Video of Ben Affleck shooting 'The Company Men'

Above is a behind-the-scenes clip of Ben Affleck filming a lay-off scene for the downsizing drama "The Company Men" outside of the Fiduciary Trust Building located at 175 Federal St. near High Street in the Financial District on Wednesday, April 22.

Many of the extras plucked from the casting call held at Felt on Saturday, April 11 noted here, were on set filming the pivotal moment in the movie.

This week crews from "The Company Men" are filming in an office building across the street from the Natick Collection mall located at 1245 Worcester St.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men."

'Children of Invention' snags IFFBoston 2009 honor

The 2009 Independent Film Festival of Boston (IFFBoston) came to a close on Tuesday night after enjoying record attendance of over 25,000 people.

Roughly 100 guest filmmakers and celebrities were in attendance at the festival including directors Rian Johnson, Doug Pray, Ondi Timoner, Robert Siegel, Cory McAbee, Bobcat Goldthwait, Armando Iannucci and actors Brian Cox, Kevin Corrigan, Hal Holbrook, Dixie Carter, Chris Cooper, as well as other luminaries such as Bobby Farrelly and Red Sox pitching legend Luis Tiant.

Films were shown at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, the Coolidge Corner Theatre, the ICA and the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square.

The jury and audience award prizes have been announced and are as follows:

Narrative Feature:

• Grand Jury Prize Winner: "Children of Invention," Tze Chun
• Special Jury Prize Winner: "Beeswax," Andrew Bujalski
• Audience Award Winner: "Still Walking," Hirokazu Kore-eda
  

Documentary Feature:

• Grand Jury Prize Winner: "Crude," Joe Berlinger
• Special Jury Prize Winner: "Unmistaken Child," Nati Baratz
• Audience Award Winner: "Shooting Beauty," George Kachadorian
• Honorable Mention: "The Way We Get By," Aron Gaudet

Short Film:

• Grand Jury Prize Winner: "Instead of Abracadabra," Patrik Eklund
• Special Jury Prize Winner: "I Am So Proud of You," Don Hertzfeldt
• Audience Award Winner: "Short Term 12," Destin Daniel Cretton

Mediabistro.com's all-media circus bash at 6B

The mediabistro.com all-media bash at 6B Lounge in Boston's Beacon Hill neighborhood turned out great. The restaurant was at max-capacity and the drink and conversation continued for hours. Above is a shot of Noelle Sevoian, my assistant and an up-and-coming blogger and Susan Johnston, a freelance writer and former "Pitch Letter Essentials" student.

Thanks to everyone for making the event a success! Also, click here for photos from Patty Caya (including the one below).Mediabistro party host Sam Baltrusis and party volunteers Susan Johnston and Noelle Sevoian.

--Photo by Sam Baltrusis and Patty Caya

Boston episode of MTV's 'The Phone' airs May 5

MTV's latest competition reality show, "The Phone" produced by Justin Timberlake, premiered with a bang and a terrifying crawl on Seattle's Space Needle during the series debut on Tuesday, April 21. Good news is that the Boston-set episode is slotted to hit MTV on 10 p.m. Tuesday, May 5.

Boston-area locals featured in the episode include Marblehead's Katelyn Kennedy, Seekonk's Chris Hanoian, Allston's Stephanie Hallett and Worcester's Rob Wilson.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, crews from the "The Phone" shot scenes in Chelsea Square in Chelsea. Charlestown, South End and East Boston two months ago with John Fiore, a former mob boss from "The Sopranos," acting in one of the reality show's scenarios.

In the Boston-shot sequence, two teams are challenged to "take down the mob before an assassination takes place." The goal in the mob smack down is to save the life of a police officer.

Raymond Alongi, an acting veteran and a native of Quincy, plays the role of a Boston police officer in the episode.

"Yes, I had a blast doing the show," muses Alongi in a previous interview. "When you see it, you'll know what I mean by blast!"

According to NYC-based KKenn (Katelyn Kennedy), she had fun running around Boston in the mock-mafioso mission. "I was one of the contestants in the show and they had Raymond chase me around the city and through the T," she remarks here. "It was a great time!"

Photographer Ryan Miner says Chelsea is a prime location for the Boston-set episode of "The Phone." Miner explains, "One of the best scenes is going to be where a man jumps off a four-story building. That is the scene that was shot in Chelsea. My wife and her best friend were watching the filming and ended up being extras, when gun shots are being fired, they run down a sidewalk."

Click here for the latest on Timberlake's "The Phone."

--Photo by Mark Mainz courtesy MTV

Mediabistro.com's all-media bash at 6B Lounge

Join me 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 29 at 6B located at 6 Beacon St. in the heart of Boston's Beacon Hill neighborhood for an all-media networking event promoted by Mediabistro.com based in NYC.

It's a great way for Boston's media community to come together while enjoying conversation and drinks. Also, one lucky attendee will snag a free ticket to the two-day Mediabistro Circus in NYC kicking off on Tuesday, June 2 (a $245 pass).

Click on the link below to RSVP. Based on the buzz already, the after-work event is going to be fab!

Forward this link to media professionals only.

Donnie Wahlberg hits Hard Rock Cafe on Sunday

Dorchester native and "Bunker Hill" actor Donnie Wahlberg, on a brief hiatus from touring with with his New Kids on the Block bros, plans to launch his latest music venture, Donnie D Music Group at Boston's Hard Rock Cafe, 22-24 Clinton St. at 10 p.m Sunday, May 3.

Wahlberg will unveil DDM recording artist Jimmy Marsh to the masses at the launch party. Click here to RSVP.

Slotted to hit the "Today Show" on Friday, May 8 before going back on the road, Wahlberg has a string of shows lined up with NKOTB throughout the summer.

He's also waiting to get a greenlight for "Bunker Hill," the made-in-Charlestown TV pilot for TNT where he plays Mike Moriarty, a Boston cop determined to protect the streets he grew up on from crime and corruption. The native also acts and shares writing credits in the made-in-Southie flick "What Doesn't Kill You" which will make its Blu-ray debut on Tuesday, April 28.

Click here for the lowdown.

'Ghosts of Girlfriends Past' movie set travel guide

Slotted to hit theaters Friday, May 1, the made-in-Boston flick “The Ghosts of Girlfriends Past” revisits familiar territory where several lackluster made-in-Boston comedies like “Bride Wars,” “The Women” and “Pink Panther 2” failed miserably.

Boston is once again a stand-in for NYC. In fact, streets in Boston were transformed to look like the gentrified SoHo district in lower Manhattan.

In the film shot in various locations throughout Boston from February to April 2008, Matthew McConaughey plays celebrity photographer Connor Mead, a perpetual bachelor haunted by the ghosts of his past girlfriends at his younger brother's wedding, awakening feelings for his first love (played by Ben Affleck's wife Jennifer Garner). Michael Douglas, Anne Archer and Robert Forster also co-star in this made-in-Boston flick.

Think Ebenezer Scrooge and "A Christmas Carol" but with a much hotter looking leading man.

In honor of its big-screen debut this weekend, we offer you inspiration from the movie's locations. Listen up all of you playboy wannabes.

WHERE TO VISIT:
South Street in the Leather District was transformed to look like a Christmas wonderland in SoHo. In fact, set designers spent days putting up holiday decorations on lampposts, adding Christmas wreaths to shop doors and dropping fake snow on ground to simulate the season. There was even a larger-than-life Santa propped up near the South Street corner overlooking the makeshift set.

While most shops in the scene were unrecognizable SoHo storefronts, crews transformed a then vacant building (it’s now a less-than-stellar Chinese-sushi restaurant called Beijing Kyoto) into a fab, mannequin-adorned Betsey Johnson shop. For those wanting to visit the real deal in Boston, Betsey Johnson has a must-see flagship store located at 201 Newbury St.

Also, West Street in the Downtown Crossing area of Boston was closed down for a scene featuring McConaughey and Douglas. The company called "Rain for Rent" provided atmospheric rain for the scene. While you’re on West Street, check out the Brattle Book Shop, located at 9 West St, one of America’s oldest and largest antiquarian bookstores established in 1825.

WHERE TO EAT:
A romantic dinner scene was shot at Sonsie, 327 Newbury St., with both Garner and McConaughey. After wining and dining in the Back Bay and Garner making a dash to the North Face store for a winter jacket, the duo ended up filming in front of Marlborough Street brownstone Autumn-colored leaves were attached to the leafless trees to create a fall setting for the scene. Oh, the magic of Hollywood.

Also, while filming in Boston, Garner and real-life hubby Affleck frequented Henrietta’s Table in the Charles Hotel. Affleck, currently in town filming the downsizing drama “The Company Men,” frequents the wholesome restaurant committed to promoting organic produce and herbs from local vendors located at One Bennett St. in Cambridge.

WHERE TO STAY:
There was a nightclub scene shot at Saint located at 90 Exeter St., where Mead’s playboy uncle Douglas gets slapped for making advances at women. Next to Saint is the Copley Square Hotel, located at 47 Huntington Ave., which recently underwent a $17 million facelift. The revamped hotel boasts a new martini bar, formerly Domani Bar & Trattoria, called Minibar. Inspired by lounges at the W Hotels and Miami's Delano, designer/architect Stephen Sousa's Minibar boasts modern design elements including a black-and-metallic color motif and gray-leather seating surrounding a minimalist U-shaped bar area.

