Last Wednesday, Davidson College community members had the unique opportunity to attend a free advanced screening of Bart Layton’s most recent film, the true-crime thriller “American Animals” which was filmed on campus during the spring of 2017!
Director Bart Layton outside of Chambers last March.
While the cast and crew were on campus, students had the opportunity to act as extras and intern on set to learn firsthand how film sets function. A question and answer followed the advanced screening and director Bart Layton explained that Davidson’s Archives & Special Collections had the unique feeling they sought when scouting film locations at colleges and universities and appreciation for student employees who “ask the right questions.” Filming took place outside of Chambers and inside the E.H. Little Library, particularly the Davidsoniana Room and the Rare Book Room.
Look for how familiar campus spots were transformed for film!
The film, starring Evan Peters (“American Horror Story”), Barry Keoghan (“Dunkirk”), Blake Jenner, and Jared Abrahamson is based upon the “Transy book heist.” In 2004, four students robbed Transylvania University’s special collections of several rare books and were arrested after attempting to auction their stolen goods at Christie’s auction house in New York City.
“American Animals” will not be the first retelling of the tale. Chase Allen II, one of the original four heist members, published the story of the heist as his first public acknowledgment of the crimes after declining all interview opportunities. Allen’s telling of the story, entitled Mr. Pink: The Inside Story of the Transylvania Book Heist, was published under the pseudonym “Chas Allen” in 2010.
The film opens in select theatres on June 1! Click here to read a review from Variety.
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