Hollywood Lights Shine on Ellicott City YMCA

By Tuesday morning, there were no local runners to be found on the Dancel Family Center Y's treadmills or area residents to be found working out on its elliptical machines.

Instead, the center became home to Hollywood actors, set people and production assistants during a day-long shoot of the HBO comedy VEEP. 

According to the Internet Movie Database, VEEP is a story about a former senator, Selina Meyer, who finds being vice president of the United States "nothing like she expected, and everything everyone ever warned her about."

The show stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the actress who played Elaine on Seinfeld, as Vice President Meyer. The show's cast also includes actress Anna Chlumsky of My Girl fame along with Tony Hale, who played the zany character, Buster, on Arrested Development. 

As a result of the shoot, the Y was shuttered for a day to its members.

Posted on its website, the Y stated, "We are very sorry for any inconvenience this will cause. We are pleased to let you know that HBO is making a significant contribution to the Y which will enable us to help more children, families and seniors in Howard County stay healthy and strong."

There were no area residents trying to get a glimpse of the Hollywood action Tuesday morning. Instead, a half-dozen crew members swarmed the outside of the facility along with several YMCA staffers alerting Y members that the building was closed. In the meantime the Y's windows were blacked out, while the shooting went on behind closed doors. 

As we , before the shoot began, HBO told Dancel Center Director Dawn Chrystal-Wolfe that filming will be done on a closed set, meaning that locals would not be used as extras.  

In a statement, Gov. Martin O'Malley praised the economic benefits of having HBO come back to the state.  

“This project will not only bring new jobs to Maryland, but will also benefit local businesses that will serve the cast and crew during production,” he said in a statement. The production is expected to create some 2,000 jobs.

Filming will reportedly occur in other locations around the state, including the Maryland Institute College of Art and DLA Piper, an international law firm with offices in Mount Washington.

Filming has also taken place on a soundstage in Columbia, according to the Baltimore Sun. This past summer, HBO shot the film Game Change in Maryland, according to the governor's office and the Maryland Film Office.

Previous  HBO productions filmed in Maryland include Shot in the Heart, Something the Lord Made, The Corner and The Wire. Maryland’s newly enacted Film Production Employment Act of 2011 offers a partial tax credit for local production expenditures and encourages producers to use local film crews, according to a press release.

Note: This story was corrected to remove from the fifth paragraph that the facility would be closing early this Thursday. The facility will be open for regular hours Thursday, Oct. 13. It will close early Thursday, Oct. 20, for another event.