On-campus filming gets mixed reviews

As UCLA students and visitors strolled down Bruin Walk last
week, some were greeted by “Dawson’s Creek” star
Katie Holmes, but their gaping was quickly interrupted by security
guards forcing them around a temporary movie set.

While the film shoot excited many campus pedestrians, some
students, particularly those with offices in the neighboring
Kerckhoff Hall, said the movie crew filming Fox’s new picture
“First Daughter” was “burdensome” and
“inconsiderate.”

Seven outreach groups occupy Kerckhoff 408. Community Service
Commissioner Justin Schreiber said he was not notified that a film
crew would be using that office until the day of the shoot.

“They never asked where things should go,” Schreiber
said, referring to the camera crew. “It was just thrown to
the side.”

Room 408’s occupants, as well as the tenants of other
offices used for filming, received a payment of $300 from Karen
Noh, the Associated Students of UCLA’s student union manager,
who acted as a liaison between Kerckhoff tenants and Fox.

Noh acknowledged that movie shoots can be inconvenient for some,
but added that she always asks office tenants for permission before
telling a film company they can use it.

“I have never had anybody say no,” she said.

Though the UCLA Events Office reports that more than 150 film
shoots occur on campus per year, Noh said that on average, ASUCLA
buildings ““ including Ackerman, Kerckhoff and Lu Valle
““ only support one major film per year.

For years, Kerckhoff Hall and its surrounding area have been
used in numerous movies, including “Scream 2,”
“Old School” and “American Pie 2.”

Noh added that though her office is not in charge of authorizing
film permits, she believes UCLA is committed to “scheduling
them when regular school sessions aren’t taking
place.”

Director of the UCLA Events Office Jack Raab, who is responsible
for booking film shoots, was unavailable for comment.

But though few would disagree that there is less traffic on
campus during the summer, David Unruh, assistant provost for Summer
Sessions, estimated that by the end of summer sessions, 15,200
students would have enrolled in an undergraduate summer class.

In addition to these students, several thousand non-students
visit UCLA during the summer for sports camps, conferences and
orientation.

For many of UCLA’s summer patrons, the excitement of
seeing a movie filmed outweighs the annoyance of taking a detour to
get through campus.

“It’s impressive, I’ve never seen a movie
being filmed,” said first-year undeclared student Duncan
Morrissey, who was confronted by “First Daughter” while
attending orientation.

Yet despite the novelty, some students feel the film crews can
be bad houseguests.

“They have to realize it’s a school,” said
Community Service Commission Evaluations and Reflections Director
Crystal Lee, who has an office in Kerckhoff. “It’s not
a movie set.”