WHAT TO DRINK:
McConaughey must have made one helluva impression on the staff at The Beehive, 541 Tremont St. while he was filming "The Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.”

Bartender Frank Reardon was inspired to concoct what he calls the "Matthew McConaughey cocktail" after watching the Texas-bred actor on "Jimmy Kimmel" recently. Reardon jokes, "I decided to make a drink that would both give the celeb a shout out ... and also leave people with the same confused state as the actor after drinking a few."

'Shooting Beauty' shines at IFFBoston premiere

Mary Jo Chaisson (pictured above), one of the stars of the film "Shooting Beauty," was waiting outside of the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square greeting her friends from Watertown's United Cerebral Palsy Day Experience Program as they arrived for the big premiere of the documentary at the Independent Film Festival of Boston on Sunday, Aug. 26.

"I feel like a Hollywood star," Chaisson gushes to a reporter with a video camera.

Cheryl Magnusson, another photographer from the "Shooting Beauty" film, arrived via a MBTA shuttle and the two were genuinely happy to see each other. The sheer joy Chaisson expressed when Magnusson arrived to the red-carpet event moved me to tears. It was friendship and love in its purest form. The unplanned encounter was enough to inspire me to wait in line, which stretched completely behind the theater, to the see the film.

I was not disappointed. "Shooting Beauty" was an unexpected gem of IFFBoston.

"Within 15 minutes of watching this film, we knew it would screen at the festival," says Adam Roffman, the executive director of IFFBoston. "This film speaks for itself."

"Shooting Beauty," which began filming 10 years ago, tells what happened when professional fashion photographer Courtney Bent gave cameras to people with cerebral palsy. Bent, armed with good intentions, had no clue what to expect. The result is a film that gives voice to those without a voice. It touches on universal themes--like friendship, unrequited love, isolation, fear and even death--but doesn't shove it down our throats.

"Shooting Beauty," a collaboration by Bent and now husband George Kachadorian, is an inspiring film about the human condition and the need for artistic expression.

Tony Knight, who has gone on to be an accomplished photographer, says in the film that his disability "is not who I am." After the IFFBoston screening, he shared the stage with Bent and Kachadorian and you could see how proud he was to finally be able to express his artistic sensibility to the masses.

"I'm going to ride this wave until it crashes," he says, after a lifetime of "being pointed at, whispered about, and according to him, misunderstood." His peers from the Watertown center were sitting in front of him, beaming with joy.

True beauty? They were all sitting in the front row of the Somerville Theatre tonight.

Click here for the lowdown on "Shooting Beauty."

--Photo courtesy Courtney Bent

Adam Sandler's 'Grown Ups' film casting at Felt

RPM Casting is holding an open casting call for Adam Sandler's upcoming "Lake House" production at Felt, located at 533 Washington St. in Boston's Downtown Crossing area, on Saturday, May 2 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m.

RPM is on the hunt for men, women, teens and kids. Click here for the size card or e-mail RPM at untitled.rpm@gmail.com.

Also, talent scouts on the Left Coast are looking for an 18- to 22-year-old to play Rob Schneider's daughter, "who takes after Rob in both looks and personality."

Primary casting is through Roger Mussenden & Jeremy Rich Casting in California, including:

WOMAN: (70s to 90s) Sassy, snippy battle-ax of a woman. She is old enough to know what she wants, when she wants it, and doesn’t care how she says it. PLEASE SUBMIT AFRICAN-AMERICAN.

BECKY: (age 5) TWINS -- Adam Sandler’s youngest daughter. She is a bundle of love and optimism. Please submit twin Latino girls.

BEAN: (age 4) TWINS -- Kevin James’ youngest son. Please submit twin boys.

Interested? Submit pictures and resumes to: Roger Mussenden & Jeremy Rich Casting, Sony Studios, 10202 W. Washington Blvd. David Lean Bldg., Suite 219, Culver City, CA 90232.

Click here for the latest on Sandler's "Lake House."

--Photo courtesy Columbia Pictures

Right location, wrong Adam Sandler flick fingered

Unfortunately, the Adam Sandler flick "Lake House," now called "Grown Ups," will not be filming at O Ya. The upscale Japanese-fusion restaurant located at 9 East Street in the Leather District was singled out by location scouts, but for the follow up to "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" that's slotted to begin filming after the "Lake House" shoot.

O Ya, a favorite hangout among Hollywood celebs like Kate Hudson who frequented the posh hotspot while filming "Bride Wars" and "My Best Friend's Girl," may get its big-screen debut, but not in "Lake House."

"We are only filming about two days in Boston," an industry insider spills to Loaded Gun Boston about the made-in-Mass. film "Lake House." "The rest of the schedule will be at locations outside the city."

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, crews plan to film at the Pilgrim Church and the Old Burial Ground in Southborough beginning on Monday, May 18 until Friday, May 22 with a return visit on Tuesday, May 26.

Sandler's former “SNL” cohorts as well as “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” funnyman Kevin James are slotted for a 66-day film shoot beginning in May centering around a group of five guys who return to their hometown after 30-years apart for a Fourth of July holiday weekend.

Scenes slotted to be shot at the historical Pilgrim Church include a funeral for the gang's beloved high school basketball coach.

Also, nearby Essex entered into an agreement on Monday, March 16 to host Sandler and crew at the town’s Centennial Grove this summer.

Click here for the latest on Sandler's "Lake House."

Chris Cooper, Phone Car, Imagine at IFFBoston

Boston's Independent Film Festival was a madhouse Saturday, April 25 in front of the Somerville Theatre. Actor Chris Cooper, narrator of the Luis Tiant documentary "The Lost Son of Havana," took a breather outside of the packed theater with his wife Marianne Leone during the screening.

The actor, who recently snagged a role in the Ben Affleck downsizing drama "The Company Men," signed autographs and was genuinely a nice guy. As previously reported in Loaded Gun, The Farrelly brothers and Tiant were also at the premiere of "The Lost Son of Havana." Also, IFFBoston organizers announced yesterday that a second screening has been added 5 p.m. Sunday, April 26 in response to the max-capacity crowds tonight.

While Cooper was generating some IFFBoston buzz on the sidewalk, The Phone Car parked near the Davis Square T station was getting all of the action down the street. Created by business owner Howard Davis as a way to promote his telephone company, he parked the car outside of the Somerville Theatre to help promote the flick "Auto-Morphosis" which screened at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, April 25.

Folks were plopping their kids on the car and trying to take photos. One couple, who somehow fit their entire family and friends on top of the mobile, got into a verbal confrontation with the Phone Car guy. "You should have put signs up," yelled an angry mother after Davis admonished them to get off his car. "You have a tourist attraction and you expect people not to sit on it?"

Davis' response, "Would you sit on someone's Corvette?" The family still seemed ticked off.

Meanwhile inside the theater, I snagged a copy of the special edition of Imagine magazine's New England location, production & resource guide. Publisher Carol Patton asked for permission to use some of my photos here from the "See Kate Run" shoot a few weeks back. I was surprised to see that three of my photos landed on the cover of the regional trade publication. How exciting!

Click here for the lowdown on Imagine.

--Phone Car photo by Sam Baltrusis

'The Company Men' filmed scenes in Wellesley

Crews for Ben Affleck's "The Company Men," the made-in-Boston film following a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing, shot scenes at an upscale house located on Oakcliff Road in Wellesley on Friday, April 24.

Production staff spent the morning importing fake snow for the scene.

Next up? Starting Monday, April 27, they're filming in an office building across the street from the Natick Collection mall located at 1245 Worcester St.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, there was filming in the Boston Common and the Financial District on Wednesday, April 22 and in the South End at a three-story brownstone located at 5 Union Park on Friday, April 17. On Thursday, April 16, Tommy Lee Jones was spotted on the 17th floor of Fish and Richardson at One Marina Park Drive in South Boston and moved to the shoot located at 78 Waltham St. also in the South End.

Also previously noted, Affleck and Kevin Costner were on set on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14 at a dilapidated historical home known as the Hodgdon House located at 174 Highland Street in the Fort Hill section of Roxbury. Affleck also filmed a scene on Wednesday, April 8 at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. They're scheduled to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men.

Adam Sandler's 'Grown Ups' hits Southborough

Location scouts for the new Adam Sandler flick "Lake House," which is going by "Grown Ups" in pre-production, plan to film at the Pilgrim Church and the Old Burial Ground in Southborough beginning on Monday, May 18 until Friday, May 22 with a return visit on Tuesday, May 26.

Sandler's former “SNL” cohorts as well as “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” funnyman James are slotted for a 66-day film shoot beginning in May centering around a group of five guys who return to their hometown after 30-years apart for a Fourth of July holiday weekend.

Scenes slotted to be shot at the historical Pilgrim Church include a funeral for the gang's beloved high school basketball coach.

Co-stars Kevin James, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider and David Spade are slotted to start filming in May.

Actress Maria Bello, currently filming scenes in the made-in-Boston flick "The Company Men," joins Salma Hayek and Maya Rudolph as the film's latest recruits.

Nearby Essex entered into an agreement on Monday, March 16 to host Sandler and crew at the town’s Centennial Grove this summer.

Click here for the latest on Sandler's "Grown Ups."

Random Shot :: IFFBoston at Somerville Theatre

After putting some time in at the office in the Leather District, I headed to the Somerville Theatre with a friend at around 6 p.m. to catch Amy Grill's "Speaking in Code." Man, the line to get into the IFFBoston literally wrapped around the theater. Now in its seventh year, IFFBoston is quickly becoming one of the premiere places to catch indie films.

