It’s shoot number 9 of 12 on the last day of projections of Made in Hull. I’m at Hull Marina the light has gone and I’m due to meet Jenny Purdue (AKA Jen from Jen’s Pick-me-up) director of Positive Hull CIC and Kelly Shakesby a Psychology teacher at Driffield school.I make a call. We meet and head over to a sailing yacht we try a few things Jack and Rose in the flying scene from Titanic I’m tired and I’m lying on the harbour deck trying to make the magic happen. I’m exhausted eventually I get the shot and I’m away to meet Cat Woman and Darth Maul. Thinking as I walk I must get a plate shot of The iconic Spurn Light Ship. At the end of January I finally have time to make this image of Jack and Rose flying Hullywood style.
The Nightmare before Christmas
I’ve just finished shooting Morticia Addams at Ye Olde Whyte Harte and meet up with Michael Goosen and Anna Preston to recreate a scene from The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Micheal and Anna are top sports and really quite eccentric. They made me chuckle when they pitched up in full make-up in a bright red Jeep. Here is the image we put together quietly and respectfully. Next I had an appointment with Captain America at the Lord Line Building.It’s a 12 shoot day and I’m only halfway through I could murder a cuppa…
Master and Commander
I’ve known Kevin Reynolds for many years he’s a good friend. I played at his wedding with my band Celtarabia and we both share a love of motorbikes and fine ale. Kevin is an engineer he designs breweries and canning machines for Micro Brewers and Purveyors of Craft Ales you can read about his brewing related activities here.
When Kevin got in touch about recreating a scene from Master and Commander I knew I just had to revisit HMS Pickle on Hull Marina so I gave her owner my good friend Mal a ring and arranged a time for us to do the shoot. I know you are wondering and yes you can go out sailing on the Pickle and visit and explore it on the Hull Marina. Mal rescued the Pickle from decay in Gibraltar and restored her in Portugal it took him over two years.
Kevin brought his son Alex along and we made this image. Father and son – Master and Commander.
The Blues Brothers
Hullywood Icon Carol Young and her friend Karen Grannon contacted me about recreating a moment from The Blues Brothers. You may recall that Jake and Elmore are on a mission from god. I arrive at Zebedees Yard it’s getting dark. Shoot number 12 of a very busy saturday. I’ve just been sat with Dr.Evil in Thieving Harry’s and the Blues Brothers are sitting in a rather underwhelming ford fiesta. Carol is on her mobile I know she is looking for my number I tap on the window and we get cracking with the shoot.
We have a lot of laughs and after a few trial and errors then we make this image. I say my farewells and head for the ceilidh I’m playing at in Skidby with the Hessle Ceilidh Band. No rest for the wicked.
Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona
When Carol Wright got in touch with me about recreating this scene. I was very excited, it’s one of my favourite films. So here we have it. Shot at the back of the cafe in Pearson Park on a cold day in January, andwiched between Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music and Made in Dagenham we have Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona.
The story in a nutshell is that Americans Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) arrive in Spain for a summer vacation at a friend’s (Patricia Clarkson) Barcelona home. Visiting an art gallery, they meet seductive painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), who invites them for a weekend of food, art and sex. Sparks really ignite when his fiery former lover (Penélope Cruz) arrives on the scene, making for a very crowded house.
Thelma and Louise
It’s the day after the projections in Bridlington Priory and on the Spa. I get into my car now affectionately known as ‘Skip’ for obvious reasons. I have twelve Hullywood shoots booked in today and I’m looking forwards to all of them.
It’s dark as I drive towards Fraisthorpe beach to meet Tracey and Ella Dent-Brown.
I park up and recce the beach car park. I find a spot and admire the view glad that I squeezed the step ladder into the car along with a PA, for tonights Ceilidh with the Hessle Ceilidh Band, a guitar, a hurdy gurdy, border bagpipes, djembe, a green screen and assorted remnants of meals grabbed between shoots.
The light is liminal we are between night and day in the distance a car approaches. It must be Tracey and Ella. I wave to them and they pull up into the position I need the car to be in. We fine tune the position of the car close to the cliff edge. Tracey and Ella are on fine form and there is a lot of banter as we set up the shot. We try a few different angles and then we make this image.
Weird Science
I’m at Hull University Chemistry department Professor Mark Lorch and Phil Bell-Young are very excited! They have been shopping for props. Phil chuckles as he stuffs a very old fashioned Boyes bra with socks and then sticks it on his head. We’d been talking on twitter Mark had spotted Priscilla when we were projecting in Beverley, said hello and explained his idea for a Hullywood shoot at Hull University’s Chemistry Lab.
Mark is preparing the scene we are shooting in a very logical and systematic manner. It’s all going swimmingly until some students wander into the lab and clock their Professors with bras on their heads – mark waves them out saying ‘we’ll explain later,now go away’.
The scene is from Weird Science, the 80s teen Sci-Fi flick about a pair of Nerdy social outcasts who are publically humiliated in school which persuades them to make their own ‘dream women’ in an attempt to boost their popularity.
Mark Lorch – Research Chemist, Professor of Science Communication and Associate Dean in the Faculty of Science and Engineering. @mark_lorch on twitter. (He is a serious scientist, honest!) Phil Bell-Young – Science Outreach Officer, Faculty of Science and Engineering. @Philby91 on twitter (He is a seriously weird scientist).
They are both mad as a box of frogs with as much energy as small child on Skittles. As they say in some parts of Yorkshire ‘Well met!’.
Iron Man
I park on the east side of Millennium Bridge in Hull. It’s a quid for 3 hours and a great location for a shoot. I’m here to meet Mark Storr. An ex-Morrisons Butcher made redundant and now pursuing a career as costumed character and purveyor of children’s entertainments.
He arrives with his wife and two young children and we have a look at the location. He loves it and gets changed. The costume is tricky to put on and Mark’s partner helps him with the finishing touches. We slowly head over from the car to the spot where we are making the image. In a few moments we have created this image.
If you are after an appearance by Iron Man or any of these characters Iron man, Thor, Captain America, Batman, Spider Man Mickey & Minnie, Peppa Pig, Spongebob, Pikachu. or a bouncy castle contact Mark at Party in a Box. He’s a top geezer!
I hope you don’t mind…
Great to have Baz – Barry Weldon onboard with the Hullywood Icons helping me with some of the trickier photoshop compositing images. There are only so many hours in my day the day and his skills are ace so it’s a natural fit!
This is how it happened. Baz – Barry Weldon contacted me with the following email:
Hi Quentin
how does it all work, I mean say i wanted to recreate this scene from con-air with john malkovich.. i’ve got a brown shirt, and a white tshirt, um.. no gun, no rabbit.. does it have to be a hull iconic background? as i’m struggling to think where it could be set, somewhere i don’t need to get permission.. ? I was thinking saturday shoot..? (We’re working on this)
I hope you don’t mind but i touched up the other trainspotting pic as it was niggling at me, hope u don’t mind.. i’m a bit OCD like that.. just had to delete the legs and shrink the body down a little to make it look like the figure is coming out of the toilet..
Baz
I’m not precious, I thought that was a very kind offer and took him up on it. I’m a bugger for a bit of retouching and an outside eye on the work. Look out for appropriate credits on photoshopped images with additional input by Barry Weldon on the blog posts.
Here is Barry’s re working of the Sarah Jayne Curry Trainspotting image. With his suggestions included and my request for extra water in the spit.
Here is mine which I published a few weeks earlier.
Hullywood Icons 