A two-mile long train track borders a rural Baltimore estate – a literal setting for a movie.
David Newbert, a 2004 Temple University graduate and director of photography for “The Suffering,” works hard along these same tracks during the movie’s post-production, beginning this month.
“It’s gorgeous,” Newbert said. “The director’s [Rob Hamilton] dad grew up here.”
The tracks and the trains that run on them were both built by Hamilton’s ancestors. The trains are modeled after their full sized counterparts, with real engines that run on coal.
“This movie will get to you,” said Newbert. “It’s going to be shot more classically, with more realistic elements, instead of blood and gore.”
Newbert elaborates heavily on this point, distinguishing “The Suffering” from unintelligent slasher movies.
“This is a movie the viewer will have to think about,” Newbert said, “It relies on more elements of suspense, and that’s what will set this film apart.”
Newbert’s passion for filmmaking was prevalent in his young life, and when he arrived at Temple, he was already set on studying film.
“Everybody wanted to be a director, but a cinematographer was always needed,” Newbert said.
He attributes the push in the direction of cinematography to his professors.
“Instead of working on 1 project at a time, I got to work on six,” In his senior year, Newbert received the Los Angeles internship, which provided him with exposure to the film industry in LA but still kept him in the comfortable bubble of college.
Newbert’s relationship with his college professors is circled back to his appreciation for their friendship. The first feature Newbert worked on was an independent film titled, “Me, You, and Everyone We Know.”
Since then, Newbert has not looked back. His career started out as a hand on the set of various films, but his career has risen from there. Newbert’s catalogue as a cinematographer includes dozens of short films, and two feature films, excluding “The Suffering.”
His first feature film “Key,” a low budget suspense film impressed viewers and investors alike, for its quality with such a low allowance. His second feature, “Marfa Girl” was met with critical acclaim in the independent film world, and won best picture at the Rome International Film Festival.
Newbert and the rest of crew, have arrived in Baltimore and are in the last stages of pre-production. Before the start of filming, Newbert and Hamilton are getting all of their shots together in preparation.
“I’m very excited for this project,” Newbert said. “It has the location and resources that a lot of my previous films have lacked.”
In order to create buzz for the upcoming indie thriller, Facebook, Twitter, Internet Movie Database and Kickstarter accounts have been created so fans can be reached.
“The Suffering” is scheduled to enter post-production in Oct., and will be featured in film festivals at the end of this year and the beginning of 2014. A trailer will also be released within the month.
Andrew Griffin can be reached at tufo3985@temple.edu.
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