Naman Shrestha
With Nadia Latif at the helm, Hulu’s ‘The Man in My Basement’ is a mystery thriller movie adapted from the eponymous novel written by Walter Mosley. It acquaints us with a down-on-his-luck, unemployed African-American man named Charles Blakey, who is on the verge of losing his ancestral home in Sag Harbor, New York. Unexpectedly, a mysterious, wealthy businessman named Anniston Bennet shows up at his door and makes a lucrative offer to rent out the dusty basement of his house for the entire summer. Since he would receive enough money to clear all his debts, Charles accepts the offer and welcomes him.
Soon after Anniston moves into the basement, Charles becomes familiar with his strange world and entertains several of his bizarre requests. The landlord is later forced to face his family’s ghosts, turning the summer into an uncomfortable puzzle full of manipulation. Starring Corey Hawkins, Willem Dafoe, Anna Diop, and Tamara Lawrance, the film is set in the African-American neighborhood of Sag Harbor, New York, in the early 1990s. Since the story mostly unfolds inside Charles’ ancestral house, the claustrophobia adds to the tension of the narrative.
The Man in My Basement Filming Locations
Although set in a New York village, ‘The Man in My Basement’ is entirely filmed across Wales, specifically in Cardiff, Swansea, and Carmarthenshire. Principal photography for the thriller got underway in late January 2024 and seemingly wrapped up after a few weeks in February of the same year. According to reports, the cast and crew found everything that the script demanded within 50 miles of their base camp, which allowed them to save a lot of time and budget.
Cardiff, Wales
A significant chunk of ‘The Man in My Basement’ was lensed in the capital of Wales, Cardiff, which doubles as Sag Harbor, New York. Talking about shooting in Cardiff with Willem Dafoe, Corey Hawkins told Forbes, “It was an interesting process working with him, and I valued every single moment of it. It was very tiring, and at the time I was also training for a marathon in Wales, where we were filming. We also saw a rugby game together in Cardiff. It was our first time going to see a rugby game, and we had a blast, because we didn’t know what the hell was going on.”
The dramatic scene where Anniston tells Charles, “I don’t want to play anymore,” was lit by just a flashlight. The cinematographer, Ula Pontikos, revealed that the color, quality, and intensity were significant components for the shot. He told The Credits that he placed a polyboard just off-camera so as to illuminate Charles’ face just enough. “Sometimes, you’d find me or Willem himself holding that board to keep the exposure back on Charles’s face to get a return of the single source light. But a little extra came when Willem suggested moving the torch itself during the moment Anniston grabs Charles. That subtle motion – the light shaking, flickering, becoming nervous – didn’t just illuminate the scene; it added great tension to the scene,” he added.
Swansea, Wales
The filming unit of ‘The Man in My Basement’ also traveled to the coastal city of Swansea, situated along Swansea Bay in Southwest Wales. One of the bungalows in a quiet suburb of the city was utilized to stand in for the residence of Clarence Mayhew. Moreover, Swansea Marina portrayed Sag Harbor’s Main Street, while the beaches on Mumbles Road doubled for the Long Island beaches in the film. The cast and crew members also reportedly took over the Brangwyn Hall on Guildhall Road South. Named after the artist Frank Brangwyn, the concert venue was transformed into Sag Harbor’s bank and library.
Carmarthenshire, Wales
For the purpose of shooting, the production team of ‘The Man in My Basement’ set up camp across the county of Carmarthenshire. To be specific, the village of Llandybie served as a prominent filming site for many pivotal sequences. One of the wood-built Grade II-listed properties located on Ammanford Road stood in for the shop run by Narciss Gully. Not only was the exterior of the house used, but its interiors were also utilized for shooting. They changed the fittings and furnishings in order to transform it into an antiques and quilting shop. Several important portions were also taped on the Llandeilo Road Industrial Estate in Llandybie, while they set up base at the Llandybie Rugby Club.
During a conversation with Forbes, Dafoe revealed how they managed to maintain the tension in the basement. He stated, “We would shoot. There wasn’t extensive blocking because the space is quite simple, so when we’re playing those basement scenes, we’re trying to make contact with what we have to say and what we want from the other person. I didn’t try to surprise Corey…We’re working together, I’m not trying to provoke a reaction in him, I’m using him, and he’s using me because we’re using each other’s characters to arrive at some peace with this, with our deep, dark secrets and the pain we’re both going through in very different ways.”
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