It was a case of going underground and tunnel vision as Area 51’s creative crew were summoned to help with the shooting of a much-anticipated supernatural sci-fi thriller movie.
The Area 51 contingent spent three weeks locked away underground in a former nuclear war bunker in Worcestershire to aid filming for the movie “Black Site” which was unveiled, to rave reviews, in the spring of 2018.
51’s Matt Page took on the role of art director on the project with James Wilson in charge of props and fellow 51 team stalwart Spyke Toombs providing costumes as the film crew set up base below the Worcestershire countryside at Drakelow Tunnels in freezing temperatures.
The idiosyncratic complex of subterranean tunnels is a top-secret military complex below Kingsford Country Park, near Kidderminster which was originally built during World War II as a shadow factory for the construction of Rover cars and military vehicles.
The U.K. government converted half of the maze into a top-secret facility designated as Regional Seat Of Government 9 (RSG 9), which, along with 12 other such facilities, formed a national network of highly classified nuclear bunkers to run the country from in the event of nuclear war.
Since that time the Drakelow Tunnels Preservation Trust has maintained the site as the largest cold war museum in the British Isles and it is occasionally used as a location for film-makers.
The new movie, “Black Site” is the latest creation from the highly-regarded up-and-coming young producer Tom Paton and stars Mike Beckingham as “Sam”, Jessica-Jane Stafford as “Agent Ackerman”, Samantha Schnitzler as “Ren Reid”, Bentley Kalu as “Jay Austin”. Regular Area 51 performer Luke D’Silva also has a role.
Area 51 helped provide props and scenery for the subterranean shoot and had to overcome a number of tricky obstacles including the freezing temperatures that affected the various paints used.
GALLERY
