TV pilot with Down syndrome star being shot in Chattanooga

Chris McNelly and Andrew Ankar joke around while on the set of a television comedy pilot named "Mac & Drew" that is being filmed at the Bluegrass Grille off of Main Street.
Chris McNelly and Andrew Ankar joke around while on the set of a television comedy pilot named "Mac & Drew" that is being filmed at the Bluegrass Grille off of Main Street.

On a recent Monday, Bluegrass Grille on Main Street looks more like a television set than an actual working restaurant.

A few tables and chairs are set up and the bar and kitchen areas look much like they do when the eatery is up and working, but on this day the front of the house is wall-to-wall lighting and camera equipment. Cables make the floor resemble the snake scene in "Raiders of the Lost Ark"; a high-end digital camera sits on a tripod in the middle of the room and a monitor dominates a corner table.

After a couple of hours getting the lighting and camera angles just right, the cast begins rehearsing.

photo Andrew Ankar awaits his cue while on the set of a television comedy pilot named "Mac & Drew."

Writer/star/producer Chris McNelly ("Believe Me") pulls co-star Andrew Ankar off to the side and tells him, "When Will says 'Door,' you have to run to the kitchen and go all the way in. Can you do that?'"

A smile never leaves Andrew's face as he nods.

Director Will Bakke ("Believe Me," "Beware of Christians," "One Nation Under God") calls for quiet, yells "action," then gives the "door" cue. McNelly pats Ankar on the back and Ankar sets off at a trot through the restaurant towards the kitchen. McNelly follows and begins reciting his dialogue; Ankar reaches the kitchen door, turns and smiles.

And stops.

"Andrew, you've got to go all the way into the kitchen," McNelly says.

Cut.

There are more smiles from Ankar and a hug for McNelly before everything is reset. The scene is run through about a dozen times before Bakke decides to film one.

This is the first day of a week-long shoot for a television pilot called "Mac & Drew." It's about the special relationship between two brothers who work together in a restaurant. McNelly, who plays Mac, says the dramedy is based on his friendship with Ankar, who has Down syndrome and is playing Drew.

Ankar, who will turn 20 next month, is part of the Ankar family, well-known in Chattanooga restaurant circles through their several Ankar's Hoagies locations throughout town. His family owns three Ankar's and he can often be found working at the Hixson location, which is where he met McNelly.

photo Chris McNelly is the producer, writer and co-star of the show which tells the story of two brothers, one with a mental disability, who are working in a restaurant. McNelly is working with a local production company Super Chief as well as local and national talent.

"Chris worked for us when he was younger and he and Andrew became like brothers," says Andrew's mother, Judy. "He loves Chris. Andrew's father died April 1 and he has been in a shell and this has been a little light in his life. He's so excited. He walks around all day saying 'Mac and Drew.'"

Ankar says he loves working at the restaurant.

"I like cooking, flipping burgers and working the counter," he says while the crew readies the set in Bluegrass Grille.

The pilot is being shot here because of Ankar. Getting another actor was never considered, McNelly says.

"Show him your scary face," McNelly says to Ankar. "Now your happy face. And your mad face. He's really good at taking direction."

McNelly, 27, was born in Nashville and lived in Tunnel Hill, Ga., during his high school and early college years. He now lives in Austin, Texas, where Bakke also lives and where both are professional actors. Providing production for the three pilot episodes being filmed here is a crew from Super Chief, a local company; McNelly's Bogus Bijou company is producing.

Also starring in the pilot are Allesondra Helwig, a New York City-based actress, Brady Johnson from Chicago and Chattanooga-based actor Isaac Kirk.

photo The Bluegrass Grille spent a recent day being the set of a television film production.

The run-through-the-kitchen scene is shot a few more times with stops to change a line or a look and -- a few times -- because Ankar stops at the door to smile instead of going through.

"You're going to get really good at going through that door, Andrew," McNelley says at one point.

Between takes and practices, the camera guys laugh and joke with Ankar, who seems to have an unlimited number of smiles and hugs for everybody.

"Everybody loves working with Andrew and just being with him," says pilot co-writer Bryon Spillman.

About midway through one of the takes being filmed, a phone rings. A brief flash of frustration from the crew quickly turns to laughter when everyone realizes it's the restaurant's phone and not someone's cell.

Bluegrass Grille is being used because it is closed on Mondays and available while Ankar's restaurant is open every day, McNelly says. Other scenes will be shot at Covenant College and a local apartment complex.

McNelly says he ultimately hopes the show is picked up by a network or Netflix, but the immediate plan is to make it available online. He isn't sure of the length of each episode and won't know until shooting wraps, he says. The rules -- meaning there are none -- for such things online are different, he says.

"That's the future right now," he said. "We'll see what we end up with and then decide on the length."

Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.

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