Residents in Red Hook say the production of the movie “Winter’s Tale” adds to their frustration as they try to recover from Sandy.
Some residents in a Brooklyn neighborhood still recovering after Sandy are frustrated by a movie production that's parking trailers -- and food trucks -- near homes and businesses still without heat and power.
"It's kind of strange when you're still kind of huddling in the cold and you look at all the people eating the fancy food that you can't cook," Tone Balzano Johansen, who owns Sunny's Bar in Red Hook, told NBC 4 New York.
The trailers, trucks and craft services are part of the production of "Winter's Tale," starring Will Smith, Russell Crowe and Colin Farrell.
The production is contained to the parking lot of Fairway Supermarket on Van Brunt Street, which has been closed since the storm. The spectacular city views from Red Hook make the neighborhood popular for productions, but the project has irked some who are still struggling to get their homes and businesses back to normal.
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"I can see both sides of it," said Brian Robbins, who owns a warehouse in Red Hook.
"It forced me to move to the other side of the building," he said. "Not the worst thing in the world, but another thing to have to take care of in the middle of this mess."
Marybeth Ihle, a spokeswoman for the Mayor's Office of Film and Television, said the office has limited where productions can film since Sandy. It has restricted any filming in Zone A, which includes Red Hook, and has reached out to community boards around the city for input.
"Winter’s Tale," though, was able to film in Red Hook because it is utilizing two private parking lots for the majority of its vehicles. The production started filming in Red Hook before Sandy struck, and returned after the storm.
Ihle also said the production is working with the Red Hook Recovery Fund, which was started after the storm.
