PHOTOGRAPHY ( TOP LEFT ): COURTESY OF STEVEN FEINBERG , RHODE ISLAND FILM AND TELEVISION OFFICE ; ( BOTTOM LEFT ): WOLF MATTHEWSON . ( THIS PAGE , TOP ): COURTESY OF ALEX BERARD .
I had also worked with Anne Fletcher , the director . We did a movie called 27 Dresses in Newport . Anne directed that movie . I had already been talking to Disney before she came aboard . She seconded the motion of working in Rhode Island . We pride ourselves on repeat customers that have a positive experience .
What has been the most rewarding part of the filming ? I was able to take a group of elementary school students from Providence on a school bus down to North Kingstown so they could see the interior of the magic shop . The production designer spent about forty-five minutes to an hour talking to them . They got to ask questions . We might have had thirty kids from Providence and even if we reached four or five of them , we let them know that what they daydream they can turn into a career or reality . Dreams do come true . Those are things I know would have made a difference for me as a child . We weren ’ t making Hollywood movies here when I was kid . I was making movies myself , but I didn ’ t get to go on a real set until I went out to Los Angeles . But I said if we can touch those brains , it could be a life changer . Especially when they see the film and they can say , ‘ I was there .’
The most rewarding thing is also going to be when we show the film to families and Rhode Islanders and all those people who supported the film , Rhode Island Film and the tax credits . It ’ s something we as a state can be proud of . It ’ s Walt Disney : high quality , tremendous actors and performing . Hocus Pocus 2 will be shown every Halloween . It ’ s going to endure .
What has the impact been on tourism and the economy ? The impact on tourism is huge . With Hocus Pocus 2 and ‘ The Gilded Age ’ filming in Newport , the Newport Chamber of Commerce conducted a study with a company out in Cambridge called Industrial Economics Incorporated . They found that for every dollar we give in tax credits , it returns $ 5.44 in economic activity in Rhode Island . That doesn ’ t include the addition of tourism after . That ’ s the actual production . When the show is distributed to a worldwide audience and hopefully to infinity , whether it ’ s streaming or Bluray , people will want to see where the movie was filmed . We had people coming from all over the world to visit the set and coming to the Armory . They would be outside the fence on YouTube saying , ‘ We ’ re here in Providence looking at this castle .’ We received so much social media publicity for Hocus Pocus 2 . When it first came out , it was moderately successful , and when Halloween came about , you ’ d find there was a real cult status . I ’ m also vice president of the Greenwich Odeum , and every Halloween , we show the original movie , and we sell out . I was so excited to bring the sequel of the family film here . It reaches a worldwide audience . — Jamie Coelho
A lex Berard
LOCATION MANAGER , PROVIDENCE
“ I was in charge of finding and securing all the filming locations for the movie . Usually , they send me the script . I ’ ll go through and break down each filming location and then come up with ideas for where I think it would work . I lived in NYC for a while and that ’ s where I got into the business , then moved back to Providence seven or eight years ago , and I have done most of the big shows that have come into town . We were finishing up the first season of ‘ The Gilded Age ,’ when I got the call , and they said , ‘ We ’ re doing Hocus Pocus 2 , the sequel to the movie from the ’ 90s that so many people loved . We ’ re thinking of bringing it to Rhode Island .’ The biggest question was , of course , that the original film took place in Salem , so they asked , ‘ Do you think Rhode Island can pass as Salem , Massachusetts ?’ And I said , ‘ Yeah , it ’ s New England , it ’ s all very similar .’ Newport came to mind as Salem . We closed Washington Square for the better part of two weeks .
“ One of the biggest locations was Chase Farm in Lincoln . It started off as a small thing , then it began to grow and grow . I only knew of that location because it ’ s where I take my dog for walks . The designer said , ‘ We need a big , beautiful field where we can put up a few structures .’ We drove by and fell in love with it , and it grew into this whole town we built .
“ I really liked how Newport turned out . That was my biggest contribution to the show , because from that very first phone call , I pictured that part of Newport . Everyone loved the look of it . To see it all come together , including the logistical aspect of it , it ’ s what we do . That was such a feat to make happen . I have to give all the credit to the Newport Police Department because they were so great in making things happen down there , and the mayor , she was awesome .” — J . C .
FILMING LOCATIONS Washington Square , Newport ; Chase Farm , Lincoln ; Cranston Street Armory , Providence ; Federal Hill , Providence ; Rhode Island Historical Society , Benevolent Street , Providence ; Aldrich House , Providence ; Lakeside Cemetery , Rumford ; Walgreens , East Side of Providence ; La Salle Academy ( interior ), Providence ; Moses Brown ( school exterior ), Providence ; Magic shop , warehouse in North Kingstown .
RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l OCTOBER 2022 81