It's exciting to watch a festival grow into a bona fide film-industry event. Davis Square was buzzing with excitement. Many of tonight's screenings were sold out before 7 p.m.

My friend and I ended up heading to Orleans Restaurant where I had a long chat with San Francisco-based filmmaker Peter Esmonde, a talented director set to unveil his documentary called "Trimpin: The Sound of Invention" at Boston's Independent Film Festival also at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square. Esmonde is slotted to participate in a Q&A after the screening of "Trimpin" on Sunday, April 26.

"Trimpin" follows the award-winning innovator through his fascinating collaboration with the Kronos Quartet; his installation of a 60-foot tornado of 700+ electric guitars; a 25-year, multi-museum retrospective of his work; and through a variety of odd kinetic experiments and amusing interdisciplinary performances.

Click here for the special edition of Loaded Gun Insider highlighting a few of the noteworthy flicks and filmmakers hitting the festival. Also, click here to buy tickets to the 8 p.m. Sunday, April 26 screening of "Trimpin."

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

The week in quotes from Hollywood in the Hub

“My goal in this coming year is to put all the film and TV stuff on the side and firmly plant my comedy stuff. I wanted to get closer to my fans."

--Arlington homeboy and "My Best Friend's Girl" troublemaker Dane Cook, slotted to hit the stage at Mohegan Sun this weekend, says he's putting his film career on hold and returning to his stand-up roots.

"We call it Plymouth Pebble, as opposed to Plymouth Rock."

--Entrepreneur Billy Mead tells the Globe that he's in the late phase of building a 2,500-square-foot sound stage on Dorchester Avenue in South Boston to offer filmmakers a local option for production.

"One of the things that holds us back in New England is the weather. To the extent that we're able to provide the industry with state-of-the-art facilities that can be used year-round, the level of production here would ramp up another notch."

--Massachusetts Film Office honcho Nick Paleologos gives thumbs up to the slew of studios slotted to be built in the state, including the ISG Boston complex called SouthField Studios in Weymouth and, of course, Plymouth Rock.

“I could be a bag lady or the crazy old lady lurking in the background. As long as I don’t have to say a word, I’m fine.”

--Penelope Troupe, a 66-year-old aspiring actress from Hanson, insists that she attended a casting workshop sponsored by Weymouth casting agent Jodi Purdy-Quinlan to support her granddaughter but decided to throw her head shot in for consideration.

"Ben can be pretty clueless when it comes to my clothes or makeup. But when he does notice and says something, he's so sweet that I forgive him."

--Jennifer Garner, spotted walking with her hubby Ben Affleck in town for "The Company Men" and daughters in the Boston Common, tells People maggie that she's trying to find a healthy balance between work and family.

'The Company Men' filming moves to Public Garden

Ben Affleck and his wife Jennifer Garner were spotted walking around the Boston Common area near Charles Street today. The couple were taking a break between scenes for the made-in-Boston flick "The Company Men" and enjoying the sights and sounds of Boston with daughters, Violet and Seraphina Rose. Garner was having lunch with her daughters at the posh Four Seasons while hubby Affleck was filming. The couple met up on Charles Street around 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 22.

After shooting a lay-off scene for the downsizing drama "The Company Men" outside of the Fiduciary Trust Building located at 175 Federal St. early on Wednesday, April 22, crews moved to the Public Garden area for the afternoon. While filming was near the Park Street T station with the State House in view, trailers were parked on Charles Street surrounding the Public Garden. Based on what I spotted while taking the pic above, the inclement weather stalled production.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men."

Ben Affleck filming in the Financial District today

Ben Affleck was busy filming a lay-off scene for the downsizing drama "The Company Men" outside of the Fiduciary Trust Building located at 175 Federal St. near High Street in the Financial District today.

Many of the extras plucked from the casting call held at Felt on Saturday, April 11 noted here, were on set filming the pivotal moment in the movie.

According to the Boston Movie Tours blog here, the street sign for Federal was changed to "La Salle."

I made a trek to the site early in the afternoon, but the film crews had moved to the Boston Common area where a Loaded Gun Boston tipster says he spotted Affleck on location with his wife Jennifer Garner and their kids.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, Chris Cooper has officially signed on to the made-in-Boston flick with Lowell native Maryann Plunkett playing his wife. Cooper will play a white-collar employee whose job is also about to be terminated.

Mario Bello, who recently signed on to play Kevin James' wife in Adam Sandler's upcoming made-in-Boston film called "Lake House," is doing double duty in Boston after snagging a role in the John Wells film.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men." And, click here for a photo of Affleck.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

Maria Bello joins Ben Affleck's 'The Company Men'

Maria Bello, who recently signed on to play Kevin James' wife in Adam Sandler's upcoming made-in-Boston film called "Lake House," is doing double duty in Boston after snagging a role in the downsizing drama "The Company Men."

The actress was spotted last week at the shoot with Tommy Lee Jones in the South End on Thursday, April 16 and Friday, April 17. Bello is playing the VP of human resources, who is forced to fire the character played by Affleck.

Also, Chris Cooper has officially signed on to the made-in-Boston flick with Lowell native Maryann Plunkett playing his wife. Cooper will play a white-collar employee whose job is also about to be terminated.

Bello, who shot scenes for "The Company Men" last week in Boston, is now in Los Angeles for two days to take part in a summit on women's issues in Africa. The actress, along with a handful of other leading ladies, will join California first lady Maria Shriver at a welcoming luncheon at Los Angeles' Skirball Cultural Center.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men."

Mark Wahlberg's 'The Fighter' back in the ring?

Before the much-hyped script for "Prisoners" by Aaron Guzikowski started generating buzz on the Left Coast, Dorchester homeboy Mark Wahlberg was planning to make a homecoming with the on-and-off again Darren Aronofsky flick chronicling the early days of Boston boxer “Irish” Micky Ward called “The Fighter.”

According to Variety here, "The Fighter" is back in the ring ... but with a different director. Christian Bale and director David O. Russell are in negotiations to go a few rounds with Wahlberg with production greenlit for July.

Relativity Media has stepped up to finance the film and Paramount Pictures plans to distribute domestically.

Wahlberg is slotted to play Ward and Bale is up to play the boxer's half-brother Dickie Eklund, who ends up in the slammer after a drug-fueled robbery spree.

This is the second set-in-Boston film that has paired Wahlberg and "The Dark Knight." Bale is reportedly in negotiations to star alongside Dorchester native in "Prisoners," a flick centering around a Boston father whose 6-year-old daughter and her best friend are kidnapped.

Click here for the latest on Wahlberg.

'The Brothers Bloom' kicks off IFFBoston on 4.22

“The Brothers Bloom,” a beautifully shot comedy about the last great adventure of the world's two best con men, will kick off Boston’s Independent Film Festival at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 22 at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square with director Rian Johnson on hand for a brief Q&A.

Constantly concocting “stories” for them to enact, Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) endeavors to orchestrate the ultimate grift. Bloom (Adrien Brody), on the other hand, longs to leave the swindling behind and live an “unwritten life” free of his brother’s design.

Working with Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi), an explosives expert and “associate,” they prepare for their last hurrah. Their artfully-produced plan involves luring and defrauding a bored, beautiful, eccentric heiress from New Jersey named Penelope (Rachel Weisz). When Bloom develops feelings for her, the dynamic among all of them shifts and threatens to fracture their tight, fraternal alliance, propelling them into their most dangerous scheme ever.

One lucky attendee at the opening night screening of “The Brothers Bloom” will receive a free pair of round-trip tickets from JetBlue Airways good for anywhere in the United States. Also, writer/director of the con-man flick Johnson will be in attendance at the IFF Boston screening.

James D. Stern of Endgame Entertainment, the production company responsible for “The Brothers Bloom,” tells Loaded Gun Boston during a recent screening of his quintessential documentary following the revival of “A Chorus Line” called “Every Little Step" that he’s eyeing Massachusetts for a slew of upcoming film productions.

“There are a couple of films that we’re working on that could definitely be shot in Boston,” Stern spills to Loaded Gun Boston. “Sure, [there’s a chance we’ll film in Massachusetts] more so than ever because of the tax breaks.”

Click here for tickets to the IFFBoston premiere of "The Brothers Bloom." Click here for a sneak peek from Loaded Gun Insider.

Drama at 'The Company Men' shoot last Friday

Christine Bord, a fellow blogger and online friend over at On Location Vacations, had a less-than-stellar experience at "The Company Men" shoot located at 5 Union Park in the South End late night on Friday, April 17.

"We did go in the afternoon but they were only setting up," Bord spills to Loaded Gun Boston. "We went back around midnight and watched Tommy Lee Jones film a scene, but the PAs were kind of obnoxious. They wouldn't allow any pics, no talking, they made us stand really far away. I've hung around my fair share of movie sets at this point and I have never seen a set so uptight."

In her post here, Bord says she tried to snap a photo of Jones and what looked like Maria Bello who tells the Oscar winner and Harvard alum in character that someone "got screwed."

"After they finished filming, we tried to get a picture of TLJ getting back into the van and a PA literally blocked the shot with his body," Bord continues, adding that she was in town to see "Flight of the Conchords" at Boston University. "It makes me wonder what they’re trying to hide."

