‘That’s me!’: Glenbard West High School students make documentary about ‘Lucas’ 40 years later

“Lucas,” the 1986 coming-of-age movie, made more than $1 million at the box office in its opening weekend 40 years ago.

In Glen Ellyn, it made fans for life.

Residents who were extras in the film are again seeing themselves on the silver screen at the Glen Art Theatre, both in the feature film and in a well-received documentary made by Glenbard West High School journalism students, “Hollywood on the Hilltop: ‘Lucas’ 40 Years Later.”

“Lucas,” starring Corey Haim, Kerri Green, Charlie Sheen and Winona Ryder, was filmed at various suburban locations, including Glenbard West, the Glen Art Theatre, Lake Ellyn Park in Glen Ellyn and the former Arlington High School in Arlington Heights.

“That’s me!” Glen Art Theatre owner Eric White overheard March 19, when a large crowd attended the first day of the special engagement.

“Lucas” and a five-minute trailer of “Hollywood on the Hilltop” will run at the Glen Art through April 2.

David Save and fellow Glenbard West teacher Sarah Zayas are looking to publish the 13-minute, 31-second documentary on Friday on gwhsnews.org, the website of The Glen Bard student newspaper.

The full version of the documentary was screened in the theater on opening day.

“I think it turned out really well,” said Save, who cosponsors the newspaper club with Zayas. “I’m really proud of the kids. They did an incredible job. They were learning a lot of this on the fly, and I think they have a lot of professionalism, a lot of focus, great work ethic.”

Glenbard West seniors Josephine Dibben, Sam LaPalm and Annalise Ricci; juniors Cait Alligood and Maeve Brannegan; sophomore Kathryn White; and freshman Jack Lafontaine worked on the documentary.

It sprang from an idea by Principal Ben Peterselli and activities coordinator Peter Baker to revisit the 40th anniversary of “Lucas,” a Twentieth Century Fox film now owned by Disney.

Much of the work was interviewing residents and former students about their memories of the shooting in the summer of 1985.

“We’d bring in people either over Zoom or into the school. We’d discuss their experiences, some personal stories, and just the general vibe of what was going around during the production of ‘Lucas’ to try and get that perspective,” said LaPalm, a prospective college film production student who was the documentary’s primary editor.

“Lucas” gave actor and producer Tom Hodges, a former Glenbard West student, his first speaking role. Hodges did an interview for the documentary, as did Steve Horvath, who was Haim’s stunt double during football scenes.

“My dad (Ben) was in middle school when they were actually filming,” Lafontaine said. “He said pretty much what a lot of the actual students said. It was such a mesmerizing experience to see all these people come in and have Glen Ellyn, which is a pretty small town, have a big movie being filmed.”

A February start made the students work under a tight schedule.

“What is really cool is seeing how quickly the students adapted to their role,” said Zayas, who added it was the first time students interviewed people “outside of school” or worked on a documentary.

“They took on responsibility and were filling in for last-minute interviews anytime they popped up. They did such a nice job, and it’s so cool to see the results, too, because it looks so well-done,” Zayas said.

The Glen Ellyn Historical Society contributed period memorabilia and newspaper clippings for viewing in the Glen Art lobby to accompany the run. There’s also a re‑imagining of the film’s local shooting locations crafted by the student filmmakers.

White, who 40 years ago sold concessions at the theater then owned by his uncle, Tom Loftus, remembered a scene with Sheen at the counter, and the “insanity” of the “Lucas” 1986 debut at the Glen Art.

According to White, Loftus negotiated with film executives that if they wanted to film in his theater, the Glen Art must also host the premiere.

When the movie returned to the Glen Art last week, the lobby buzzed with nostalgia.

“Somebody quotes the documentary,” White said, “and the guy’s like, ‘Yeah, I was in that movie for three seconds, and I rode that for 40 years.’”