Transients Fun Facts

1. 95% of the film was shot in Redlands. The two major locations were Ford Park and Prospect Park.

2. The original script was written in the winter of 2007 and was five pages long.

3. The film is dedicated to Paul Longmore, a disability rights activist and scholar, who passed away in August 2010.

4. Percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie inspired the character of Sal, played by Douglas Ridloff.

5. Teal Sherer, actress, producer, and activist, was director Rhianon Gutierrez's first choice to play Sandrine.

6. One major scene in the film involves a silk routine performed by aerialists Jennifer Bricker and Nathan Crawford.

7. There were nine deaf women who were involved with the production as cast or crew members.

8. The character of Sal was first written as a musician, but later became a musician and ASL poet.

9. The film was shot over a period of ten months: five days in 2010 and four days in 2011.

10. The film is open captioned by our editor, Alex Lotz. He also did the captions for the videos on My Gimpy Life's YouTube channel, created by Teal Sherer.

11. The film was shot on the Canon 7D.

12. The role of Gabe, played by musician and actor Marco Aiello, was written specifically for him. He also composed the music for the film's score.

13. The poster image includes teacups hanging from trees. Director Rhianon Gutierrez cites Alice in Wonderland as one of the inspirations for the film's design.

14. The entire film was shot in the daylight, on location. Only one scene used some artificial light.

15. Several of our crew members make cameo appearances in the film as festival goers.

16. Half of the crew are alumni of Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, notably director Rhianon Gutierrez, co-producers Eric Soth and Mike Cox, editor Alex Lotz, and production designer Andrea Mgebroff. Other crew members are graduates of the film schools of USC, the American Film Institute, Southern Methodist University, and Ryerson University In Toronto.

17. The director's favorite shot occurs at the 1:45 mark in this exclusive sneak preview of the opening: http://vimeo.com/32699003.

18. The film was partially financed with money from the Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Scholarship given by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Foundation for the director's undergraduate thesis film, "When I'm Not Alone" (2009).

19. The film features a stilt walker, played by Stina Pederson. Her character was inspired by athlete, model, and speaker Aimee Mullins.

20. The final scene in the film contains an art piece inspired by environmental artist Andy Goldsworthy.

21. Douglas Ridloff, a native of New York City, was the only actor who auditioned via Skype. The rest auditioned in person in Los Angeles.

22. A sculpture inspired by the giant spider sculpture in the National Gallery of Art's sculpture garden in Washington DC makes a brief appearance in the film.

23. Musician Collin Martin taught actor Douglas Ridloff how to play the djimbe drum for the production.

24. Yes, there's a shot we did in the water. It was scary, and it made the final cut.

25. Sound mixer Leonardo Nasca and actress Teal Sherer previously worked together on the hit web series "The Guild".

26. There were eight interpreters on set at different times throughout the production.

27. There's a documentary that's being made about the making of "Transients", titled "M.O.S.".

28. One of our crew members, Bill O'Neill, is an Emmy award-winning cinematographer. His nephew was a student of the director's mother. They discovered this connection after he had joined the production as Key Grip.

29. It was a family affair. The director's family was involved in the production, and the lead actors' partners were involved as cast or crew members.

30. The director celebrated her birthday on set in 2010.

31. The filmmakers believe in authenticity in casting. All roles that have a person with a disability are played by a person who has that actual disability. In addition, many of the featured artists and extras are Deaf even though their characters are not defined as hearing or deaf.