Hollywood will invade Hildebran soon, if only for a short time.
Henry River Mill village will be the site of filming for the movie “Artemis,” which is a working title for the book “The Hunger Games,” say locals who have been in contact with movie officials. “The Hunger Games” is part of a trilogy of books from author Suzanne Collins that revolves around North America rebuilding itself after collapse. Other books in the trilogy are “Catching Fire,” and “Mockingjay.”
The film is a Lionsgate production and Gary Ross is set to direct it, according to information on the Internet Movie Database.
Henry River Road, which is a main road running from Interstate 40 to the village and farther on to Advent Crossroads in Catawba County, will be closed at the village, said Doug McNeal, engineer for North Carolina Department of Transportation District 13. He said the portion of the road will close at 6 a.m. May 19 and open at 5 p.m. May 26.
McNeal said the detour around the closed road will be 1.7 miles to a little more than 3 miles to get around Henry River Mill village north and south from Interstate 40. The detour will go from Henry River Road to Costner Road to Old Shelby Road and back to Henry River Road, he said.
Detour signs will be posted and off-duty sheriff’s deputies will conduct traffic control, McNeal said.
Brand Lingerfelt, chief of Icard Township Fire/Rescue, said his fire department has worked out a mutual-aid agreement with Mountain View Fire Department while the road is closed. He said the detour shouldn’t increase response times for emergencies.
Lingerfelt said he was contacted several months ago about providing medical assistance for first aid and provide water to the area.
Ella Caudle, town clerk who works in Hildebran but lives on the opposite side of the village, said her normal five-minute commute will now take her between 15 to 20 minutes. She said some people have complained about the inconvenience and the additional money on gas they expect to spend.
But residents in the area also have been buzzing about the filming.
“People around here are kind of excited about it,” Caudle said. She said those associated with the film have been tight-lipped about it.
Locals involved say movie officials asked them not to say anything about the filming.
Chuck Moseley, the retired director of community affairs for Valdese, said Advantage West, an economic development group based in Asheville, contacted him several months ago asking if he knew of any old mill villages. Moseley took Advantage West officials to several locations in Burke County, including Hildebran and Connelly Springs.
Moseley said Henry River Mill village ended up being a perfect fit for what movie officials wanted.
And while Lingerfelt, Moseley and others were able to keep what they knew quiet, it couldn’t stay that way much longer.
Websites, including Facebook pages, devoted to the movie and its characters are already up. Folks on the sites were talking on Monday about actor Stanley Tucci being cast as the character Caesar Flickerman, who hosts the games.
Moseley said the movie is expected to be one of the top movies of 2012.
McNeal said about 300 people will be working on the Hildebran site leading up to the shoot.
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