Road to Nowhere (2010)

Road to Nowhere is a 2010 American romance thriller independent film directed by Monte Hellman, written by Steven Gaydos and stars Cliff De Young, Waylon Payne, Shannyn Sossamon, Tygh Runyan, and Dominique Swain. It is Hellman's first feature film in 21 years. Road to Nowhere was shot in western North Carolina from July to August 2009, before moving to Europe. The film premiered on September 10, 2010 at the 67th Venice International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Lion, but won Jury Award Special Lion for Career Achievement. The film will be given a limited release in New York on June 10, 2011 and in Los Angeles on June 17, 2011.

Road to Nowhere is Monte Hellman's first feature film in 21 years. The film was written by Variety executive editor Steven Gaydos. Shannyn Sossamon was the first actor to be cast after Gaydos saw her in a restaurant rehearsing a scene with another person. Reluctant, Gaydos gave Sossamon his card saying, "I don't do this often, but I wonder if you or your agent would contact Monte Hellman". Hellman told the Los Angeles Times that he dedicated the film to Laurie Bird, with whom Hellman fell in love while directing her in Two-Lane Blacktop. [edit] Filming On a budget of under $5 million principal photography began in western North Carolina (where the film is set) from July to August 2009. Hellman shot with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II, which recorded 12 minutes at a time on a flash card (opposed to 10 minutes with a 35 mm film). Scenes were shot at the Balsam Mountain Inn in Balsam for four to five weeks. Several scenes were shot in the Boyd Mountain Log Cabins in Waynesville for two days. Other scenes were shot at Doc Holliday's bar in Maggie Valley, the Fontana Dam, and the Jackson County Airport. Students from University of North Carolina School of the Arts and Western Carolina University were hired as production assistants and also served as extras. Other shooting locations were done in Los Angeles. Jim Rowell, a Cullowhee resident struck a deal with the filmmakers that allowed him to make a fuel pump repair at the airport in exchange to fly his 1966 Piper Cherokee four-passenger plane as a stuntman. Rowell did eight to nine passes over the lake flying 300 to 500 feet above the water. In post-production film editors cut the shots back and forth of Rowell flying near the dam and the actual actor sitting in Rowell's plane pretending to fly in front of a green screen and crash into the Fontana Dam. Hellman still needed to shoot scenes in Europe but was over budget. Since the plane tickets were already purchased, his daughter, co-producer Melissa Hellman raised more money through private equity. Hellman shot in the streets of London and traveled to Italy to shoot at Lake Garda. Scenes were shot in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli, in front of Michelangelo's Moses and the tomb of Pope Julius II all in Rome.