Lights, Camera, Action!

Berry College’s visually stunning campus recently served as the backdrop for a television pilot starring Kevin Bacon as an FBI agent.

Bacon has been in more than 60 films, including “Apollo 13,, “Animal House” and “Footloose.” Kevin Williamson, the creator of the CW’s “The Vampire Diaries,” is the executive producer of the project and is also a credited screenwriter for the film “Scream” and the WB’s “Dawson’s Creek.”

Dozens of Berry students were cast as extras and spent most of their day on the set with the production crew. The experience was a lighthearted chance at 15 minutes of fame for some students, but for others it was an opportunity to apply what they have learned in the classroom to the real world.

Communication majors Brittany Regan and Steven Walker, both of Lilburn, Ga., were chosen to be production assistants for the duration of the filming on campus. Regan is appreciative for the opportunity.

“That's the field I want to go into professionally, so it was an incredible opportunity to see how big production companies do things and be able to put that experience on my resume,” Regan said. “Berry, and especially the Student Work Program, gave both Steven and I the skills we need to be able to work on sets.”

Walker is equally grateful for the chance of working behind the scenes on a television production.

“We're always told at Berry that our work is meaningful, so it was nice to see how well the skills we've gained through campus work translate into a professional film set,” he said.

The crew behind the pilot, yet to be named, anticipates it will be picked up by a broadcast network for the 2012-2013 television season.

Article by Student Public Relations Assistant Hayden Sloan and photos by Mary Claire Stewart