Crews are slotted to return to 5 Union Park on Monday, May 11.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

'The Company Men' filming at Marblehead home

Crews for Ben Affleck's "The Company Men," the made-in-Boston film following a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing, will film scenes at a private residence on Crowninshield Road in Marblehead on Monday, April 20 between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. The home, with a stunning waterfront view, is the residence of Brian and Nancy McCarthy of Kelly's Roast Beef fame.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, there was filming in the South End at a three-story brownstone located at 5 Union Park on Friday, April 17. On Thursday, April 16, Tommy Lee Jones was spotted on the 17th floor of Fish and Richardson at One Marina Park Drive in South Boston and moved to the shoot located at 78 Waltham St. also in the South End.

Also previously noted, Affleck and Kevin Costner were on set on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14 at a dilapidated historical home known as the Hodgdon House located at 174 Highland Street in the Fort Hill section of Roxbury. Affleck also filmed a scene on Wednesday, April 8 at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. They're scheduled to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

INTERVIEW: Director Amy Grill's 'Speaking in Code'

In 2005 filmmaker Amy Grill, currently a producer-in-residence at Emerson College, began filming a behind-the-scenes account of a handful of characters within the electronic music scene. The result is “Speaking in Code,” an intimate and sometimes heartbreaking look into a world where people get lost in music.

Filmed in 11 cities in five countries, the 34-year-old Grill weaves together the story of eight individuals including two bad-boy producers, two DJs, a journalist and her then husband David Day, a Boston-based promoter and current arts and entertainment editor for The Weekly Dig.

Slotted to premiere at Boston’s Independent Film Festival at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 23 at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square, “Speaking in Code” is making its world debut at IFFBoston. Grill, who says she lives somewhere between Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco, chats to Loaded Gun Boston about her fears (running out of money), her greatest achievement (finishing “Speaking in Code”) and the ultimate guilty pleasure (spa time).

Click here for the complete interview and here for tickets to the 7 p.m. Thursday, April 23 premiere of "Speaking in Code."

Also, we're launching a special IFF Boston edition of Loaded Gun Insider on Wednesday, April 22 spotlighting a few of the noteworthy flicks and filmmakers hitting the festival. Simply register for Loaded Gun’s new bi-weekly newsletter here.

Random Shot :: Boston Marathon's 2009 finish line

Copley Square was buzzing today as some of the world’s top runners converge in the Bay State on Monday, April 20 for the 113th annual Boston Marathon. There’s nothing more authentically Boston than the annual trek from Hopkinton to the Copley Square area.

Wanna check out the Boston Marathon? The closest MBTA stations to the finish line are Hynes Convention Center and Kenmore Station. Unfortunately, Copley Square is closed on race day. Also, even if you have the desire to run the marathon as an "unofficial bandit" runner, don’t do it. Organizers strongly dissuade participation without registering.

Click here for more photos from the "Loaded Gun Random Shots" series.

--Photo by Sam Baltrusis

Casting for Adam Sandler's 'Lake House' continues

Talent scouts for the upcoming made-in-Massachusetts Adam Sandler flick "Lake House" are on the hunt for an 18- to 22-year-old to play Rob Schneider's daughter, "who takes after Rob in both looks and personality."

Also, click here for the lowdown on the upcoming open casting call at Felt on Saturday, May 2 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, Sandler's former “SNL” cohorts as well as “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” funnyman James are slotted for a 66-day film shoot beginning in May centering around a group of five guys who return to their hometown after 30-years apart for a Fourth of July holiday weekend.

Pre-production on the flick is heating up. Essex entered into an agreement last month to host Sandler and crew at the town’s Centennial Grove this summer.

Primary casting is through Roger Mussenden & Jeremy Rich Casting in California, including:

WOMAN: (70s to 90s) Sassy, snippy battle-ax of a woman. She is old enough to know what she wants, when she wants it, and doesn’t care how she says it. PLEASE SUBMIT AFRICAN-AMERICAN.

BECKY: (age 5) TWINS -- Adam Sandler’s youngest daughter. She is a bundle of love and optimism. Please submit twin Latino girls.

BEAN: (age 4) TWINS -- Kevin James’ youngest son. Please submit twin boys.

Interested? Submit pictures and resumes to: Roger Mussenden & Jeremy Rich Casting, Sony Studios, 10202 W. Washington Blvd. David Lean Bldg., Suite 219, Culver City, CA 90232.

Click here for the latest on Sandler's "Lake House."

--Photo courtesy Columbia Pictures

Ben Affleck in Manhattan promoting 'State of Play'

While crews for "The Company Men" downsizing drama were busy filming interior shots on Thursday, April 16 inside a brownstone located at 78 Waltham St. near South End Buttery and Joe V's, the film's star Ben Affleck sneaked off to NYC to promote his latest flick "State of Play" for "The Today Show" and "Live with Regis and Kelly."

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, shooting continues in the South End at a three-story brownstone located at 5 Union Park starting at 6 a.m. on Friday, April 17.

On Thursday, April 16, Tommy Lee Jones was spotted on the 17th floor of Fish and Richardson at One Marina Park Drive in South Boston.

As previously noted, Affleck and Kevin Costner were on set on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14 at a dilapidated Victorian house located at 174 Highland Street in the Fort Hill section of Roxbury. Also, Affleck filmed a scene on Wednesday, April 8 at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. They're scheduled to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men.

INTERVIEW: Paul Solet's 'Grace' comes home

After opening at Sundance, where two members of the audience passed out from the intensity of the film, “Grace” by 29-year-old Cambridge native Paul Solet is finally coming home to the Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square on Saturday, April 25 for the Independent Film Festival of Boston.

“Grace” is about a woman who is eight months pregnant and is determined to have a natural birth, and she loses her child in an accident. Madeline Matheson insists on carrying the baby to term anyway, and when she delivers the newborn it’s miraculously reconstituted … but not without sinister consequences.

“This film is near and dear to my heart, and bringing it home to Boston is something I’ve dreamt about for a long time,” Solet spills to Loaded Gun Boston. “I want to make myself available to give back to the community in any way I can.”

Armed with a horror flick that’s freaking out filmgoers across the country, the Los Angeles-based Emerson grad weighs in to Loaded Gun Boston about his last vice (Coffee Oreo ice cream), his greatest failure (Kristen from Kansas) and his secret desire to be a dog trainer.

Click here for the complete interview and here for tickets.

Also, we're launching a special IFF Boston edition of Loaded Gun Insider on Wednesday, April 22 spotlighting a few of the noteworthy flicks and filmmakers hitting the festival. Simply register for Loaded Gun’s new bi-weekly newsletter here.

'The Company Men' filming in the South End

Crews for Ben Affleck's "The Company Men," the made-in-Boston film following a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing, were busy today sprucing up two tree-lined streets on the corner of Shamut Avenue in the South End.

Production is slotted for 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Thursday, April 16 inside a brownstone located at 78 Waltham St. near South End Buttery and Joe V's and moves to exterior shots at a three-story brownstone located at 5 Union Park starting at 6 a.m. on Friday, April 17.

While Affleck is slotted to be in NYC to promote his flick "State of Play," word on the street is that veteran actor and Harvard alum Tommy Lee Jones may be shooting. Yellow production signs with "GTX" lined the streets for two blocks surrounding the South End filming location.

"The Company Men" follows a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing. Affleck plays a corporate bigwig whose six-figure salary is suddenly cut after he gets a pink slip. Kevin Costner, a blue-collar construction worker, offers Affleck a job installing drywall. Based on the South End locales, the scenes slotted for the next two days involve Affleck before getting the corporate boot.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, Affleck and Costner were on set on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14 at a dilapidated Victorian house located at 174 Highland Street in the Fort Hill section of Roxbury. Also, Affleck filmed a scene on Wednesday, April 8 at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. They're scheduled to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

Win a date to see 'Shutter Island' with Leo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio, star of Martin Scorsese's made-in-Boston film "Shutter Island," is auctioning off a trip to the premiere of the movie slotted to hit theaters on Friday, Oct. 2.

One lucky bidder will walk down the red carpet with DiCaprio and spend an evening in a green hotel and travel to the premiere in an eco-friendly car.

Benefiting Global Green USA, the auction here kicks off at 10 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 15 and ends on Earth Day next Wednesday, April 22.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, two U.S. marshals (played by DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo) investigate the disappearance of a patient from a hospital for the criminally insane to an eponymous Boston-area island in 1954. During the investigation, they encounter a web of lies, a hurricane and a deadly inmate riot that leaves them trapped on the island.

Based on the epic novel "Shutter Island" by Dennis Lehane, the Boston-shot flick features DiCaprio, Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley and was shot in Taunton's Whittenton Mills Complex (recrafted as the horrific Nazi concentration camp Dachau) as well as the Medfield State Hospital and Peddocks Island. Other locales include Borderland State Park, Hyde Park and Wilson Mountain Reservation in Dedham.

Click here to bid on the "Experience with Leo" auction.

The week in quotes from Hollywood in the Hub

“This was the fastest, hardest shoot I’ve had. Primarily because there are so many grand scenes and we had a small amount of time. We worked long, long hours.”

--Amy Smart, star of the made-in-Boston TV pilot "See Kate Run," says she didn't get to see much of the Hub during her hectic, four-week shooting schedule.

