02 Jul Hollywood-based director shoots new movie in Trinidad

Filming began on 30th June 2013 for the movie titled The Noka Wheel being directed by Shaun Escayg, a Trinidadian filmmaker based in Los Angeles.
Escayg, his cast and crew spent the day at the Stollmeyer Estate in Santa Cruz shooting scenes.
The film tells the story of a boy with what were perceived to be psychological problems, but after his grandfather dies and his mother brings him from the United States to Trinidad for the funeral, things begin to happen that lead her to believe that he was under some sinister spiritual or mental attack.
The movie features a cast of local and foreign actors, among them Conrad Parris, Cecilia Salazar, Michael Cherrie and Peter Kelly.
One of the scenes shot yesterday was the funeral of the grandfather, which the crew began working on from 4 a.m.
Shooting for The Noka Wheel is scheduled to run until Saturday 6th July at various locations across the country.
Trinidad was selected by Escayg on previous scouting visits he made in preparation for the production.
Escayg has already attracted the interest of major international distributors including Warner Brothers and Overbrook for the full-length version of the movie and they are waiting on this short-form version to make the final decision.
Once the film is picked up by an international distributor the production budget will be about US$40m, part of which will be spent here in its production.
Along with the live-action elements the film also features VFX (visual effects) sequences of which Escayg is a specialist and has won awards for.His last film short, FISH, won several international awards. international awards.
Escayg has been working out in Hollywood for several years now building a reputation as being one of the best visual effects artists.
His work animating the character named Bumblebee in the movie Transformers 3: Dark Side of the Moon was praised by director, Steven Spielberg. Escayg has also worked on Scott Pilgrim vs the World, The Goon, Outlander, The Marsh and Diary of the Dead, among others.
Article from the Trinidad Express.