Business as usual in New Hollywood

It's been an exciting few weeks here in New Haven -- Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford were in town to shoot part of the next "Indiana Jones" movie. The heart of downtown was turned into 1957 Bedford, Connecticut for the shoot, and movie equipment, production crews, and extras in period costumes dominated the town. Some SOM people even got into the act! (If you see a blond woman pushing a baby carriage in one of the climactic chase scenes, that's Molly from our Communications Department.) There were also plenty of Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford sightings at restaurants and other spots throughout town (along with some Callista Flockhart and George Lucas sightings). Below are a few photos I took while watching the filming. You can also see more photos at the New Haven Register website. Indiana Jones was just the latest of the recent influx of movies being shot here in Connecticut -- or Hollywood East, as it's becoming known. Because of recent tax breaks, the Nutmeg State has become the hot place to make a movie. Leonardo DiCaprio was just here shooting "Revolutionary Road," as were Sean Penn and Robert DiNiro for "What Just Happened." DiNiro will soon be back with Al Pacino to shoot another movie, and casting calls just went out here in New Haven for two comedies, one starring Martin Lawrence. In addition, Meryl Streep, Robin Williams, John Travolta, and Steven Seagal will all be in the state later this year for other movies. Despite these distractions, the admissions office has been hard at work planning for the upcoming admissions season. We just posted our application deadlines, which you can see by clicking here. The application itself should be available in early August. We are currently working on some changes to it, many of which I hope to be able to preview in this blog in the next week or so. We also plan to announce our recruiting calendar in the very near future. In the meantime, enjoy the pictures of Indy and company in New Haven.