"Part of the erosion of newspapers is about new media, but part of it is newspapers' own fault. I think the public has felt let down by The New York Times and others for not asking the tough questions, whether about the Iraq war or the subprime issue. The job of the fourth estate is to stand outside the vested interests and say, 'Wait a minute, this isn't viable.' "

--Cambridge homeboy Ben Affleck, in town filming the downsizing drama "The Company Men," weighs in on the fate of the Boston Globe to the hometown paper's Names column.

"To me, Cape Cod is the main character in the movie. Having authentic backgrounds keeps alive the “suspension of disbelief” and enhances the characters in the film."

--Director Daniel Adams discusses why he opted to film "The Golden Boys," his adaption of Joseph Crosby Lincoln’s 1904 novel, "Cap’n Eri" in Cape Cod.

"Cambridge is a pretty good, safe place. It’s hard to come up with something that is scary in Cambridge."

--Paul Solet, a Cambridge native and Emerson grad, says he's psyched to unveil the horror flick "Grace" to his hometown crowd at the IFFBoston screening at the Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square on Saturday, April 25 at 11:59 p.m.

“I think it will be great fun to have a Marblehead property in the background for a good movie. I think we’ve got some good actors, and hopefully they can learn something about Marblehead.”

--Eugene Record, a neighbor of a private residence on Crowninshield Road, says he's looking forward to "The Company Men" crews filming on Monday, April 20 next to his home in Marblehead. Production is also planned for Tuesday, May 26.

Ben Affleck filming 'The Company Men' in Roxbury

In town filming scenes for the made-in-Boston downsizing drama "The Company Men," Cambridge homeboy Ben Affleck and Kevin Costner were on set today starting at 5 a.m. on Monday, April 13 at a dilapidated Victorian house located at 174 Highland Street in the Fort Hill section of Roxbury.

According to a crew member outside of the location, Affleck is scheduled to return to the scene from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 14. Yellow production signs with "GTX" lined the streets for two blocks surrounding the Roxbury filming location.

"The Company Men" follows a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing. Affleck plays a corporate bigwig whose six-figure salary is suddenly cut after he gets a pink slip. Costner, a blue-collar construction worker, offers Affleck a job installing drywall.

Based on the shot at the house in Roxbury, it looks like crews are filming scenes with Affleck working construction on a home in desperate need of repair. The triple-decker house was surrounded by scaffolding and looks built up compared to the photo found on Google maps here.

A few blocks from the Highland Street home is First Church, a beautiful old-school place of worship located at 10 Putnam St. (pictured), where catering signs were posted. Both Affleck and Costner were spotted leaving the church after chowing down during lunch.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, crews filmed a scene on Wednesday, April 8 with star Affleck at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. They're scheduled to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

"The Company Men" also stars Tommy Lee Jones, portraying a senior corporate exec who struggles with the unethical exploits of his partners.

Next up? Crews are busy transforming a neighborhood in Framingham including 26 Mansfield St. to look like autumn, filming in the South End on Thursday, April 16 and Friday, April 17 and they're shooting scenes at home in Marblehead on Monday, April 20.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

Trailer for Boston's upcoming LGBT film festival

Boston's LGBT Film Festival celebrates its 25th anniversary this year with a roster of films exploring gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender culture. The fest kicks off Wednesday, May 6 and lasts until Sunday, May 17.

Highlights include the screening of "Pedro," a flick celebrating the life of Pedro Zamora, who was diagnosed with HIV at age 17 and was a former cast member of "Real World: San Francisco." His death at age 22 provoked a worldwide outpouring of grief. "Pedro" will be unveiled at the Museum of Fine Arts on Thursday, May 7.

There's also a film called "Family," hitting the MFA on Friday, May 8, following a group of 30-something lesbian friends who make a pact to come out of the closet to their loved ones.

Click here for the lowdown.

The week in quotes from Hollywood in the Hub

"I had an interesting and rather unorthodox experience at Boston College, which was a very Jesuit, sports-heavy school. I lived off-campus with, like, seven other people, including three gay guys, and we were known for having super-fun parties."

--"SNL" alum Amy Poehler, promoting her new NBC show "Parks and Recreation," tells The Advocate that she had a gay ol' time while studying at Boston College.

"It was hard to tell it was [Affleck]. He had a beard and it looked weird. He said he wants to learn the game and he doesn't want to be made fun of."

--Marion McInerney, co-owner of McGolf in Dedham, spills to the Globe that Ben Affleck, practicing his golf swing for the made-in-Boston flick "The Company Men," was anything but a hole in one.

“I think the good thing about Matt Lauer is that we are in a very interesting time in the world right now, and Matt Lauer is right in the middle of all those things" --Harvard's senior class first marshal Lumumba B. Seegars tells the Harvard Crimson that "Today Show" co-anchor Lauer is a smart choice as the ivy league's 2009 Class Day speaker.

"Yes, I had a blast doing the show. When you see it, you'll know what I mean by blast!"

--Local actor Raymond Alongi tells Loaded Gun Boston that he hopes he'll make a bang with his role as a Boston police officer in MTV's "The Phone."

“I got to express a range of emotions in the scene. The character played by Ethan Hawke puts a gun against my head so I fear for my life and think I might get killed.”

--Actor Richard Italiano says landing a role in the made-in-Boston flick "What Doesn't Kill You," making its local debut at the International Film Fest on Friday, April 17 at the AMC Boston Common, was a life-long dream realized.

'The Company Men' casting suits at Felt in Boston

Casting scouts for Ben Affleck's "The Company Men," the made-in-Boston film following a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing, is on the hunt for business professional types for background extra work in the feature film.

Billy Dowd Casting is holding an extra casting call from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 11 at Felt, located a 533 Washington St., in Boston's Downtown Crossing area. They're looking for male and female suits aged 35 and up only (although, mature looking 25-to 35-year-old extras have a shot). Make sure to bring a recent photo to the casting call.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, crews filmed a scene on Wednesday, April 8 with star Affleck at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. They're scheduled to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

Starring Cambridge homeboy Affleck, Harvard alum Tommy Lee Jones and Kevin Costner, the film is based on the script by director John Wells. First signs of filming in Boston is slotted near First Church, 10 Putnam St. in Roxbury on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men."

--Photo of Affleck from Esquire

Raymond Alongi featured in MTV's 'The Phone'

Raymond Alongi, an acting veteran and a native of Quincy, takes the cliché "there are never small parts, only small actors" to heart. The 48-year-old is a featured player in an upcoming action-packed episode of Justin Timberlake's "The Phone" hitting MTV on 10 p.m. Tuesday, May 5. The premiere is set in Seattle, however, Boston is expected to be featured in an upcoming episode.

"Yes, I had a blast doing the show," muses Alongi, who runs the Purple Eggplant Pizzeria in Halifax, MA with his wife Michelle when he's not pursuing acting gigs. "When you see it, you'll know what I mean by blast!"

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, crews from the new MTV reality series "The Phone" shot scenes in Charlestown, South End and East Boston two months ago with John Fiore, a former mob boss from "The Sopranos," acting in one of the reality show's scenarios.

In the Boston-shot sequence, two teams are challenged to "take down the mob before an assassination takes place." The goal in the mob smack down is to save the life of a police officer.

Alongi, a former student of the Actors Studio in Los Angeles and a Quincy High grad, plays the Boston officer in the scene.

"The best thing was the phone call the next day from one of the producers telling me how much they enjoyed my performance," Alongi spills to Loaded Gun Boston. "That is huge for any actor. Recognition! We thrive on making every part believable."

Based on a Dutch idea that juxtaposes "The Bourne Identity" with "The Amazing Race," the show kicks off with two strategically hidden cell phones ringing in opposites sides of a city. Several scenes were shot in Boston for the six episode, one-hour-long series. Winners snag a $50,000 prize.

Click here for the latest on Timberlake's "The Phone." Also, click here for the lowdown on Alongi.

'The Company Men' filming at Lynn golf course

"The Company Men," a topical flick about the impact of corporate downsizing on the masses, kicks off prelim filming on Wednesday, April 8 at the Gannon Municipal Golf Course in Lynn. According to the Daily Item here, crews are slotted to return to the course on Tuesday, June 2.

Starring Cambridge homeboy Ben Affleck, Harvard alum Tommy Lee Jones and Kevin Costner, the film is based on the script by director John Wells. First signs of filming in Boston is slotted near First Church, 10 Putnam St. in Roxbury on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14.

Actress Rosemarie DeWitt, known for her performance in last year's "Rachel Getting Married," has signed on as Affleck's wife in the made-in-Boston film following a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing.

Also, Oscar-nominated Chris Cooper is reportedly in negotiations to join the cast as a blue-collar worker losing his job.

Shooting at the scene of the crime where Robert De Niro literally dropped the ball before leaving the made-in-Boston film "Edge of Darkness" over "creative differences," Affleck's "The Company Men" will hopefully have better luck with its early golf-course scenes.

While De Niro backed out of "Edge of Darkness," the Lynn golf course and its amazing views will be on display in Mel Gibson's flick, starring British Powerhouse Ray Winstone in De Niro's place, when the film hits screens in November.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men."

--Photo of Affleck in Universal's "State of Play"

Maria Bello joins Adam Sandler's 'Lake House' cast

Maria Bello has signed on to play Kevin James' wife in Adam Sandler's upcoming made-in-Boston film called "Lake House," according to the Hollywood Reporter.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, scouts for the new Sandler flick plan to shoot a scene in the coming months with co-stars James, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider and David Spade at the upscale Japanese-fusion restaurant, O Ya, located at 9 East Street in Boston's Leather District.

