Film shoot to close road in Dover

DOVER PLAINS — West Dover Road will be closed from July 23 to Aug 10 due to filming “A Quiet Place: Part III,” the fourth movie in the “A Quiet Place” franchise.

The road along the Starkdale Farms property will be closed to through traffic during production. Residents are being told to use Old Pawling Road and Pleasant Ridge Road to access Route 22 by the Pawling Lake Property Owners Association.

Film crews filmed scenes on the same road for “A Quiet Place,” which was directed by “The Office” star John Krasinski and released in 2018. “A Quiet Place: Part II” returned to film in the Hudson Valley and was released in 2021, with both films accumulating millions of dollars for the local economy in the region. “A Quiet Place: Part III,” directed by John Krasinski, is set to release July 30, 2027.

“A Quiet Place” is a movie franchise about a post-apocalyptic world in which monsters roam the Earth and hunt with the use of sound. Humans use American Sign Language to communicate with each other while living in silence to survive. The series is based around the Abbott family, which includes parents Lee, played by John Krasinski, and Evelyn, played by Emily Blunt, and children Regan, played by Millicent Simmonds, and Marcus, played by Noah Jupe.

Residents in the area have taken to social media to share their thoughts on the closure of West Dover Road. Many are apprehensive about the filming because of the upcoming detours and road closure, while others are excited about the opportunity the town has to be a part of this franchise.

Community members Tracy and Sean Fleischman say that as movie lovers themselves, they’re excited for the town to be involved in such a popular franchise. Sean Fleischman says that with the involvement the town has in the filming process, there should be more opportunities for people in the community to get involved.

“They have to get permits, and people on planning boards know about these things. They should leverage that and say, ‘Hey, you know, we want you to do something at the local school,’” Fleischman said. “You know, really get some kind of grassroots thing going where they encourage the youth to go into film.”

Amanda Dykeman and her husband, Henry Dykeman, are the fourth generation operating Dykeman Farm on the road where filming will take place. She said the collaboration between the crew and the farm has been positive since the first movie’s filming, as they’ve been mindful of supporting local businesses throughout the process.

“They’re very sensitive to make sure that we can still access any crops that were in need of harvesting or maintaining,” Dykeman said. “It’s pretty exciting to know that something like this comes to town — it doesn’t come to everybody’s town.”

The farm housed the corn used during scenes in the first movie, and both Amanda and Henry Dykeman received recognition in the film’s credits.

The West Dover Road closure will affect the usual access residents have to local businesses like the farm. Dykeman said the alternative routes will take a few extra minutes to drive, but they’ve created new signage that will clearly mark the detour and ensure people can easily understand how to approach the site.

“We’re going to remain hopeful that everybody will understand that it’s just a few days in our life,” Dykeman said. “A minor inconvenience, but an inconvenience for a pretty awesome experience, and some extra revenue to the area that can help us upgrade things without an increase in taxes.”