Movie takes up-close, personal approach

Screenwriter's kids inspired film being shot here

Marc Shulgold, Rocky Mountain News

Thursday, October 4, 2007

A father shares a Popsicle and conversation with his daughter on a perfect Denver afternoon, following a visit to the doctor where the girl got a painful shot.

Nothing unusual about this touching sight - except that the father is Eddie Murphy, filming a scene Wednesday in Confluence Park for the Paramount movie NowhereLand.

The waters of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek rushed by, and a kayaker struggled against the rapids as Murphy sat with young Yara Shahidi.

The movie is being shot in various Denver locales this week and next. As the camera rolled, Murphy and his 7-year-old co-star filmed a few takes. Nearby, bystanders gawked.

Co-producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura explained that Murphy's character, Evan Danielson, is sharing his pride at the young girl's courage.

"He tells her that she was braver than he was when he had to get a shot," di Bonaventura said. "He buys her ice cream, and they finish their day together by going ice skating."

The skating scene will be shot this weekend, reportedly at the Belmar ice rink, where fake snow will descend. The producer smiled at the prospect of cold weather and the possibility of -real snow falling.

Nearby, screenwriter Ed Solomon sat with a laptop, working on his next project. But his involvement with NowhereLand is close - and personal.

Murphy's character is named for Solomon's son, Evan Daniel. Shahidi's character is modeled after the writer's daughter, Olivia. The wisdom of his kids triggered Solomon's imagination and inspired this film, he said.

"I began to think about what happens when you have a kid with good instincts and with a vivid imagination - someone who can lead you to becoming a better person."

The film's title refers to a place that lives only in the girl's imagination, although she never refers to it as "NowhereLand." That name comes from Murphy's character. Solomon said he was intrigued by the father-daughter relationship, particularly by an adult who's intimidated by his young girl.

"You know that Beatles song Nowhere Man?" Solomon asked. "That's who this guy is at the start of the film."

With co-writer Chris Matheson, he fashioned a script that would follow one mantra: "What's the truth?"

That's quite a contrast from their earlier collaboration on Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.

"With this film, we wanted to take a simple story and not make it clichéd," he said. "To be funny, but also emotionally truthful."

shulgoldm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5296