Sandler's former “SNL” cohorts as well as “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” funnyman James are slotted for a 66-day film shoot beginning in May centering around a group of five guys who return to their hometown after 30-years apart for a Fourth of July holiday weekend. Think a “Big Chill”-style comedy … but with a lot of laughs.

Bello joins Salma Hayek and Maya Rudolph as the film's latest recruits.

Pre-production on the flick is heating up. In fact, nearby Essex entered into an agreement on Monday, March 16 to host Sandler and crew at the town’s Centennial Grove this summer.

Click here for the latest on Sandler's "Lake House."

--Photo courtesy Universal Pictures

Christian Bale eyes set-in-Boston flick 'Prisoners'

"The Dark Knight" and upcoming "Terminator: Salvation" star Christian Bale is reportedly in negotiations to star alongside Dorchester homeboy Mark Wahlberg in the set-in-Boston thriller "Prisoners."

Bryan Singer, director of "Superman Returns," is said to be interested in it, but he hasn't confirmed.

The project, generating major buzz on the Left Coast that has piqued the interest of nearly every major studio in town according to the Hollywood Reporter, centers around a Boston father whose 6-year-old daughter and her best friend are kidnapped. The film’s protagonist, a role that seems to be a better fit for Bale than Wahlberg, takes matters into his own hands by kidnapping the man he suspects is responsible.

There's also a young, brash detective in charge of the investigation. It's a role perfect for Wahlberg.

Insiders say the tone of the revenge-fantasy flick penned by previously unknown Aaron Guzikowski is a cross between “Silence of the Lambs” and “Seven.”

Click here for the latest on "Prisoners."

CW unveils Boston-shot 'Hitched' reality series

CW announced today that it plans to air the wedding-themed reality series "Hitched or Ditched," formerly called "For Better or Worse" and featuring at least one Boston-based couple, starting Wednesday, May 27 at 9 p.m.

Producers of "The Bachelor" and "Wife Swap" have put a new twist on relationship-based reality shows for the upcoming CW series. Following a couple on the verge of tying the knot, crews were in town filming last February at The Saint located at 90 Exeter St. and up and down Commonwealth Avenue near Boston University.

The show takes an unmarried couple in a long-term relationship and gives them the "ultimatum of a lifetime." Presented with the option of an all-expense-paid wedding at the end of the week, the duo has the choice to say "I do" or "I don't" after spending a week with family and friends hashing out the nuptials.

The CW has ordered six episodes of the wedding-theme series with at least one hour-long edition set in Boston.

"Yes, one [episode] was filmed in Boston recently, a friend of mine was on it with her boyfriend," confirms a Loaded Gun spy.

QUIZ: Can you name this made-in-Boston movie?

The following quote is from an Oscar-winning movie shot in Boston:

"When I was your age, they would say you could become cops or criminals. What I'm saying is this: When you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?"

The film's climactic rooftop scene was shot on Farnsworth Street in South Boston's Seaport District. Also, there's a scene where Leonardo DiCaprio chases Matt Damon out of a Combat Zone-esque theater through the streets of Chinatown.

Can you name this made-in-Boston film? Simply register for Loaded Gun’s new bi-weekly newsletter. The sign-up widget is located on the right-side navigation. Once you type in your e-mail address, you’ll be prompted to enter the mystery made-in-Boston movie. One winner will receive a DVD copy of the mystery flick pulled from my collection and will be announced in the next issue of Loaded Gun Insider.

Loaded Gun, a Boston-based pop culture blog, unveiled its debut bi-weekly newsletter called Loaded Gun Insider here. Sign up and register for a slew of Hollywood East-inspired prizes including DVDs of made-in-Boston films like "Mystic River" and "21," to giveaways handpicked by Hollywood in the Hub celebs.

*Click here for the official rules.

--Photo of cranes in South Boston by Sam Baltrusis

The Cliks charm Cambridge's T.T. the Bear's in April

Lucas Silveira, founder and lead singer of The Cliks, return to T.T . the Bear's in Cambridge at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 14. Slotted to release a new CD called "Dirty King" on June 23, the frontman's backstory continues to serve as an inspiration for the GLBT community.

In a rapid series of gut-wrenching events, the vocalist’s band went through a complete lineup change, his father suffered a stroke, his grandmother died and he ended a long-term relationship after a tumultuous seven years.

And that was the least of the rocker’s pain. After a life-long internal conflict concerning his gender identity, Silveira came to terms with the fact that while he was genetically born female, he was living a lie.

In 2005, The Cliks’ frontman came out as a transgender male.

"When it rains it pours," says Silveira, phoning tells Loaded Gun in an earlier interview from his home in Toronto. "I’ve always kind of known since I was young that’s who I am, but it was an issue of putting it into words," Silveira emotes about his F-to-M transformation.

"For a long time, I suppressed who I really was. And when everything hit the fan two years ago, I looked inside and realized that I couldn’t live that way anymore," he recalls. "It was then when I was able to admit to myself that I am transgender. It took my entire life to come to terms with it, but when it finally came into my head I was able to move forward."

If art is forged from pain, the singer-songwriter used the series of life-changing events to craft the songs that eventually comprised The Cliks’ major-label debut, "Snakehouse."

Silveira, who underwent a double mastectomy but sacrificed the male attributes horomones to maintain his singing voice, says once he came to terms with his gender identity, things clicked for The Cliks.

"The fact that I can walk around everyday being who I am is the greatest gift I could have ever given myself," he adds. "I’ve been lucky because the people around me have been really accepting. I mean, I’ve had only a few negative reactions from people I’ve interacted with."

The singer concludes, "Anytime a creative person comes to terms with their identity, whether it’s being gay or transgender or whatever, that bottled up passion comes out through their art. I don’t have to pretend anymore. And I’m a better musician because of it."

Click here for the lowdown on The Cliks

First look at Martin Scorsese's 'Shutter Island'

While Martin Scorsese's made-in-Boston film "Shutter Island" isn't slotted to hit theaters until Friday, Oct. 2, a reader over at Ropes of Silicon noticed a teaser ad for the flick in the January issue of Cashiers du Cinema.

The promo is a minimalistic, yet creepy, image of what looks like a woman in a straight-jacket facing a stark hospital wall, with “Whatever Happened to Patient 67?” written in a blood-red font.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, two U.S. marshals (played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo) investigate the disappearance of a patient from a hospital for the criminally insane to an eponymous Boston-area island in 1954. During the investigation, they encounter a web of lies, a hurricane and a deadly inmate riot that leaves them trapped on the island.

Based on the epic novel "Shutter Island" by Dennis Lehane, the Boston-shot flick features DiCaprio, Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley and was shot in Taunton's Whittenton Mills Complex (recrafted as the horrific Nazi concentration camp Dachau) as well as the Medfield State Hospital and Peddocks Island. Other locales include Borderland State Park, Hyde Park and Wilson Mountain Reservation in Dedham.

Argentinean filmmaker Celine Murga published a diary, also published in the January edition of Cahiers Du Cinema, recounting her impressions during the shoot of Martin Scorsese’s made-in-Boston flick, including a scene in a hospital cafeteria presumably shot at the abandoned Medfield State Hospital.

“Dialogues are filmed through close-ups, with the characters virtually looking at the camera shaft," Murga recounts. "The result is something deeply disquieting. It is uncomfortable for the spectator since they are intense monlogues of patients spouting their madness."

Also, a source here, who talked to author Lehane in Arizona, says the first 10 minutes of the movie is deeply disturbing.

Lehane's take on the footage? "Teddy (DiCaprio) walks up the hospital on Shutter Island. There's a woman patient sitting there, with a scar across her throat. She looks at Teddy, and slices her finger across her throat. He said the scene freaks him out."

Click here for the latest on "Shutter Island."

'See Kate Run' crews transform Shawmut's Joe V's

Crews from the currently-in-production ABC-TV pilot "See Kate Run" have taken over the picturesque Union Park in the South End today between Tremont and Shawmut Ave. Set designers were busy transforming Joe V's located at 315 Shawmut Ave., an Italian eatery across the street from the South End Buttery, into an upscale lobster restaurant called the "Bean Town Lobster Company" or "B.T.L.C."

FTP Productions LLC, the group orchestrating the massive shoot for ABC, literally moved out all of the cars normally parked down the tree-lined street and replaced them with rentals. A crane was set up for a sweeping birds-eye shot of Union Park.

Filming is slotted to run into the evening of Saturday, April 4 until the wee hours of Sunday, April 5.

Starring Amy Smart in the main role, the series follows a Boston-based district attorney destined to become the first female president. The pilot also stars Liza Lapira from "21" and local actor Sean Paul Cormier. A crew member confirmed that the pilot is now officially called "See Kate Run" and it's Kate with a "K" and not a "C."

Click here for the latest on "See Kate Run." Filming officially wraps this weekend. Also, click here for additional photos on Hub On Location.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

Justin Timberlake's 'The Phone' showcases Boston

Crews from the new MTV reality series "The Phone" shot scenes in East Boston two months ago with John Fiore, a former mob boss from "The Sopranos," acting in one of the reality show's scenarios. The action-packed episode, hitting MTV on 10 p.m. Tuesday beginning April 21, features ... no surprise here ... a Boston mafioso. The premiere is set in Seattle, however, Boston is expected to be featured in an upcoming episode.

