Dave Bettencourt, left, of Cranston, and Matthew Harrington, of Providence, film the entrance to the former Rocky Point Amusement Park, in Warwick.

The Providence Journal / Bill Murphy

Rocky Point Amusement Park patrons stroll the midway in this photograph from June 1954.

Journal Files

WARWICK — A blustery autumn afternoon was an appropriate setting for filmmaker Dave Bettencourt and his four-man crew as they shot the weed-strewn ruins of Rocky Point Amusement Park recently. The fact that the park’s Cliff House had burned to the ground just a few days before only added to the desolation.

“This is a cool shot from up here,” said Bettencourt, climbing onto a concrete pad that was once the foundation for the YoYo, a giant revolving swing. One of his crew handed Bettencourt a camera. Like most of Rocky Point’s other rides, the YoYo is long gone, having been sold or otherwise removed — but many buildings, broken games and other vestiges of the park remain.

Bettencourt, who teaches documentary filmmaking at the University of Rhode Island and owns a wedding video and a TV commercial business, is directing and writing an hourlong film about the history of Rocky Point, its demise and its imminent demolition to make way for a residential development on the 123-acre site on scenic Warwick Neck.

“The plan is to document the park as it is today and cover its demolition,” Bettencourt said, “and then from stories, anecdotes, interviews, pictures, home videos, films and archived materials, bring the park back to life. It’s going to be very Ken Burns-esque.” Ken Burns is the acclaimed documentary filmmaker whose subjects have included the Civil War, Mark Twain and baseball.

Like countless other New Englanders, Bettencourt, 31, who grew up in Burrillville and lives now in Cranston, has his own memories of visiting the park, which opened in 1847 and closed after the 1995 season. The park was lifeless for 10 years after the Hurricane of 1938, which caused substantial damage.

After shooting from the YoYo platform, Bettencourt and his crew went to the rubble of the carousel. The painted ponies were sold several years ago, but the collapsed roof, rusting metal and old wires remained.

“The carousel I remember,” said Bettencourt. “I used to sit here on the steps and have ice cream.”

A pale sun cast the grounds in shades of amber, but was powerless against the chill. Except for circling gulls and a security guard who sat alone in his truck, Bettencourt and his young men had the place to themselves. All was quiet but for wind rustling dead leaves.

The filmmakers proceeded down the midway, past concrete footings for the Tilt-a-Whirl and the Spyder, past windowless buildings humbled by peeling paint and tasteless graffiti. Vines have taken root in the House of Horrors and the performance stage’s wooden floor has rotted. Bettencourt, whose last film was a short about a teenage zombie, was fascinated.

“We should definitely get a wide shot of the stage because if we find someone who has home videos of a performance, that would be awesome!” Bettencourt said. One could almost see the ghosts of singers and jugglers and clowns.

The working title of Bettencourt’s film alludes to the height chart that children had to pass before riding certain attractions: YOU MUST BE THIS TALL: The Story of Rocky Point Park. Bettencourt hopes to complete the film next summer for an autumn 2007 release in Rhode Island theaters and on DVD.

Bettencourt is looking for Rocky Point fans to share their memories and memorabilia. For details, visit http://www.rockypointmovie.com/Home.html

Joining Bettencourt on the production are: Matthew Harrington, co-producer and assistant director; Michael Fox, camera operator; Jeff Paradysz, sound; and Liam Gray, researcher.

“I think it’s a great project,” Bettencourt said. “I’m very optimistic. This park was so important to so many people. With demolition being its ultimate closure, I think it’s even more important to document it now. Soon, it will no longer exist.”