18 February 2011

Ikea Heights



'Ikea Heights' is a soap opera shot on the set of the Burbank California Ikea Store, during store hours without Ikea (or its staff) knowing. This was essentially guerilla filming in the ready-made bedrooms, kitchens, offices and walkways of Ikea. Above, the pilot episode is featured.
After seven 5-minute episodes, this web series was cancelled. This despite the fact that Pastorek (from Entertainment Weekly) described it as ‘so brilliant and awesome that its glories can really only be diminished by additional words.’
Yet, the cancellation could be expected. Projects that start off as mere gags tend to run out its course pretty fast. Yet, why were they satisfied with a mere impro gag?
But be it as it may, the idea still rocks. And for guerilla filming, the result is still quite impressive.
On to the needles and pins of 'Ikea Heights': a seedy place that the characters refer to as ‘the land of convenience and murder’...
The crew managed to act out murders, arrests, on-spot adulteries and funerals within Ikea, with nobody in the know. Only at times, the crew is busted by the Ikea staff (usually asking actors and camera men for filming permits), but for the most part the actors and the crew manage to go unnoticed. Impressively, they even manage to create a musical/music video.
In addition, the innocent shoppers and members of the staff are directly cast as unsuspecting extras. For example: in one of the later episodes, the lead character, whose wife just got murdered, in his attempt to overcome grief tries to ask the shopping ladies out on a date. Another such example is when the detective Mathis follows up on the ‘wall of knobs and handles” clue by asking the helpful Ikea staff for directions.
The entire web series was directed by Dave Seger for Channel 101.

3 comments:

  1. We, the people, have enough of this Hights already, and demand from the admin to feed us something new & excitin'! It's your own gorgeous fault, you spoiled us this nicely so far. ;)

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  2. How about Montana Plains instead of Ikea Heights?

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  3. HELL YEEEAH!! To mi deli! This is what I was talkin bout, something to write home about! It's breathtaking indeed. "And thank you," as our beloved PJ would sing. :)
    PS: Dexter rocks my sox.

    ReplyDelete