THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2022 Page 7 ASKS | FROM PAGE 6 A: Ah, like I said, it’s amazing to see how many people it takes and equipment it takes to fi lm a movie out of a studio. Basically, they moved their entire studio. There was somebody there looking at the cameras and monitoring everything. There’s a director monitoring it. Everybody – sound guys – they all see the scene, and they all yell out, “Okay, everything is all set. Sound good.” So, they’re all logged into iPads, watching the scene. How they do that? I don’t know. It’s pretty impressive. They work it well. And there’s people in the kitchen, preparing the food for extras who are sitting around the table. They actually had some of our waitresses, too. Some of our waitresses tried out, and they brought two of our waitresses for extras. Q: You have two extras from the restaurant who may or may not be in the movie? A: Right. But I think they are going to be in it. Whether you see them or not, I don’t know. They’re defi nitely serving food to the extras. Whether they serve the actors – I didn’t see any of that. Q: That sounds pretty exciting to watch it all. A: Yeah. It was pretty exciting. Q: So, this is something that you didn’t apply for … A: No. I just think they liked how the place looked, and it was exactly what they wanted in the period that they wanted it in. They wanted to make it work, and I was willing to make it work. Q: Now, what’s the benefi t for a local restaurant to do something like this? A: Sometimes, I thought of the disadvantage because of your clientele. You’ve got to let them know, so we did the best we could for the customers who were there, and we put it on a sign to let them know we were going to be closed for a couple of days. Q: I saw some of your customers last night. A: Yeah, they started coming in and they’re upset. And you’ve got to take that into consideration. But I think by just seeing the traffi c on Route 1, lots of people are slowing down just to see what’s going on. I received probably 10 texts during the fi rst couple of hours: “What’s going on down there? What’s going on down there?” TOOLS OF THEIR TRADE: Some of the equipment used by a Hollywood fi lm crew that took up space in the parking lot outside The Continental Restaurant on Wednesday (Feb. 23). (Saugus Advocate photo by Tara Vocino) But I think people who saw they were fi lming at the restaurant … people who maybe never have been to The Continental before are going to check it out. So, hopefully, it’s benefi cial. Q: It certainly gives you visibility. A: Yeah, it certainly does give us visibility. When the movie comes out, whether people will be able to tell whether it’s The Continental or not, I don’t know, but just the idea of thousands of people driving by and seeing what’s going on – it’s defi nitely going to pique their interest. Whether it’s going online looking at The Continental to see what’s being fi lmed there, yeah, it puts it in people’s minds, I think. Q: So, do you have any thoughts about putting a little placard where one of the movie stars sat, saying “So and so sat here?” A: I don’t know about that, but I would like to try to get a picture and put it on the wall, but we’ll see. We’ll see. Q: So, you’ll probably get to see some of the actors at some point. A: Yeah, if I pursue it. I’m probably going to go down later to close the restaurant when they leave. I’ve met the director, so I’d like to say “Hi” to him and see if he can take me around to meet the actors. Q: Well, if you succeed, please send me a JPEG of a photo. A: I will. I will. But I don’t know. But they’ve been pretty staunch about not wanting people outside to know what’s going on. Q: When’s the last time, if you know, when a Saugus ASKS | SEE PAGE 8
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