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LMGI COMPASS
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Spring 2025
The post office scene proved particularly challenging.
Not just because of the special effects required to create
the snow, but also choosing the right look. "The agency was
like, 'we need a post office and it should look like this.' So, I
showed them five we could shoot at. But then they came back
and said: 'Actually, we think it should look like this instead.'
This carried on, while we were trying to figure everything
out on the move," recalls Freid. "They were changing their
direction, while we were trying to find it closer to another
location to fit it into the day."
Riordan adds: "With the property shots, Mark was
knocking on a lot of doors. These are not out of a file or
someone else's library. These are all 100% brand new. Even
in that scene in Langley, the post office was a brand-new
location. It takes a lot of effort."
The final choice was ideal because it was cute and quaint,
so "fitted what the agency was looking for and what Lisa was
trying to get at it in the story," says Freid.
Equally, Freid shot five bowling alleys before all parties
settled on Kenmore Lanes, and he spent three days shooting
roadside attractions, including a giant painted chicken,
and a big cowboy hat and boots, before Bob's Java Jive
coffee shop, shaped like a coffee cup, and the Frisko Freeze
restaurant in Tacoma were chosen.
