NBC Universal is going to create a prequel series to the “Field of Dreams” movie that will stream on the Peacock network and is looking for production people in Iowa to help.
The leader of the Iowa Office of Media Production, Liz Gilman, says they won’t be filming at the original movie site in Dyersville. “It’s a little too built up for what they need for the storyline, because they’re really diving into more of like I said, more of a prequel, and more of the backstory of what happened before Ray Kinsella, you know, plowed up his cornfield and put a baseball field there,” Gilman says.
The movie site is also hosting major and minor league games at the same time the filming for the streaming series will be going on. So the producers will build a set for the series in central Iowa.
“They will be kind of constructing their own field of dreams and a new farmhouse here in the greater Des Moines area,” Gilman explains.
Gilman says all types of people are needed here in Iowa to get the production going. “There’ll be construction, there’ll be catering, transportation, there’ll be needing to prop things. So set decoration, really all kinds of different jobs that are available, besides the usual that you’d think of with like, you know, makeup artists, and camera people and sound and such like that,” according to Gilman.
She encourages anyone interested in working on the project to go to produce iowa.com and register on their free media production directory. “You just go on there and create your own listing, and then you can upload your resume, or if you have an IMDB site or a website, and really kind of sell yourself on this listing,” Gilman says. “So when people come to town, even other, you know, producers that work on commercials or TV shows and things — they check out our media production directory, and that’s how Iowans are hired.”
Gilman says the production and building of the site is the first step in the process. They will also be looking for people to appear in the show. “We are going to be looking for extras. They’re working with casting people, and they will be setting up some of their needs with casting in the next few weeks. So that’s why we would encourage people to sign up on Facebook with our Produce Iowa,” she says.
Gilman says the producers need some dry weather for another key part of the series site. “They have a site determined and soon, as soon as it warms up enough they can start planting their corn ,” she says, “that’s been the big thing. It’s just watching and waiting for Iowa to warm up so they can plant the corn and then they’ll be clearing the land and creating the new field.”
Gilman says the site is in Polk County, but they are not giving out the exact location yet. Other filming will take place in Mahaska, Clinton and Boone counties.