APOCALYPSE — Actors in Grimm Sleeper Production’s short film “Dead Friends Forever” made their way through the film’s set on Commercial Street in Mingo Junction Friday, surrounded by a swarm of zombies being portrayed by local volunteers.
— Christopher Dacanay
MINGO JUNCTION — Furthering the village’s record of use as a film backdrop, an independent production began its first day on set in Mingo Junction Friday, drawing an excited crowd of locals who volunteered to portray zombies.
Produced by the independent studio Grimm Sleeper Productions out of Monaca, Pa., “Dead Friends Forever” will be a short film about a woman who develops an unlikely friendship with a zombie during the apocalypse.
With a total budget of $5,000, the film has had previous sections filmed in Rochester, Pa., and will have its climax filmed in Mingo Junction. Friday saw day six of filming — the first of two days planned in the steel mill town, known for being the backdrop in productions including “The Deerhunter,” “Reckless” and “Heart of Steel.”
Grimm Sleeper issued appeals on social media, inviting village residents to act as zombies in the production. Several dozen showed up and donned makeup to roam Commercial Street, which was closed to traffic in the afternoon and into the evening.
A small band of crew members arrived early Friday morning to establish the municipal building’s basement as a home base.
Among the crew was Jason Quaigg, an effects artist for Monaca-based More Gore Effects. A former Mingo Junction resident, Quaigg was the one to pitch Mingo as a possible filming location, during his first production meeting for “Dead Friends” in April. Having worked with village officials previously to shoot for a separate project, Quaigg knew the village would likely be amenable.
“It’s weird, kind of, being responsible for this,” said Quaigg, who graduated from Mingo High School in the mid-1990s.
Quaigg said he didn’t sleep the night before, out of anticipation.
“It was like waiting for Christmas,” he said, adding later: “It’s going to be something else to see all these zombies coming through the street down here. It’s going to be pretty wild.”
Quaigg was inspired to enter the effects industry by the work of Tam Savini, who directed the first project Quaigg contributed to — a pilot called “Chill Factor.”
Assisting Quaigg and More Gore’s Jason Proakis and Tyler Roman was Mingo resident Shaina Vankirk.
An Indian Creek High School graduate, Vankirk heard about “Dead Friends” online and inquired about being an extra, adding her experience as the makeup director for her high school plays. Asked to provide samples of her work, Vankirk did so, and the production team brought her on board.
Vankirk — who took a costume and makeup class during her senior year but is largely self-taught — is a big fan of the horror genre like her mother, Sara Burnett, whose father was an extra in “Heart of Steel” and other productions. She applied gruesome-looking makeup to various actors, using fake blood, adhesives and prosthetics.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Vankirk said of her first time contributing to a film production. “I’m a little nervous, but I think once we get things rolling and started, I’ll be pretty set and comfortable. But it’s pretty cool.”
Grimm Sleeper’s founder and director Josh Maley said he was “very pumped” for the first day of filming.
Also excited was Mingo Junction Mayor Judy Ruckman, who had spoken with Maley and gave the crew permission to film in the village, including on Commercial Street. Ruckman herself got the chance to portray a zombie in the film, having Vankirk zombify her face.
The crew filmed a few scenes downtown with just its own actors — including Maddy Cox as the protagonist Serenity and Em Sullivan as her zombie companion. The sight of individuals dressed in rags and drenched in gore drew more than a couple of double-takes and elongated stares from passersby.
Around noon, volunteer actors began to arrive and get their own makeup. Mingo Junction police later closed Commercial Street to traffic, and an apocalyptic scene was arranged on the street. The scene included an old village fire department engine and ambulance and a village police Ford Crown Victoria cruiser.
Actors Venny Sanchez and Victor J. Miller portrayed the film’s more prominent zombies, though several dozen locals filled in to give the effect of a zombie hoard.
Tiffany Staffilino and Jennifer Shields portrayed two of those zombies.
Having grown up in Mingo, Staffilino said getting to participate in the production is “super cool,” adding, “in your hometown, it feels a little bit different.” An avid horror fan, Staffilino was elated to see Grimm Sleeper’s casting call.
A Steubenville resident, Shields said, “As soon as I saw it, I knew I wanted to participate. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Another zombie, Deidre Burkey-Sorrell of Mingo said this was a “check off my bucket list.” Having previously been an extra in “Reckless,” Burkey-Sorrell said she’s wanted to portray a zombie since George A. Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” series was shot in Pittsburgh.
Diana Kiker of Mingo thought it was great to participate, especially since she now has another thing in common with her mother, Carolyn Whipkey, who was an extra in the sports-comedy “Major League: Back to the Minors,” which was shot in Charleston, S.C.
“We need things here, we really do, in Mingo,” Kiker said. “We need things to keep shining a spotlight on our town.”
Filming efforts needed to contend with the sun, some traffic troubles and coordinating a lot of moving parts. However, filming got off to a good start when the establishing shot that looks into the zombie crowd was achieved in one take — followed by cheers and applause.
Filming continued in the later evening, with scenes being shot in the former First Baptist Church on Kirtdoll Way. Filming will continue Saturday with another set of volunteer actors, who will bring the zombie apocalypse into the halls — and onto the roof — of the former Mingo High School.
“Dead Friends” is expected to be complete by January. After entering the film festival circuit, it will be posted to Grimm Sleeper’s Vimeo page. Maley and Ruckman have considered the idea of having a watch party in the village, for residents to apprecia
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