DISNEY FEATURE WRAPS AFTER 8 WEEKS (June 24, 2002)

(Ridgecrest)---Just before it really got hot, the cast and crew of HOLES left the quiet "high" desert community of Ridgecrest, CA, and headed back to Hollywood. The Disney feature, which will be released later this year, spent 56 days at Cuddeback Dry Lake Bed, 30 miles south of Ridgecrest. This feature was based on the award winning children's book of the same name by William Sacher.

The story involves Stanley Yelnats, who has landed at Camp Green Lake, a juvenile detention center in Texas, because it seemed a better option than jail. No matter that his conviction was all a case of mistaken identity. Despite his innocence, Stanley is quickly enmeshed in the Camp Green Lake routine: rising before dawn to dig a hole five feet deep and five feet in diameter; and fearing the warden, who paints her fingernails with rattlesnake venom. However, Stanley soon realizes that the boys may not just be digging to build character.

HOLES stars Sigourney Weaver (Alien, Ghostbusters, Galaxy Quest, Gorillas in the Mist) as the warden, and Jon Voight (Midnight Cowboy, Coming Home, Mission Impossible, Ali) as Mr. Sir, a sunflower seed spitting corrections officer. Newcomer, 16-year old Shia La Beouf stars as Stanley. Other familiar faces include Patricia Arquette (True Romance, Stigmata), Tim Blake Nelson (Oh Brother Where Art Thou, Minority Report) and Dule Hill, who is best known as Presidential Assistant Charlie Young on the hit TV series West Wing. HOLES is directed by Andrew Davis (Under Siege, The Fugitive), who most recently completed COLLATERAL DAMAGE starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Film Commissioner Ray Arthur likens getting HOLES to Ridgecrest to fishing,
"We had it, we lost it, we got it. We started working early last June with their first Location Manager, Greg Lipari. Cuddeback was definitely the #1 choice, then Greg left the project and the project disappeared. It reappeared in November with new Location Manager Mark Johnson, who had written off Cuddeback as unusable."

But the Ridgecrest Regional Film Commission (RRFC) persevered. Johnson had been misinformed that the BLM had declined the company's request for dozens of holes to be dug in the lakebed. Arthur quickly arranged a meeting with Johnson, Director Andy Davis, and Ridgecrest BLM Resource Management Specialist Peter Graves. According to Arthur, "It was just a breakdown in communications with the company's personnel changes. Once we were all on the same page everything moved ahead very smoothly," Arthur said. The end result was 400 circular holes, 5 feet in diameter and 5 feet deep. This project incorporated several local contractors including Boydston Construction and United Rentals. Additionally, approximately 40 local young actors were hired to be "extras" with several kids winning speaking parts. Many local businesses involved with the production have commented that HOLES was one of the best crews to visit Ridgecrest, "Victoria Moore at the Heritage Inn told me that their crew was top flight from the initial bookings throughout their stay. Doug Lueck at United Rentals commented on both their thoroughness and their promptness. And Peter at the BLM, who had just had a great experience with Planet Of The Apes, was very impressed at this company's desire to do everything correctly, "For a location like Cuddeback Dry Lakebed, the extent of activity that was requested was a major undertaking. We were very impressed and pleased with this company's eagerness to not only comply with our requirements, but their concern for the preservation of both the land and the plants and wildlife that live there," Graves said.

The RRFC estimates that the 56-day production generated approximately $2,576,000 in disposable income to the greater Ridgecrest area.