The Making of 'Frozen River'

“Maybe you guys would like to cater the crew” she said, “when I shoot my film here next winter.” It was the writer-director Courtney Hunt talking with Simon Conroy at Conroys Organics, sometime mid summer 2006. Simon is my son and the manager of the family-owned farm store.

People talk of making movies, and of writing novels, and of sailing around the world in row boats…someday. Courtney showed up late January, 2007 with her producer Chip Hourihan ready to scout locations for her film ‘Frozen River’, in order to begin filming in ten days with a full production crew from NYC. One year later she was on the podium with Quenten Tarantino at the Sundance Film Festival accepting the Grand Jury Award: Dramatic for the winning film, the equivalent of a Best Picture Oscar in Hollywood.

Melissa Leo discussing script with director Courtney Hunt at trailer site on the Jersey Swamp Rd. in Beekmantown.

This is how I remember it playing out. She had earlier made a short film named Frozen River on the Mohawk Reservation, near Massena, NY. Because of the nature of the film, which centers on smuggling, she decided against shooting the full length feature at the same location. Her feeling was that the prolonged stay necessary for a full length shoot might provoke a conflict with the native residents and possibly hold up production. It had to be completed by mid March before spring thaw set in. Most of the cast and production crew also had other work scheduled by then.

“I knew the Plattsburgh area from driving through many times enroute to visit my husband’s family in Malone,” she said on one of her early stops at the Beekmantown farm store, which she’d discovered from location signs on I-87. Her husband, Donald A Harwood, Esq. is the film’s Executive Producer and Production Legal Advisor.

After listening to Courtney a bit i realized that nearly everything she required in the way of locations was available within ten miles of the store. In less than a day of driving around Beekmantown and Plattsburgh, enough locations were spotted to easily duplicate the original setting of the story along the St. Lawrence River within the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation.

The crew filming on location at my house on Conroy Farm.

The crew from Manhattan rumbled into Plattsburgh, bunking at the Microtel on the old Akey Farm on the Rt. 3 strip. Film crews on location are notorious for their perhaps overabundance of exuberance and rambunctious. Since filming goes on around the clock on a rotating schedule, 'happy hour' sometimes occurred at four in the morning. Co-producer Molly Connors usually ended up being the production spokesman for the crew.

“I stand by my people” she said. “They’re professionals. They’re just letting off steam. It’s pretty exciting for them to be on location up here in the north woods. I mean we’re usually working the streets of NYC.”

“If I’d only known” said Microtel owner Pat Akey recently, “I’d have taken a piece of the film for room payment. Just kidding…but I was told that they spent in the neighborhood of $30,000 a day up here. That’s not a bad little boost to the local economy.”

Some shoots needed nothing added for authenticity. A full blizzard raged as river scenes were shot on the Willis Gonyo farm on Point Au Roche. Sub zero wind chills hampered filming at the weathered house trailer on the Jersey Swamp Road, and my log house on the Conroy Farm in Beekmantown. The crew kept at it and held to their schedule. At times Reed Dawson Morano, director of photography, had most of the camera and herself covered for warmth to keep the film rolling.

Dylan Carusona talking to Misty Upham and Melissa Leo in car at Ed Champagne’s on Rugar St. Plattsburgh.

Amazingly many locations required next to nothing changed for an authentic shoot. The Pioneer Motel on Rt. 9, Diamond Dolls on Rt. 9 South and Ed Champagne’s Salvage yard on Rugar Street were fine as they were. The Beekmantown VFW on the Spellman Rd. required only a sign change to Mohawk Bingo as did Nadim’s convenience store and gas station on Rugar St. Fessette’s cabin on Lake Champlain needed only minor alterations to turn it into the bakery which served as Mohawk Tribal Headquarters.

Two locations in Beekmantown are used repeatedly in the finished film.The boat launch at the Point Au Roche Park on Middle Bay stands in for the approach to the St. Lawrence River where lead actress Melissa Leo drives her car to and from Canada. The small trailer that’s home to Lila Littlewolf, played by Misty Upham was set up against the pine woods on the Conroy Farm.

Lila Littlewolf’s trailer home by pine woods on Conroy Farm, Beekmantown

I was lucky to have been on location for many of the shoots of 'Frozen River.' It was quite interesting to see a film crew using a house that I'd built and lived in for nearly forty years as a major set for a movie. Seeing my house in the completed film in Park City on the big screen was a bit of a rush actually. No one else but Sue and Bill Getman had any idea.

At a recent interview near her home in Kingston New York, Melissa Leo told me, “It was very interesting filming up in Plattsburgh…quite enjoyable actually. I’ve worked in film for over twenty years, in mostly supporting roles. This is the first time I’ve been able to carry a film playing the lead role. I might add that Courtney Hunt is about the best director I’ve ever worked with. ”

Ms. Leo had recently worked on ’21 Grams with Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro as well as “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada” with Tommy Lee Jones. This last film was shot entirely on Mr. Jones ranch in west Texas.

The film was 'wrapped' on schedule, allowing Conroys Organics, which had been preparing food around the clock to meet the movie crew's schedule, to resume its normal routine.

“When Courtney Hunt came to our store and asked about catering her movie,” said Simon Conroy, “I had my doubts that they would actually end up making a feature length film up here. When they finished and left with the goal of premiering at Sundance I never imagined they would win the top award. Now that Sony has picked up distribution rights the dream of ‘the big screen’ is here.”

*A version of this article was published by the Press Republican on February 10, 2008.