CAF Aircraft & Crews In New Documentary
Mon Dec 04, 2006 2:55 pm
From; thefacts.com
World War II aircraft take flight for film
By Jason Smith
The Facts
Published December 3, 2006
FREEPORT — It was a week before the 65th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the images of Japanese planes ripping through the horizon, diving toward the beach’s sands, were as clear as if they were just happening.
It could have been a scene from the 1969 classic movie “Tora! Tora! Tora!” or the 2001 film “Pearl Harbor.”
Instead of Hawaii, the coast being zeroed in on was Bryan Beach, and the planes zooming overhead Thursday were happening in real life.
The Freeport beach and Brazoria County Airport were being used last week to help stage re-enactments to be used in a documentary commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corp. in conjunction with the Smithsonian Institution. Four aircraft maintained by Commemorative Air Force members of the Gulf Coast Wing and kept in Brazoria County took part in the filming, which focuses not on the war’s beginning but its final stages.
Jim Ryan of Lake Jackson, Jesse Bootenhoss of Rosharon, Dan Reedy of Pearland and Patrick Hutchins of Kemah, the Commemorative Air Force members who maintain the aircraft, were able to fly the planes while they were filming the flight sequences on Bryan Beach.
“It was amazing to get to fly in this documentary. It is a tribute to all the men and women who served in World War II and who are in service today,” Ryan said.
This was not Ryan’s first time in front of the camera though; he also flew in the movie “Pearl Harbor” in 2001.
The areas in Brazoria County were chosen by producers, because the planes needed were housed at the airport and available for use.
The aircraft that were used were three replica Japanese Zeros and a replica Japanese Torpedo bomber. The Zeros were AT-6 American trainers that were converted into the Japanese aircraft, and all four planes were used in the movie “Tora! Tora! Tora!” in 1969.
“It is really enjoyable to be a part of this,” Reedy said. “It is important to let the youth of today know what people experienced back then.”
Charlie Lindley, a CAF member who does not fly, provided ground support for the production by getting the planes ready. He was an aircraft mechanic in the Navy from 1967-71.
“We’re helping preserve history, and you get a good feeling seeing these old warbirds fly,” Lindley said.
The documentary is a 60th anniversary film that looks specifically at the climatic last few months of World War II, said Peter Nicholson, an acclaimed director who won an Emmy Award for the Discovery Channel’s “Pompeii: The Last Day.”
The film showcases the Battle of Okinawa, which started in April 1945, right after the Battle of Iwo Jima. It was the largest sea-land-air battle in history. More than 122,000 civilians, 66,000 Japanese soldiers and 12,513 American soldiers were killed in the battle.
“In a last-ditch effort, the Japanese started a mass kamikaze strategy,” Nicholson said. “It was a very brutal and bloody campaign.”
The Japanese would fly their planes at the Allied ships on suicide missions in a desperate effort to win the battle. The documentary highlights the tactics the Allies developed to protect their aircraft carriers, Nicholson said. It looks at the whole strategy and unravels the cultural differences between the two sides.
“The film is a feature-length documentary using archival footage spliced with pieces of dramatic re-enactments,” Nicholson said.
Interviews were conducted with veterans from both sides and six kamikaze pilots who survived, Nicholson said.
On Wednesday, the crew filmed long shots of mock Japanese pilots boarding the planes getting ready for launch. The planes were lined up along the grass at the Brazoria County Airport.
“The tour group is what brought us to the area,” Nicholson said. “The aircraft are the stars the next couple of days.”
Wednesday’s footage will be placed together with film that will be shot at studios in England, detailing different rituals Japanese soldiers performed before flying off, such as taking shots of saké, said assistant producer Nacressa Swan.
On Thursday, the crew filmed footage of the Japanese planes doing aerial maneuvers over Bryan Beach that will simulate what the kamikaze pilots did.
“This area has a beautiful coastline,” Nicholson said.
The planes were piloted by the CAF members, and close-up shots of Japanese actors in the planes will tie into the sequences.
“We used specific flying to recreate ingredients on their attacks,” Nicholson said.
The next stop for the crew will be at Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum at Charleston, S.C., next week. They will be filming scenes using two Navy vessels, the USS Yorktown and USS Laffey, both of which survived kamikaze attacks at the battle.
“These guys from the Commemorative Air Force are a fantastic group of people,” Nicholson said. “It was really nice to work with them.”
The film, tentatively titled “Day of the Kamikaze,” started production in October and is set to be delivered next March. It will air on the United Kingdom television station Channel 4, and as one of the flagship shows for the new Smithsonian Institution On Demand channel.
Jason Smith is a reporter for The Facts. Contact him at (979) 237-0150.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sounds like this might be pretty good.
