or longer. During the day, it was very warm, but at night and early in the morning, it got extremely cold, damp and windy. It is a good thing that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity because I think my life would be shortened considerably if I had to bear this schedule more than once in a lifetime. Nonetheless, it was worth it because I managed to have the opportunity to visit with some of the cast and crew and to see how movies are made.

It was interesting to see how they set up all the "dummies" for the stadium scenes. No, I don't mean those of us who were crazy enough to sit out at Ratliff through the cold, wet and windy nights! They had REAL blow up dummies. They were the same dummies used in filming the horse racing scenes in "Seabiscuit".

Dummies in the stands

Watching Peter Berg was also interesting. Being a director really does take a great deal of multi-tasking ability, concentration and lots of coffee!!

Peter Berg

Peter Berg

Just as in the general population, there seems to be good and bad individuals in the movie business also. Generally, however, there were not nearly as many ego-maniacs as I had expected.

Billy Bob Thornton still ranks at the top of the "good guy" list. Actually, the word "good" sincerely does not do him justice. He deserves top honors in every category. Besides being a terrific actor, he is genuinely a nice person. He is completely approachable and friendly. If he has an over-inflated ego, it certainly was never apparent to me or anyone else at the shoot. Between takes, he signed autographs, played football with the kids and took pictures with the fans. He genuinely seemed to appreciate his fans.

Billy Bob Thornton

It is really too bad that some of the other actors haven't mastered Billy Bob's style. They would certainly benefit from it in the long run.

Though none of the actors were out-right snobs, several were either obviously egotistical or very standoffish. Yet, others were fun and out-going.

Though Garrett Hedlund was not an extremely outgoing young man, he was always very pleasant and polite. When someone brought up the subject of hunting to him, it was easy to see him slip into his element. He was no longer the next Brad Pitt or Ben Affleck, but simply a kid who loves the outdoors and hunting.

Garrett Hedlund

He becomes much more laid back and likable. The transformation was nice to see. Hold on to that, Garrett, and you will go far!!

Nick Travis (Billy Bob's body double) with Garrett Hedlund

Jay Hernandez does not talk much to the older generations, but he is very open, fun-loving and friendly with the teenagers. During one break, Jay was attempting to learn how to balance one of the cheerleaders over his head. The other male cheerleader had made it look so easy that Jay didn't think he would have any problem with the maneuver. Unfortunately, Jay found out that it was much harder than it looked and almost dropped cheerleader Jaime Morris on her back.

Jay Hernandez and Jamie Morris

Jay Hernandez

Good thing for good spotters! By the way, Jay, just don't forget us "old" folks. We buy movie tickets too!!

Jay, Lee and Garrett all had great fun with the antics and it was entertaining for those in the stand as well. I feel sure Jay and Lee won over many new young fans.

Lee Thompson Young

Then there is Lee Thomas Young who played Jett Jackson on the Disney Channel. He is a great young man. He is openly friendly with all of the fans-young and old alike. He doesn't seem to be bogged down by an overactive ego either. He does a terrific acting job on camera and is very easy to talk to off camera. Hopefully, his career will go far.

Derek Luke has dropped off a great deal of weigh and spent countless hours buffing up for the lead role of Boobie Miles. He really looks terrific, but unfortunately, he apparently knows it. Unless you happen to get a picture of him that he likes the pose, the makeup and the hair, he isn't going to sign an autograph. He does have a couple of saving graces though. His wife, Sophia, is a true find, and he is lucky to have such a great person by his side. Second, the kid can act really well. When he doesn't want to sign autographs or let fans take pictures of him, she steps in and gently encourages him to cooperate. She is never pushy, but instead she leads him towards being a better person. They have been married since before he had his big break with "Antwone Fisher".

Derek Luke and Sophia

Derek Luke

Derek Luke and Peter Berg

Derek Luke

Connie Britton plays Gary Gaines' wife. She seems very sweet and is easy to talk to. She seemed so "normal" that many people did not realize that she was one of the stars until the cameras started rolling. The little girl, Morgan Farris, next to her in these pictures plays Gaines' daughter.

