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It's inhumanely hot here in New Orleans, 35C/95F or more at the moment I'm afraid.
But nevertheless this heat shooting of The Loft continues and is going extremely smooth.
Erik Van Looy is nervous, but also very satisfiied with what he has accomplished here so far.
I've never been on a set where everything goes so easy and smooth
and where there is such a happy atmosphere.
Which doesn't mean everybody is dancing on the tables - certainly not me.
Because I'm always very stressed on the set
and I will remain that way, but I notice that the atmosphere is really good.
And that's really enjoyable.
I think this is because we could gather the correct people for the job
and that the actors, instead of being spoiled brats,
are very motivated, well-prepared, and jolly good gentlemen ... and ladies.
And it also has to do with the fact that
we have an excellent crew, and a director who has already made the movie once before.
I don't know if you remember it, but we have met before
at the inauguration of an exposition.
Yes, I remember - Ann Marije.
So you still remember me, that's nice.
Long live Bart De Pauw.
Who once came up with this script in the attic of his house in Lier.
It's almost incomprehensible that it all started there.
That he worked four years on it.
And that it now here, I was about to say Hollywood ...
which it is actually, but we're now in New Orleans,
and that people change very little to the original script.
I notice you're also working at the weekends.
The mayor should be happy.
Screw the mayor.
When I sit in front of that monitor and listen to the dialogues, then I often think ...
God damn Bart, oh, sorry for cursing. In the US they would cut this out immediately.
The budget for this movie is about $ 14 million.
We made the original movie for 3,2 million Euros.
The budget here is higher because you work for a global market,
and the American actors cost more than the Flemish ones.
Moreover, because of the circumstances, and the way they work here in the US,
you're obliged to work with a crew of 120 instead of the 35-40 we had in Belgium.
I remember that I was very nervous on Sunday, they day before the first shooting day.
I'm a person who gets very nervous if there are a lot of people around me,
especially very close to me. I even get shy.
120 people is a small army, really.
And it's not only those 120 people, there are also 10 trucks, many more trailers.
The only thing missing were tanks.
Which is actually funny, because the first time I drove to the set
there was a tank standing there. But that was a coincidence, because we were filming
close to the World War II museum.
I said: "Oh my God, this can't be true, there's even a tank on the set!"
We shoot in Belgium because part of the budget comes from Belgium.
A tax-shelter rule which made it interesting to shoot certain scenes in Belgium.
And this made it also cheaper to shoot this movie.
And it's also a movie suitable for doing this because
70 percent of the movie is set inside the loft.
And the interior of the loft you can build in Siberia Warshau, New Orleans but also in Brussels.
And Brussels was financially the most profitable solution.
Another advantage was that people there already built the set twice.
It's the same stage crew that were part of the first two loft movies.
That's why we decided to shoot 40% of the movie in Belgium.
I was a bit scared that the actors would say like
"Belgium? Do we have to move there?"
But luckily they all responded completely opposite.
I find it very amusing to make this movie
because the past few years I received such offers
but it got always canceled for various reasons
but this time I felt it was the right time to take the offer.
I had this dream ever since I was a boy
and so far it has been a great experience.
I have the impression I can do it, something you can't be sure of before you start.
Whether I'll ever do it again will depend on several things.
For starters of course whether this movie becomes a success or not.
But I don't see myself moving permanently to the US.
Every time after finsishing a movie, I want to briefly do something else.
I refuse to think of the future at this point, but I don't rule out this was a one time event.
This may sound strange. It's a lot of fun, but there are also a lot of sacrifices.
I miss home, my wife, my son.
I miss 't Rivierenhof, a park in my neighborhood where I go for a walk or a ride on my bike.
I'm not sounding too pathetic now I hope!