Shawshank Redemption: behind-the-scenes

The Introduction Of Miranda Rights

In the film, Red says that Andy broke out of Shawshank in 1966. This was the same year as the landmark Miranda v. Arizona case before the Supreme Court. It was this case that established that a defendant must be informed of his or her rights during the process of being arrested. This is why at the end of the film when they arrest Captain Hadley, the police can be heard reading him his Miranda Rights. Doing this helped with historical accuracy.

The Iconic Rock Wall

The rock wall where Andy leaves Red money with directions and money for travel was built for the film and remained standing for years after. It was made by hand by the art department several months before filming so that it would look overgrown and weathered by the time they shot at the site. However, the wall was eventually sold, rock by rock, on eBay by the farmer who owned the land. The tree remains, although it was struck by lightning in 2011. Part of the wall also remains on the grounds of the Ohio State Reformatory.

The Trailways Coach Is Still Up And Running

Near the end of the film, we see Red board a Trailways coach (bus). The actual bus is a GM PD-4104 that was built in 1960 and later delivered to the Carolina Scenic Trailways. In 1990, the late John Holbein, the owner of the Blue Ridge Trailways, found and restored the bus as it’s seen in The Shawshank Redemption. Currently, it is the property of Capital Trailways which is based in Montgomery, Alabama. Some people have been lucky enough to ride in it.

Working with a Bird

In the scene when Andy arrives at the library to begin his new position as Brooks’ assistance, Brook’s crow Jake is squawking. In order to film the scene, Robbins had to time his line, “Hey Jake, where’s Brooks?” so that the bird didn’t squawk while he was talking.  Over time, Robbins became acquainted with the bird and began to pick up its squawking pattern so that it never ruined a scene, something that Darabont commended him for. If you look closely, you can see Robbins paying close attention to the bird, waiting for it to squawk before saying his line.

The Maggot Dilemma

In the film, the elderly man Brooks, who works in the prison library has a pet crow. Because they were working with a live animal, the scenes with the crow were heavily monitored by the American Human Association. In the scene when Brooks feeds his crow a maggot, the AHA stepped in claiming that it was cruel to the maggot and that they would have to use a maggot that had died of natural causes. Amazingly, the production team found a maggot that met the AHA’s standards and the scene was filmed.

Deleted Scenes

Although the film feels complete, there were a few scenes that were cut that added a little more depth to the plot. One of these was the inmates finding Brooks’ pet crow dead in a field and giving it a proper burial after Brooks’ is paroled. In another scene, Tommy’s wife visits him, which encourages him to turn his life around and focus on getting his GED.

Making Sewage

In the climax of the film, Andy Dufresne, escapes from Shawshank Prison by tunneling through the walls and leaving through the sewers. During his escape, he is forced to crawl through a sewage pipe that is full of human waste from the prison. Obviously, the sludge that Andy crawls through isn’t human waste. It’s actually a mixture of chocolate syrup, sawdust, and water. According to visitors of the prison, the pipes still smell like chocolate decades later.

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