HANSON — Camp Kiwanee will become the latest South Shore location for filming of the upcoming Netflix movie, “The Sleepover,” as final approval was granted by the Recreation Commission Tuesday, Aug. 13.
The Board of Selectmen must also approve use of the former Maquan School parking lot for film company vehicles, which is slated for the Tuesday, Aug. 20 agenda.
Crews will be working on scenes at Needles Lodge, the shoreline of Maquan Pond, several cabins and other locations at the camp, according to Assistant Location Manager Liliana Kondracki, who briefed the commission on the project.
Netflix will be paying $25,000 — plus costs associated with camp staff, police details and other expenses, according to Kondracki. Caretakers will be asked to monitor the camp and one or two Hanson Police officers will be contracted for the filming dates.
Scenes have already been filmed at Hanover High School and in Scituate and Boston. Filming at Kiwanee is slated for Aug. 21 to 30 with wrap work on Sept. 3 and 4. Filming will not interfere with a wedding already approved for Needles Lodge Thursday, Aug. 22.
The amount offered for the rental was based on the film’s budget and what work would need to be done to dress the location, Kondracki said.
Selectman Matt Dyer, the board’s liaison to the Recreation Commission, asked how Kondracki found Camp Kiwanne and whether she had any advice on how the commission might better market the facility.
“I found it after a lot of research,” Kondracki said describing the process of narrowing down a Google search for “log cabin” after a couple of weeks’ work.
“I’ve been in Boston for about year,” the Florida transplant said of her research here, after working for 20 years in the Miami area. “If you ask me about Florida, I knew everything, here, I’m starting from scratch. … [Camp Kiwanee] wasn’t easy to find.”
She said she didn’t know what to suggest, except to say the “amazing facility” should be marketed better. As for screen credits for use of the location, she said that is up to the production company.
“If they are feeling particularly generous, they might put [thanks to the] ‘Town of Hanover,’ ‘Town of Hanson,’ or something like that,” she said. “They not always do.”
Kondracki described the adventure/comedy plot as a coming-of-age story mixed with an “Oceans 11”-type crime tale.
It focuses on two boys planning a sleepover while their goody-two-shoes sister plans to sneak out of the house for the first time at night. Their mom, meanwhile, is kidnapped because of a secret in her past and the kids have to come to the rescue.
Kondracki noted, with a resigned laugh, that plot details were supposed to be confidential, but that an Aug. 7 story in The Boston Globe, already outlined a lot of that information.
“We’ve been working on finalizing things with [Town Administrator Meredith Marini] and the [police and fire] chiefs about it,” said Recreation Director William Boyle.
Kondracki provided the commission a filming outline.
“It’s a family action/comedy,” Kondracki said. “They’re trying to compete with Disney, so it’s that type of project.”
Kiwanee was chosen to film scenes surrounding a portion of the plot where the parents are taken to a remote cabin, as well as the sleepover scenes with the kids. The Frontier Cabin is a focal point of the filming, according to Kondracki.
“They obviously need to do a number of changes to it in order to make it work for the scene,” she said. “Anything that we do would be returned to the original condition, unless it’s something you guys want to keep.”
Among the changes would be replacing the windows at the front for those with a more rustic look, adding wood-panel façades to interior walls to give them a more rounded log look to the room, moving a woodstove out of a fireplace, and adding a vintage refrigerator. A certified HVAC contractor will be installing a propane-fed flame to the fireplace and the film crew has cleared the work with Fire Chief Jerome Thompson Jr.
Boyle has also approved the clearing of a few low-hanging branches in one spot for better camera angles and a hose will be used to add water to a dry creek bed for a plot point. The pavilion will be used for catering, with food prep being done in a food truck that has already been licensed by the Board of Health.
A temporary floating dock, which the crew is covering with a wooden dock mock-up is being added for scenes at the boathouse.
Gator vehicles will be used to transport equipment, parking of large trucks will be done at the former Maquan School and Kondracki is working to negotiate with Shaw’s for use of part of their lot for crew parking. They expect about 120 cars.
“We’re taking over,” she quipped.
Filming will be done on most of the days from noon to 10:30 p.m. or 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. On the last day, filming is expected to continue all night with the adult cast members — with filming of scenes involving youth actors complete by 10:30 p.m. to midnight.
“In all likelihood, we’ll be seeing the sun come up on Saturday morning,” Kondracki said with a laugh.