Commercial tackles teen drinking

Young actors from Sweet Home portray teen drinkers at a party in the woods for a commercial warning parents about the perils of teen drinking. photo by Jim Mitchell Last Saturday night, a sheriff's deputy and a Forest Service law enforcement officer approached a campfire in the woods behind SOAR to find a party going on: 30 to 40 teenagers with red plastic beer glasses, a beer keg in the back of a battered red pickup.

And there was more. The scene included a couple of dozen adult observers and a professional film crew from Fluid Images -- but, no beer.

Fluid Images was filming a commercial for Think Again Parents (TAPS), a local group campaigning against underage alcohol and drug usage in Sisters. The partners in Fluid Images, Bob Johnson, Rob Johnson, Rick Johnson, and Michael Gough agreed to support the project. So Rick Johnson put together the script, TAPS liked it and filming was underway when the above-mentioned police officers arrived.

Although not necessarily shot in sequence, following is the general scenario for the video.

Scene 1. A flirtatious couple becomes intoxicated. Cut to a later scene. The girl is carrying a newborn baby, the boy stares into the distance.

Scene 2. A girl is obviously overly intoxicated and sick. Cut to a hospital scene where she is being treated for alcohol poisoning.

Scene 3. A younger student accepts a drink from older kids. Cut to police officer issuing an MIP (Minor in Possession).

Scene 4. A group of drinking students around the campfire watches a truck pull loudly away. Cut to inside scene as driver reaches for a beer and is involved in a head-on crash. (End of Scene 4, Ben Coffield gets to use a sledgehammer on the windshield of the truck.)

Final Scene. Focus on the picture of a family. Each member disappears until only one young child is left. The words THINK AGAIN overlay the final frame.

The red beer glasses and the (empty) beer keg were props for the filming. There was liquid available -- the strongest was apple cider. And everyone left safely when the shoot was over.

Because TAPS did not want local students portrayed in the video, contact was made with Sweet Home High School. Through auditions in their drama department, about 15 Sweet Home students traveled to Sisters to participate in the filming. A group of Sisters High School students filled in the background.

Jill Wilson, Sweet Home High School sophomore, who played the role of the teenage mother in Scene 1, said during the shoot, "It's fun and it's a lot more than I thought it would be."

It appeared everyone, actors and observers, enjoyed the "party" and most expressed an interest in seeing the final product.

Fluid Images began in 1994 with the development of the first Strada crane, at 85 feet the longest camera crane in the world at the time. One of their early successes was the filming of "Titanic." They have over 20 cranes around the world with operators trained by them.

Fluid Images is currently working on a promotional video for Pronghorn Resort, a Les Schwab commercial, and promo videos for Bird Gard and Adair Homes. And right now they have an innovative crane, the Strada Hook & Release Steadicam Crane, in San Francisco filming "XXX2" ("XXX squared") starring Ice Man.

Fluid Images donated their production time for the video, charging only for crew members' time. Regarding the TAPS project, Rick Johnson said, "We wanted to believe in this project and that it would benefit the community, especially the kids."