Actor Roy Abramsohn is slowly losing his mind on the “It’s a Small World” ride; filmed in plain sight but without permission at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California.
I’ve been fascinated by “Escape from Tomorrow” since first reading a New York Times article about the film’s surprising premiere at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. Director Randy Moore’s film is a surreal journey inside a father’s mind on the last day of his supposedly serene vacation at the Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, Florida. He loses his job, loses his mind, and ultimately loses control.
From “Escape from Tomorrow”, the family enters the EPCOT theme park at the Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, Florida.
Here’s a film that not only parodies the unspoken subversive qualities of a vacation at the happiest place on earth but also manages to use modern day camera technology to execute a surreptitious production process. The film was made undercover at both Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida and Disneyland in Anaheim, California. That’s right; no permits and no permission. The cast and crew entered the Disney parks each day with a compact Canon 5D DSLR camera, a Screen Actors Guild cast, the director Randy Moore, first A.D. John David Denison, and our Road to Cinema guest Director of Photography (DP) Lucas Lee Graham.
The Canon 5D mark II. This small consumer camera is capable of rendering beautiful images. It allowed the “Escape from Tomorrow” crew to enter the Disney parks under the radar and blend in with tourists.
The Canon 5D, used to make a majority of the film, is a consumer camera that can be purchased at your local electronics store. This camera and similar DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflector) models such as the 7D have been used to shoot other theatrical films. These include; Noah Baumbach’s “Frances Ha” and Lena Dunham’s “Tiny Furniture”. By looking at the camera, you can see how easy it would have been to walk around the Disney parks without any tourist and park employee giving a second thought to an ulterior motive. It looks similar to any other consumer camera that a family would be using on vacation.
Inside the Disney parks, each actor was individually mic’d and connected to an electronic recording device that remained on for the entire day. There were no slates or sync points during the shoot in the parks which made for an extra laborious post-production process as editor and producer Soojin Chung synced the sound with the picture.
Watch the trailer for “Escape from Tomorrow” which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. “Escape from Tomorrow” is currently streaming on Netflix!
Our Road to Cinema guest DP Lucas Lee Graham began his career shooting on film at the American Film Institute. What makes him such an incredible DP is that he started on film; a format that requires a deep thought process before ever shooting a frame. Graham has mastered digital cinematography because he approaches shooting on digital with the same attention to detail as he would shooting on film.
To learn more about the making of “Escape from Tomorrow”, the craftsmanship of cinematography, and the riggers of the graduate film school at the American Film Institute, check out Episode #6 of The Road to Cinema Podcast!
Take a look at some more great work from DP Lucas Lee Graham!
Check out the trailer for “Cold Turkey” starring Peter Bogdanovich, Cheryl Hines, and Sonya Walger. Written and Directed by Will Slocombe and beautifully photographed by DP Lucas Lee Graham using the Canon 5D. It’s currently available to rent or purchase on DVD, iTunes, and other OnDemand platforms.
“Suburban Gothic” premiered at the Fantasia Film Festival. The film stars Kat Dennings of the CBS hit show “2 Broke Girls”, the legendary John Waters, and was directed by Richard Bates, Jr. “Suburban Gothic” will be screened this October at Toronto After Dark: 2014 and at Screamfest L.A. which runs October 14th through October 23rd. Check out the trailer!