Connie Britton and Morgan Farris

Grover Coulson in the photo below plays L. V. Miles in the movie, but I didn't get much of an opportunity to visit with him. He was friendly when he passed us in the stands and didn't mind being asked for pictures or autographs.

Grover Coulson plays L. V. Miles

Faith Hill and Tim McGraw stayed on location quite a bit last week. They parked their bus and then let their girls ride their bikes around the bus. They seem like really good, doting parents.

Hill/McGraw Bus

Faith was very kind and obliging. She even said hello to my little brother on my cell phone. Nonetheless, she stayed pretty low key presumably because it was Tim's first movie and she didn't want to over-shadow him. Faith spent some time watching the filming of the movie with Tim, but spent most of her time with their girls.

Faith Hill

Faith Hill and Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw

Tim allowed pictures to be taken, but was reticent about giving out too many autographs. Faith was genuine, classy, kind and thoughtful. Tim, on the other hand, proceeded to tell dirty jokes in mixed company which shocked some of the ladies in the area. Of course, Faith and the girls weren't around, so I guess he thought it was okay to be disrespectful to all the other women around. Having been a long time fan of Tim's, his behavior was disappointing.

Peter Berg is still an enigma. One minute he can be so intense, and the next minute, he is tossing a football with his son. He strongly discourages people from approaching him by staying surrounded by law enforcement officials or studio executives.

Most of the crew was really great. My favorite was a young man named Jeremy. He directed all of the driving scenes. He was genuinely kind and patient. I enjoyed working with him. THANKS JEREMY!

Jeremy

Taylor was what I would have called "the master organizer". That was a huge job with all of the extras they were using. When things did begin to get disorganized, Taylor managed to pull it all back together.

Good Job TAYLOR!!

Another crew member who was great was a gentleman named Marvin. He was kind, considerate, polite and respectful. He was always helping extras figure out where they were supposed to be.

Thanks for your kindness MARVIN

The main cinematographer was Tobias Schliessler, a native of Germany. He was also very friendly. He didn't mind answering questions about his craft and he was very interesting.

Tobias Schliessler

The only person who was a real let down was one of the main assistant directors named David. He usually bordered on rude, but one time he jumped WAY over the line. Over the P.A. system, he asked all the extras to pick up their trash. That was fine, but what he said was "it is imperative that you pick up your own trash-that means IMPORTANT". (As if we didn't have a clue what imperative meant since we are all west Texas hillbillies.) Everyone was offended by his condescending tone and remark. It was clear that he thought all west Texans are completely illiterate. I guess there has to be one in every crowd.

David

In conclusion I would like to make a list of the best of the cast and crew. Billy Bob Thornton and his body double, Nick, were my favorites. Sophia (Derek Luke's wife) and Crystal (Billy Bob's secretary) rated right up there also. Sarah Aubrey was an executive producer and she was absolutely terrific. Many of us would like to have seen a more friendly side to Peter Berg, Tim McGraw, Derek Luke and the public relations director, Ernest. Oh well, it was still a wonderful experience. I do hope the movie turns out great!

Yes. We all hope it turns out great. Thanks for your input, Teresa. If you get tired of acting, you would do all right as a movie publicist!

Update. I've taken the liberty of making a few corrections in Ms. McMahan's text based on some comments that were left here. Specifically, Morgan Farris was identified as the young woman who plays coach Gaines' daughter. Nick Travis, Billy Bob Thornton's body double, was correctly identified. And Grover Coulson, who plays L. V. Miles, was identified by Mr. Travis. Thanks to everyone who helped out. And, if anyone else spots any errors please get in touch - we want to get it right!

Update, 4/5/04: A better picture of Jay Hernandez was substituted in place of the old one.