In the sneak peek above, two teams are challenged to "take down the mob before an assassination takes place." The goal in the mob smack down is to save the life of a police officer. Challenges in other cities like Seattle and NYC include stopping a mad bomber and infiltrating a drug cartel.

One scene, featured in the extended clip, involves a crash scene filmed in Charlestown. This is not to be confused with an additional crash scene that was orchestrated on Harrison Avenue in the South End which eventually leads contestants to the Boston Public Library.

Based on a Dutch idea that juxtaposes "The Bourne Identity" with "The Amazing Race," the show kicks off with two strategically hidden cell phones ringing in opposites sides of a city. Several scenes were shot in Boston for the six episode, one-hour-long series. Winners snag a $50,000 prize.

Back in August, a source spilled to Loaded Gun that there was an e-mail going out from casting folks to local theater groups asking for participants with a wicked thick Boston accent.

Click here for the latest on Timberlake's "The Phone."

UFC's Dana White under attack over anti-gay slur

UFC president Dana White, a South Boston homeboy and producer of the made-in-Boston pilot formerly called “War of ‘04“ and now "Madso's War," is under fire over a recent web tirade released on Wednesday where he took aim at women and the GLBT community.

White’s rant was directed at Sherdog.com writer Loretta Hunt calling her a “dumb bitch.” He also used an anti-gay slur, which involved the f-word, when referring to an anonymous source in Hunt’s story. The obscenity-laced tirade has since been pulled from his video blog but is still uploaded on YouTube here.

The native, who was recently in town filming "Madso's War"and held a St. Patrick’s Day bash with House of Pain at The Roxy, tells ESPN's Page 2 that his anti-gay attack was misdirected.

“I never intended to hurt anybody in the gay community, or be malicious, or look like a hateful guy,” he says here. “I never meant to hurt anyone in the gay or lesbian community at all, in any way, shape or form. I would never do that. I was speaking to Loretta Hunt.”

White, who attended UMass for two years before dropping out, continues, “Look, I lived in Southie. I say a lot of things, a lot of which people won't [expletive] like. OK, but you know, when I was living there -- and this was when I was a young [expletive] idiot, like 21 years old. I lived next door to a lesbian couple and they used to get terrorized -- terrorized. South Boston back in the day was a crazy [expletive] place to be."

His made-in-Boston Spike-TV pilot stars British actor/singer Matthew Marsden, Kevin Chapman and David Patrick Kelly. "Madso's War" centers around the fallout when a Boston mob boss abruptly takes a leave of absence while rival gangs duke it out in an epic battle for control.

Click here for ESPN Page 2's interview with White. Also, click here for the inflammatory YouTube clip.

--Photo courtesy UFC

Ben Affleck's 'The Company Men' ready to roll

Actress Rosemarie DeWitt, known for her performance in last year's "Rachel Getting Married," has signed on as Ben Affleck's wife in "The Company Men," a made-in-Boston film following a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing.

Also, Oscar-nominated Chris Cooper is reportedly in negotiations to join the cast as a blue-collar worker losing his job.

Starring Cambridge homeboy Affleck, Harvard alum Tommy Lee Jones and Kevin Costner, the film is based on the script by director John Wells. The flick is currently in pre-production with filming slotted to kick off in mid-April. Scenes are already scheduled to be shot near First Church, 10 Putnam St. in Roxbury on Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14. Actual scenes are being shot at a dilapidated triple-decker house located at 174 Highland Street in Roxbury.

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, Billy Dowd Casting is holding an extra casting call for SAG and AFTRA members only on Saturday, April 4 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the John Hancock Hotel and Conference Center, 40 Trinity Place in the George Washington room on the third floor.

Click here for the latest on "The Company Men."

--Photo of Rosemarie DeWitt in "Rachel Getting Married"

Made-in-Boston movie set travel guide for '21'

Based on the book "Bringing Down the House" by Harvard grad Ben Mezrich, the flick starring Kevin Spacey called "21" focuses a lot on the glamour and clamor of Las Vegas. However, the fact-based movie about six MIT students who were trained to become experts in card counting and ultimately took Vegas casinos for millions showcases Boston in all of its glory.

For example, the opening sequence follows young prodigy Ben Campbell (played by Jim Sturgess) making the trek across the Mass. Ave. Bridge to Cambridge and features breathtaking scenes of the Charles and a birds-eye view of the MIT campus and the quintessential overhead shot of several rowing crews on the Cambridge side of the river. Helicopters filmed the bike scene which caused a traffic snarl after closing the entire Mass. Ave. Bridge on April 22, 2007.

Released in theaters on March 28, 2008, the film "21" stars Spacey, Sturgess, Kate Bosworth and Liza Lapira (currently filming the ABC-TV pilot "See Kate Run") and was filmed throughout Boston and Cambridge in spring 2007. In honor of its one-year theatrical anniversary, we offer you inspiration from the movie's locations. Take note card-shark wannabes.

WHERE TO EAT:
Originally built in the 1940s to accommodate workers in the Leather District, the South Street Diner, located at 178 Kneeland St. was featured in an earlier scene of "21." The classic late-night diner set the stage for Spacey and his students as they discuss their gambling strategy before heading to Vegas (pictured below).

The flick also showcases Doyle's Cafe in Jamaica Plain. Doyle's, located at 3484 Washington St., is famous as a stop on the political trail, officially opening its doors in 1882 and served as a speakeasy during Prohibition days until reopening as a legal hangout in 1933. The Washington Street hot spot was also used in the movies as the "quintessential Boston Irish bar," making cameos in "Mystic River" and was a location in the Dane Cook flick "My Best Friend's Girl." Also, actor Mel Gibson, recently in town filming "Edge of Darkness," was spotted there in August '08. In "21," Sturgess's character Ben Campbell strolls down Washington Street with his mom played by Helen Carey.

WHERE TO WINDOW SHOP:
At the beginning of "21," Campbell reports to work at an upscale men's clothing shop in Cambridge. After learning he was accepted into Harvard Medical School, he was promoted and the ongoing joke was that the job only paid $8 per hour. The real-life locale is J. Press located at 82 Auburn St. in Cambridge. J. Press has served the ivy league community with clothing ranging from sport coast, blazers, neckwear and trousers.

Spacey and crew were spotted filming scenes in front of the Louis Vuitton shop in the Copley Place Mall. Located in Boston history Back Bay neighborhood at 2 Copley Place, this mall is the Hub's more distinctive shopping destinations boasting 75 upscale shops ranging from Kenneth Cole to Jimmy Choo to Tiffany & Co.

WHERE TO VISIT:
In "21," MIT looks suspiciously like Boston University because, well, it was filmed at BU. Many of the scenes were shot at the university's College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) and the School of Management (SMG). Campbell studies in the basement of the Mugar Memorial Library located at 771 Commonwealth Ave. His dorm, which is a step up from the typical freshmen and sophomore dorm at Boston University called Warren Towers, is actually called The Towers and is a nine-floor, two tower structure located at 140 Bay State Rd.

--By Sam Baltrusis, photo courtesy of Columbia Pictures

INTERVIEW: Brendan Toller on the 'Record!'

Brendan Toller, a 22-year-old Western Massachusetts-based guerilla filmmaker, unveils his first feature documentary “I Need That Record! The Death (Or Possible Survival) of The Independent Record Store” at Boston’s Independent Film Festival 7 p.m. Saturday, April 25 at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square.

The film examines why over 3,000 independent record stores have closed across the United States in the past decade and features Bostonians Noam Chomsky and Newbury Comics CEO Mike Dreese along with Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, Ian MacKaye of Dischord Records Fugazi/Minor Threat, punk author Legs McNeil and rock photographer Bob Gruen.

Armed with full-length feature he wrote and produced, the young filmmaker weighs in to Loaded Gun Boston about his greatest fear (bureaucracy), his idol (Michael Moore) and his secret desire to be a better whistler.

Click here for the complete interview. Click here for tickets.

--Photo courtesy Brendan Toller

'See Kate Run' crews return to Tremont Street

In the wee hours of Saturday, April 4, between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m., crews from the currently-in-production ABC-TV pilot "See Kate Run," will film outside of the Cyclorama located at 539 Tremont St. in the South End, in the area near The Beehive and the Calderwood Pavilion.

Crews filmed a scene there on Wednesday, April 1 and shot a few scenes today, Thursday, April 2, in the Waterfront/Fort Point neighborhood. Loaded Gun spy Angela says the pilot "was filming at the old Everett High School on Broadway, too, all day on Wednesday."

Starring Amy Smart in the main role, the series with a working title called the "Untitled John Scott Shepherd Project" follows a Boston-based district attorney destined to become the first female president. The pilot also stars Liza Lapira from "21" and local actor Sean Paul Cormier.

Last weekend, crews from FTP Productions LLC, the group orchestrating the massive shoot for ABC, took over the front steps of the Massachusetts State House and filmed exterior shots in front of the gilded-domed building. Filming continued on Saturday, March 28 near the Ashburton Park side of the State House on Bowdoin Street between Beacon and Derne.

On Thursday, March 26, I received a tip that production staff were filming at Chelsea's City Hall for the courtroom scenes. "What a hottie Amy is," Chris Whitt says here about "See Kate Run" star Amy Smart. "Sitting in [Chelsea's City Hall] watching her do her thing. Who knew it takes about 300 people to film a scene?"

And on Monday, March 23, set designers were busy transforming Doyle's Cafe located at 3484 Washington St. into the 21st Amendment, a stand-in for the political watering hole across the street from the State House.