Robbie
World War II aircraft take flight for film
By Jason Smith
The Facts
Published December 3, 2006
FREEPORT — It was a week before the 65th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the images of Japanese planes ripping through the horizon, diving toward the beach’s sands, were as clear as if they were just happening.
It could have been a scene from the 1969 classic movie “Tora! Tora! Tora!” or the 2001 film “Pearl Harbor.”
Instead of Hawaii, the coast being zeroed in on was Bryan Beach, and the planes zooming overhead Thursday were happening in real life.
The Freeport beach and Brazoria County Airport were being used last week to help stage re-enactments to be used in a documentary commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corp. in conjunction with the Smithsonian Institution. Four aircraft maintained by Commemorative Air Force members of the Gulf Coast Wing and kept in Brazoria County took part in the filming, which focuses not on the war’s beginning but its final stages.
Jim Ryan of Lake Jackson, Jesse Bootenhoss of Rosharon, Dan Reedy of Pearland and Patrick Hutchins of Kemah, the Commemorative Air Force members who maintain the aircraft, were able to fly the planes while they were filming the flight sequences on Bryan Beach.
“It was amazing to get to fly in this documentary. It is a tribute to all the men and women who served in World War II and who are in service today,” Ryan said.
This was not Ryan’s first time in front of the camera though; he also flew in the movie “Pearl Harbor” in 2001.
The areas in Brazoria County were chosen by producers, because the planes needed were housed at the airport and available for use.
The aircraft that were used were three replica Japanese Zeros and a replica Japanese Torpedo bomber. The Zeros were AT-6 American trainers that were converted into the Japanese aircraft, and all four planes were used in the movie “Tora! Tora! Tora!” in 1969.
“It is really enjoyable to be a part of this,” Reedy said. “It is important to let the youth of today know what people experienced back then.”
Charlie Lindley, a CAF member who does not fly, provided ground support for the production by getting the planes ready. He was an aircraft mechanic in the Navy from 1967-71.
“We’re helping preserve history, and you get a good feeling seeing these old warbirds fly,” Lindley said.
The documentary is a 60th anniversary film that looks specifically at the climatic last few months of World War II, said Peter Nicholson, an acclaimed director who won an Emmy Award for the Discovery Channel’s “Pompeii: The Last Day.”
The film showcases the Battle of Okinawa, which started in April 1945, right after the Battle of Iwo Jima. It was the largest sea-land-air battle in history. More than 122,000 civilians, 66,000 Japanese soldiers and 12,513 American soldiers were killed in the battle.
“In a last-ditch effort, the Japanese started a mass kamikaze strategy,” Nicholson said. “It was a very brutal and bloody campaign.”
The Japanese would fly their planes at the Allied ships on suicide missions in a desperate effort to win the battle. The documentary highlights the tactics the Allies developed to protect their aircraft carriers, Nicholson said. It looks at the whole strategy and unravels the cultural differences between the two sides.
“The film is a feature-length documentary using archival footage spliced with pieces of dramatic re-enactments,” Nicholson said.
Interviews were conducted with veterans from both sides and six kamikaze pilots who survived, Nicholson said.
On Wednesday, the crew filmed long shots of mock Japanese pilots boarding the planes getting ready for launch. The planes were lined up along the grass at the Brazoria County Airport.
“The tour group is what brought us to the area,” Nicholson said. “The aircraft are the stars the next couple of days.”
Wednesday’s footage will be placed together with film that will be shot at studios in England, detailing different rituals Japanese soldiers performed before flying off, such as taking shots of saké, said assistant producer Nacressa Swan.
On Thursday, the crew filmed footage of the Japanese planes doing aerial maneuvers over Bryan Beach that will simulate what the kamikaze pilots did.
“This area has a beautiful coastline,” Nicholson said.
The planes were piloted by the CAF members, and close-up shots of Japanese actors in the planes will tie into the sequences.
“We used specific flying to recreate ingredients on their attacks,” Nicholson said.
The next stop for the crew will be at Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum at Charleston, S.C., next week. They will be filming scenes using two Navy vessels, the USS Yorktown and USS Laffey, both of which survived kamikaze attacks at the battle.
“These guys from the Commemorative Air Force are a fantastic group of people,” Nicholson said. “It was really nice to work with them.”
The film, tentatively titled “Day of the Kamikaze,” started production in October and is set to be delivered next March. It will air on the United Kingdom television station Channel 4, and as one of the flagship shows for the new Smithsonian Institution On Demand channel.
Jason Smith is a reporter for The Facts. Contact him at (979) 237-0150.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sounds like this might be pretty good.
Robbie