FARMINGTON -- The independent feature film "Tumbledown," set in and around Farmington, is still in the preliminary stages of production but its producers didn't want to miss out on filming this year's spectacular fall foliage.

Over several days this week, screenplay writer Desi Van Til -- a 1995 graduate of Mt. Blue High School -- her husband Sean Mewshaw, the film's director, and a small crew could be seen shooting at sites in Farmington, Wilton and in Weld.

On Monday afternoon, Mewshaw was perched with his 35 mm film camera in a crane bucket above Broadway in downtown Farmington. Other venues on the schedule were sites around Farmington, Crowell Pond in Vienna, Tumbledown Mountain from Webb Lake in Weld, and scenic sites along Route 156 in Wilton.

"Our dream is to shoot a feature film around Farmington where the script is set. And because the weather has been good and the foliage is so lovely, we thought we would do the secondary photography now because it would help establish a location," Van Til said.

The clips, which also include some scenes, would be used to present to potential investors, she said.

Van Til and Mewshaw, both English majors who graduated from Princeton University in New Jersey, met in Los Angeles where they worked in the film industry. They recently relocated to Maine.

The leading female role is being cast and a well-known Hollywood star is looking at the script right now, Van Til said.

"If we can succeed in attracting a big-name talent, we feel we will be in a good position to attract financing," she said.