Click here for the latest on "See Kate Run." Also, click here for additional photos on Hub On Location.

--Photos by Sam Baltrusis

Made-in-Boston mystery film winners revealed

Congratulations to Arestia R., winner of the Tolani Cheetah Cheetah Scarf, and Richard D., winner of the automatic CEM5J005W model from Orient Watches, for correctly naming the made-in-Boston flicks "Pink Panther 2" and "Good Will Hunting" respectively.

Quiz 1: The Boston Public Library is the scene of the crime of this made-in-Boston flick currently in theaters. While filming at the BPL, there were reports that a priceless marble bust was knocked on the floor of the Grand Staircase in September 2007.

Answer: “Pink Panther 2”

Inspired by the mystery film’s colorful-cat icon, one winner will receive a Tolani Cheetah Cheetah Scarf (27" x 72") which retails for $99 and has been spotted on celebs like Scarlet Johansson and Jessica Alba. Check out Chickdowntown for the latest designer clothing with hot brands such as Siwy Jeans, Diane Von Furstenburg and fabulous Tibi Dresses.

Quiz 2: The Boston Public Garden is the locale of a pivotal scene in this made-in-Boston flick starring and penned by then up-and-comers Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Also, the milestone moment shot here helped win Robin Williams an Oscar for "Best Supporting Actor."

Answer: “Good Will Hunting”

Inspired by the mystery film’s protagonist played by Damon, Richard D. will receive an Orient Watch CEM5J005W automatic model which retails for $100 and is similar to the timepiece Damon wears in "The Bourne Identity." Check out Orient Watches if you're looking for an affordable, sophisticated watch but can't afford to spend thousands of dollars.

Sign up and register for a slew of Hollywood East-inspired prizes including DVDs of made-in-Boston films like "Mystic River" and "21" to other giveaways.

Click here to join our Loaded Gun Insider e-mail list. Also, click here for a sneak peek of Loaded Gun Insider.

--Photos courtesy Miramax and Sony Pictures

The week in quotes from Hollywood in the Hub

"It's an original play about music and the Holocaust written by insanely talented drama students with musical accompaniment by me. My high school theater director, Steven Bogart, is one of my biggest artistic mentors and I've been trying to get back there since I left."

--Dresden Doll Amanda Palmer tells Pitchfork that she’s rehearsing with students at her former high school in Lexington for a play based on Neutral Milk Hotel's “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea,” culminating in a weekend's worth of shows Thursday, May 7 until Saturday, May 9 at Lexington High's 1000-capacity auditorium.

"I don’t agree with the result and I don’t agree that Massachusetts can’t compete in this $60 billion industry. We’re doing it.”

--Massachusetts Film Office head Nick Paleologos slams an allegedly biased study by Cornell University professor Susan Christopherson, who raises questions about the state's tax incentives to lure filmmakers to the Hub.

"That's a big controversy right now. If you don't give tax breaks in production, productions immediately go someplace else. Not even just Canada they go to Massachusetts, Michigan, Rhode Island; they're all building in tax breaks trying to attract production. The idea of New York not competing on that level is pretty much insane."

--Denis Leary, a Worcester native and star of the NYC-based FX series "Rescue Me," comments on the exodus of productions from the Big Apple, like the Boston-set "Fringe," after New York's Film Production Tax Credit program ran out of money in February.

"I understand that he has a mom, and I respect that, but to me it’s not like because somebody else delivered him, that’s not my child."

--Tom Brady's wife and glamazon Gisele Bündchen sends shockwaves among Bridget Moynahan supporters with her comments in the latest issue of Vanity Fair emoting that she love's Brady's son like he was her own child.

"It's a different kind of satisfaction being around your friends, the friends you grew up with. They have kids, have barbecues and that kind of deal."

--Ben Affleck, slotted to return home this month to film "The Company Men," muses to People magazine that, after all of these years, he's still in a bromance with his Cambridge homeboy Matt Damon.

“I just love her crazy-(rhymes with grass) metaphors. I also like impersonating pretty much anyone I’ve ever had to work for, as in restaurant owners, managers, bartenders, etc.,”

--"SNL" newbie and Wellesley native Michaela Watkins spills to The Improper Bostonian that she loves impersonating politico Arianna Huffington, adding that she misses Boston. “I think it’s such a beautiful city,” she says.

Boston Globe’s ‘Names’ columnist switcheroo

Now you see her, now you don’t. As most of you know, The Boston Globe pink-slipped newbie “Names” columnist Paysha Rhone on Monday, March 30 as part of its massive downsizing which included several newsroom employees.

However, before the fledgling gossip wrangler could pack up her desk and go, they’ve already replaced Rhone on the “Names” blog here with relationship-trends columnist Meredith Goldstein. I mean, the Globe literally cut Rhone out of the header on the blog in less than a week and inserted Goldstein's animated image beside sidekick Mark Shanahan.

Now, that's cruel.

On Thursday, June 26, Rhone replaced long-time columnist Carol Beggy after the former Globe staffer opted for the much-ballyhooed buyout back in April.

Wow, she didn’t even last a year. I guess Rhone's background in anthropology and covering bear maulings for the Juneau Empire in Alaska didn't translate well in the so-called high-profile gig as a big-city celeb stalker.

Before she stepped up to the post beside Shanahan, I enjoyed Rhone's bouncy editorial voice and her goofball trend pieces. In fact, I’ve written in the past that she would “add a refreshing new perspective to a stale column I rarely read with Beggy at the helm.”

Click here for the lowdown.

Farrelly brothers unveil Red Sox doc at IFFBoston

Hollywood heavyweights and die-hard Red Sox fans Bobby and Peter Farrelly, currently working on a modern adaptation of the classic Three Stooges comedy act starring Sean Penn, will unveil their first documentary project “The Lost Son of Havana” at Boston’s Independent Film Festival 8 p.m. Saturday, April 25 at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square.

A deeply personal film about future Hall of Fame pitcher Luis Tiant’s journey back to his native homeland of Cuba for the first time in 46 years, “The Lost Son of Havana” was written and directed by Jonathan Hock, whose previous documentaries include “The Streak,” “Michael Jordan To The Max,” and the award-winning “Through the Fire.”

The documentary follows Tiant, now aged 67, as he confronts his guilt for leaving his impoverished homeland to pursue his dreams of baseball, juxtaposed with old friends and teammates’ reminiscences about his incredible career. Face to face with his own mortality, Tiant comes to terms with how the Cuban-American conflict has shaped his identity and his career.

Tiant will attend the premiere screening on Saturday, April 25 along with Bobby and Peter Farrelly, Chris Cooper, Director Jonathan Hock and many other actors and former and current Red Sox players.

Click here for more information on Boston's Independent Film Festival slotted for Wednesday, April 22 until Tuesday, April 28. Click here for tickets.

12 Pack from 'I Love New York' gets Wet in Boston

Who knew reality star Dave Amerman, also known as 12 Pack from VH1's "I Love New York" and later "I Love Money," was a DJ?

The hottie, who earned the nickname from "New York" because of his abs, is slotted to spin 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday, April 3 at Wet Lounge's "Goodbar," 183 State Street near Faneuil Hall. Tickets are $10 a pop.

Promoters are pushing the whole "ladies night" concept with free admission for its VIP female patrons before 10:30 p.m. The event even boasts sexy dancers, exotic drinks and personal autographs with the pseudo-celeb. Hello, exotic drinks? No word if "ladies night" is secret gay code for queens.

Speaking of gay drama, Amerman's sexual orientation was questioned on "I Love New York," because, well, he was a stripper at a New Jersey gay club called Feathers.

"It was a one-time deal," he tells VH1 here. " I was there for about an hour and a half, and I got out of there so all of a sudden I’m an international gay stripper."

When asked about the gay rumors, he jokes, "I don’t really give a crap, when it comes to gay stuff," he quips. "I’m one of those guys who’ll tuck my d*** in between my legs and run around and think it’s funny."

12 Pack will make his reality TV comeback this month. He's doing the whole competition dating show thing again in "Daisy of Love," slotted to premiere 9 p.m. April 26 on VH1.

Click here for the lowdown on Amerman's gig at Wet Lounge's "Goodbar."

--Photo courtesy VH1

'The Cougar' reality show claws Boston fresh meat

TV Land plans to unveil its reality dating show "The Cougar" to the masses on Wednesday, April 15 at 10 p.m. True to the formula that all reality TV shows must have at least one cast member from Boston, "The Cougar" doesn't disappoint.

Boston's fresh meat? His name is Joe Hines, and the Medford-based 23-year-old is allegedly known as "The Wolf" in the Hub because he's a so-called "cougar magnet." According to his bio here, the local has "hooked up with many a cougar and has even had a few cougar stalkers."

Hines, who tends bar at the Hotel Indigo's upscale bOKX 109 in Newton, is vying for the affection of Stacey Anderson, a brazen blonde and 40-year-old mother of four from Scottsdale, Arizona. Vivica A. Fox, still in recovery from her lackluster gig on VH1's "Glam God with Vivica A. Fox," is the host of "The Cougar."

As previously reported in Loaded Gun, casting scouts were on the prowl at Felt Boston, 533 Washington St. on Saturday, Nov. 15 searching for "charming, attractive and adventurous" guys between 21-29 who were interested in vying for the attention of a successful, smokin’ hot, older woman.

Click here for the lowdown on "The Cougar."

--Photo courtesy TV Land