Dawn of the Dead

***Dawn of the Dead*** is both Zack Snyder's directorial debut into feature films, as well as Cruel and Unusual Films' first production. The film is a loose remake of George Romero's 1978 film of the same name.

## Synopsis

> When her husband is attacked by a zombified neighbor, Ana (Sarah Polley) manages to escape, only to realize her entire Milwaukee neighborhood has been overrun by the walking dead. After being questioned by cautious policeman Kenneth (Ving Rhames), Ana joins him and a small group that gravitates to the local shopping mall as a bastion of safety. Once they convince suspicious security guards that they are not contaminated, the group bands together to fight the undead hordes.
>
> --Official synopsis

***An extended plot for Dawn of the Dead can be found here.***
## Production

Richard P. Rubinstein held the rights to George Romero's *Dawn of the Dead* (1978) for a number of years, hearing pitches from many production teams seeking to remake the movie but never hearing anything that motivated him to sell until he heard from Eric Newman. Newman hired James Gunn to write a script. Gunn was already a fan of the original film and jumped at the chance to adapt it for modern audiences with a larger budget. He wrote the film without a treatment, imagining himself alongside the characters as they tried to figure out how to survive.

The movie was written with the same core premise as the original film, but with an entirely different set of characters living out a separate plot. It's only a "remake" in a very loose sense. When Gunn finished the script and left the project to work on his next one, Michael Tolkin was brought in to add character development and Scott Frank to punch up the action sequences. Production looked at a few abandoned malls, settling on one in Ontario, Canada for the shoot. They stripped everything away and rebuilt the mall for their purposes, including creating almost entirely fictional stores. Real stores were hesitant to allow their logos to be sprayed in blood. The only two stores based on real companies were Roots (which is a Canadian clothing company) and Panasonic (which is a real electronics store).

### Filming

Filming took place from June 9, 2003, to September 6, 2003, and was shot mostly chronologically. The movie was filmed at the following locations:

* Caledon, Ontario, Canada
	+ 5 Garden Wood Avenue - Ana Clark's house (exterior)
* Clearwater, Ontario, Canada - Lake Michigan island dock
* Thornhill, Ontario, Canada
	+ Thornhill Library - St. George's Hospital (exterior)
	+ Thornhill Square Mall - Crossroads Mall, Ana Clark's house (interior)
* Toronto, Ontario, Canada
	+ 805a Wellington St. West - Andy's Gun Works (exterior)
	+ Ashbridge's Bay - Balmy Beach Marina
* Los Angeles, California, United States
	+ Park Lake (Universal Studios) - Lake Michigan

***A gallery of images from Dawn of the Dead can be found here.***
## Cast

Sarah Polley
as
Ana ClarkVing Rhames
as
Kenneth HallJake Weber
as
MichaelTy Burrell
as
SteveMekhi Phifer
as
AndreMichael Kelly
as
CJKevin Zegers
as
TerryInna Korobkina
as
Luda
**Full credits**
## Crew

Zack Snyder
DirectorEric Newman
ProducerMarc Abraham
ProducerRichard P. Rubinstein
ProducerJames Gunn
ScreenwriterTyler Bates
Music byClay Staub
Second unit directorDamon Caro
Stunt coordinator
Zombie fight choreographerRichard Cetrone
Stunts
**Full credits**
## Production companies

Universal Pictures
Production
DistributionCruel & Unusual Films, Inc.
Production
(uncredited)
## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Surviving the Dawn" featurette.
2. ↑ Zack Snyder and Eric Newman, *Dawn of the Dead* film commentary.