Comments

[Peg]

perfect description of the people and things happening on the set! And, I'm even in one of those pics! LOL BAD PIC TOO! OMG! LOL

[Peg]

>>>>Morgan Farris plays L.V. Miles in the movie<<<<

Actually Morgan farris is the little girl playing Billy Bobs daughter. LV is played by Grover somebody. I sat and talked to him for about 30 mins one nite.

[George]

Thanks Peg.

I've corrected the error. Hopefully, if anyone knows Grover's last name they'll get in touch.

George

[Nick]

Hi Theresa, a couple of things...
The man who played LV's name is Grover COULSON. My last name is TRAVIS.
...and last but not least, I took exception with your depiction of the 2nd AD David as "rude and condesending." I am sorry if he offended you out there but after 2months of 14 hr days you too might lose some of your sunnyness! A thick skin helps out in this business!
Anyway it was nice to talk to you on the set and hang out!
all the best,
Nick TRAVIS
PS: Don't forget to send me some pics!

[cara]

Great site!

I disagree with your comments about the director Peter Berg, the A.D. David, Derek Luke, and other negative comments you've made.

As Texans, we DO WANT them to consider filming future productions here.

[teresa]

Hi Cara. Of course we want to see movies made in Texas. It is good for the economy, but does that mean we can't have opinions on what we observe while they are here? You may not agree with my observations, but many other people that were at the filming did agree. If you were there and had different observations, I think you should feel free to write about them and post them. If you weren't there, then maybe you might consider that I was just reporting the facts as I observed them. I will leave false praise up to the politicians. I think it is interesting that you dwelled on the negatives but didn't seem to notice all the heartfelt compliments given to many other people on the cast and crew. I don't think I said anything bad about Peter Berg either--I said he was intense, which isn't at all bad in his position as a director. Again, if you had a different experience on the set, I encourage you to write about it. Besides, do you really think my opinion matters at all to those guys? I seriously doubt it. tmcmahan

[Mark]

I was playing an extra when "David" made the comments and you described it perfectly. It was condescending and rude in my opinion and very obvious that these crew was totally oblivious to Texans -- even though most of the crew was from Austin!

[Deidra Hofstetter]

I just wanted to say that I can not wait for this Movie....I was able to hang out with Garrett Hedlund and Lee Young in Austin, Texas while they were there filming Friday Night Lights. The reason I was there I was hoping to meet Tim McGraw but he wasn't filming at the time so I wasn't able to meet him. I have been Tim's Fan since I was 10 years old. I am 21 now but it was AWESOME meeting and hanging out with Garrett and Lee. I was able to bring home a little something of Garretts, He let me wear his MINNISOTA NORTH STAR green cap and now it's mine. I am one LUCKY girl!!! hehe
I CAN NOT WAIT FOR THE MOVIE TO COME OUT ONE OCT 15TH

Thanks
Deidra Hofstetter

[Marissa Besa]

Morgan Farris goes to school with me at Georgetown Ninth Grade Campus.

[Stratton]

i loved this movie. i had to go to the movies to see it. the dvd has lots of ex. stuff in it that was the best. i cried at the end because it was like our season. i know what they were fealing. i wish this movie could go on and on.

[Chrisha Jones]

Hey everbody I just wanna take this time 2 tell everyone that my man Jay Hernandez is a sexy beast!!!! He makes the movie the movie u feel me?!?

[Eva]

- Hello, I came arcsos your blog while looking up the song, Olivianna by JJ Heller. In October of 2009, my sister and her husband lost their little girl, Joslynn Jo, at 27 weeks gestation. It was a hard and trying time for our family, but God has used it to bring us so much closer together as a family and has brought us closer to Him. God has now blessed my sister, her husband, and their 4 year old daughter, with a beautiful little girl, Nora. She was born in December and is a child that was prayed for so much. She's healthy and happy and we couldn't ask for more. I pray that God uses your story as well as Joslynn's to bring more and more people to Him. God blessAlliMay 2, 2011 8:38 pm