A splash of Hollywood glitz brightened Main Street on an otherwise gloomy Wednesday, surprising the passers-by who stopped to watch film crews shoot a scene of a movie with an A-list cast.
Many of the people outside Chimayo restaurant got a glimpse of Oscar winners Diane Keaton, Kevin Kline and Dianne Wiest inside the restaurant as they shot a scene of a movie that is said to be called “Darling Companion.”
Word of the movie shoot spread early Wednesday as the film crews arrived on Main Street, and a small crowd gathered outside to watch the goings-on. Some took snapshots and most appeared to be stunned to see the scene unfold.
People on the film crew asked for quiet and told people not to use camera flashes at some points. A crew member by just before 2 p.m. was instructing people to stand on the sidewalk in a location that was outside the background of the scene.
The “Darling Companion” shoot stretched for nearly a week, with other locations including the intersection of Park Avenue and 10th Street, Trailside Elementary School, Rotary Park and the Guardsman Pass area, according to Max Paap, who manages special events for City Hall.
Paap said he was told the movie is centered on a family searching for a lost dog. He said “Darling Companion” is meant to be a “heartwarming” film. Paap said Lawrence Kasden, best known for his work on some of the “Star Wars” films and other blockbusters, is directing the movie.
“My understanding is they wanted a small, mountain-town setting,” Paap said. “I believe with the star power they wanted to keep locations to a minimum.”
The smallish crowds on Main Street were typical for the fall slow season. The Park City Police Department assigned an officer to monitor the scene, with no problems reported by the police.
At Burns Cowboy Shop across Main Street from the shoot, employee Tegan Shaw said a few people stopped after being drawn to the scene. Shaw watched the film crews from the shop’s window but was not aware of the shoot until the setting up started.
“It’s crazy to see how fast the sets come up and down, all the hustle and bustle,” Shaw said, adding that some people were “stopping and gawking.”
Alison Butz, the executive director of the Historic Park City Alliance, a merchants group representing the Main Street district, said she hopes Park City is mentioned in the film. She said Main Street could be rewarded depending on how the street is depicted in “Darling Companion.”
“The more we can be shown as ourselves would benefit the street,” Butz said.
Mary Potts Olson, the sales and events director for Chimayo owner Bill White Enterprises, said a location scout looked at a few restaurants before settling on Chimayo. An 85-person film crew was at the restaurant, she said, noting that the restaurant’s fireplaces added to the setting.
“Chimayo has such a warm atmosphere inside,” she said.
The “Darling Companion” filming was the latest in a string of television and movie shoots in Park City and followed by seven months the shooting of an episode of the television show “One Tree Hill” on Main Street. The “One Tree Hill” shoot, done in March, drew large crowds to Main Street and centered on a character screening a movie during a fictional film festival.