Extras! Extras! from page 12
"It was cool how he could cry on
command and then do it again:'
she said.
Ruthe Levine of Farmington
Hills, a former speech and drama
coach for Farmington Public
Schools, understands how that type
of emoting works. The elegantly
dressed octogenarian, who brought
along five or six changes of cloth-
ing, as requested of all extras, says
she looks forward to seeing the
final product.
Why Temple Israel?
Location scouts checked out several
synagogues before choosing Temple
Israel, according to director Jon
Avnet, who directed the feature film
Fried Green Tomatoes.
"The sanctuary is magnificent:'
he said in between takes. "They
should be very proud of their
temple!'
Avnet, who is Jewish, seemed
at home in the sanctuary. At one
point, when "action" had been
called, a crewmember yelled to him
that there was a question. "No, no,
no. This is not Mah Nishtanah,"he
joked, referencing the traditional
question central to the Passover
seder.
Author Albom, who also wrote
the screenplay, wanted Have a Little
Faith to be filmed in Metro Detroit.
At the I Am My Brother's Keeper
Ministry/Pilgrim Church in Detroit,
the film crew had to re-create the
hole in the roof, and then re-repair
it. Actor Laurence Fishburne plays
Henry Covington.
The made-for-TV movie was
awarded a Michigan film incentive
of $2,355,945 and is expected to
hire 226 Michigan workers with a
full-time equivalent of 53 jobs.
Albom and his wife, Janine, had
been to Temple Israel a few weeks
earlier for WDIV-TV sportscaster
Bernie Smilovitz's son's bar mitz-
vah.
"This sanctuary is much bigger
and more ornate than my syna-
gogue in New Jersey," said Albom,
on set July 18 for the filming of the
eulogy scene. "It's warm and has a
nice feeling of congregation!'
Rabbi Loss, whose office doubled
as Rabbi Lewis' congregational
office in the film, says he was happy
Temple Israel played a role in Have
a Little Faith.
"The sanctuary was being used
as a sanctuary, and the crew was
very serious about maintaining
the sanctity of the sanctuary:' he
said. "From a Jewish and Christian
perspective, it's a wonderful and
important story to be told."
Do It Fo
DETROIT
August 2011
SIGN UP TO PLAY NOW.
Detroiters and Detroit expats
from across the nation are
coming together for a series
of charity softball, kickball,
and dodgeball tournaments to
----
Saturday, August 20
Belle Isle, Michigan
*Independent
ComePlayDetroit event
help rebuild the city of Detroit.
All of the money raised will go to the
Live Detroit
FUND which will provide rent subsidies
to young Detroiters moving to the
city of Detroit.
The month will commence locally in
Sun • ay, ugUst 21
Los Angeles, California
Detroit with a Kickoff Party at Groves
High School at 7pm on August 3rd after
weekly ComePlayDetroit kickball games.
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July 28 92011
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