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Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 1 of / 10 Caption Close Image 2 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 3 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 4 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 5 of 10 Image 6 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 7 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 8 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 9 of 10 The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. The crew of 'Zombie Reign' films in front of the Alamo on Wednesday. Photo: Benjamin Olivo / mySA.com Image 10 of 10 Zombies in front of Alamo spark criticism 1 / 10 Back to Gallery

Early Wednesday morning, the sun still sitting low in the eastern sky, crews for an in-the-works TV show called “Zombie Reign” were filming their last scene in front of the Alamo. But a photo of the production posted on the Downtown San Antonio Facebook page and San Antonio subreddit sparked some criticism from people who said it’s disrespectful of the site of the Battle of the Alamo.

From Scott Jones on Facebook:

I don’t think they should be filming any movie in front of the Alamo or on Alamo plaza…especially a zombie movie…Alamo plaza is a battlefield where blood was spilled for Texas Independence. The city let’s this happen and I think its very disrespectful

From Christine Crawford Van Wyk on Facebook:

The Alamo is hallowed ground. Nobody should be filming, drinking, dancing, partying, or peeing on the grounds. Anybody that thinks that’s ok is a complete and utter fool.

from o0joshua0o on reddit:

Disrespectful morons!

…wait, doesn’t this give the city more media exposure and increase revenue in the form of permit fees?

Ramiro Avendano, the TV show’s director, said the intent was to showcase San Antonio, and it’s major landmarks, not disrespect the Alamo. With “Zombie Reign,” he’s trying to bring exposure to his hometown the way “The Walking Dead” did for Georgia.

“It was an honor to even be allowed to do what we did,” Avendano said. “I definitely do apologize for anyone who would be offended, but that was just for us to show that San Antonio can be a place to film a series.”

Others on social media defended the filming.

From Michael Rogers on Facebook:

Scott, Does that mean there should be no smiling or laughing in and around the Alamo? And truth be told there are very few places on this planet where blood hasn’t been spilled for one reason or another. It’s just a building. An historic one, no doubt. But this is entertainment. Wasn’t Phil Collins going to perform there? And everyone was all happy about it. This is no different. It’s all entertainment.

From Adam Nagle on Facebook:

Yes no fun at alamo .. Keep San Antonio lame ..

From Rockhead Rodriguez on Facebook:

badass!

“Zombie Reign” is still in the pilot phase, Avendano said. But he said he’s in talks with a Las Vegas production company to pick up the show and eventually pitch it to the networks. He said a number of financial supporters have showed enough interest that he plans to begin filming the series in early June. However, he needs to have a pilot/teaser in the bag, first, in order to make the show a reality.

Avendano’s crew has been filming for a year, and the Alamo shoot was the last.

For Drew Mayer-Oakes, director of Film San Antonio, the city department that issues film permits, the TV show’s potential exposure for the Alamo City was enough to allow the filming, but it was not without reservation.

“We don’t (issue Alamo Plaza permits) every day, but we want to try to support the locals as best we can,” Mayer-Oakes said. “And this was an important part for them to get this project sold.”

Film permits for Alamo Plaza cost $200 per day. They are typically granted to travel and food TV shows, and, on occasion, news crews like CNN and The Today Show. For the “Zombie Reign” shoot, Mayer-Oakes was on-sight and limited the filming to two hours.

“We try to just get them in and get them out,” Mayer-Oakes said. “Like I said, it’s a fine line for us to support these guys and let them get what they need and also respect the historical nature of the facility, and the aspect of it being a shrine.”

Avendano takes pride in the concept for his zombie TV show, which he conceived seven years ago, before “The Walking Dead” debuted on AMC. In his zombie world, doctors found a cure for Alzheimer’s Disease, but that when people die, the brain keeps going. It doesn’t stop.

“‘Walking Dead’ is a great show, and we want to go a little bit further,” Avendano said.

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