By Jeremy Selweski
C & G Staff Writer

FERNDALE — Residents on one city street are getting a taste of Hollywood this month, as they curiously buzz about to catch glimpses of the movie being filmed in their own backyard.

Since July 9, “Youth in Revolt,” a new film starring Michael Cera, Ray Liotta, Steve Buscemi, Fred Willard and Jean Smart has been filming at a house in the 300 block of Leroy Street.

“Youth in Revolt” is a dark comedy based on a 1993 episotolary novel by author C.D. Payne. The story centers on an adolescent boy who gets swept up in a wave of crime while pursuing his dream girl and struggling to deal with the oddball behavior of his parents.

Shooting first at various locations across the state — including Frankfort, Interlochen, Wixom and Monroe — director Miguel Arteta then came to Ferndale, choosing the house on Leroy as the location for several scenes.

The street itself has been closed off and features crew members, actors and curious neighbors scurrying about amid the heavy security. Nearby, in the parking lot of the Zion Lutheran Church at the corner of Leroy and Woodward Avenue, sit more than a dozen trailers and trucks that serve as the film crew’s headquarters.

“Youth in Revolt” continues a trend this year of movies being filmed in metro Detroit — including Clint Eastwood’s “Gran Torino” and “Prayers for Bobby,” starring Sigourney Weaver — on the heels of a new state incentive package meant to draw filmmakers to Michigan through tax credits.

Though the filmmakers of “Youth in Revolt” have done a good job of ensuring that their work remains a fairly tight-lipped secret, many surrounding residents have enjoyed the commotion, getting wrapped up in the whirlwind of big-time movie production that has suddenly popped up in their quiet neighborhood.

Some, like Darin Francis, who lives on Leroy, have found themselves star-struck by the famous actors casually strolling up and down their street.

“When Michael Cera walks past your house five times a day, you tend to take notice,” Francis said of the young star of last year’s hit movie, “Superbad.” “We’re all living vicariously through movie stars right now.”

You can reach Staff Writer Jeremy Selweski at jselweski@candgnews.com or at (586) 218-5004.