Kelli Nyre, first lady of Iona College, has a vivid memory of a note she found on her doorstep last year. This note wasn’t just any note — it was a note from the scouting team looking for locations to film some of Steven Spielberg’s new film, “The Post.”

She spoke to President Dr. Joseph E. Nyre, her husband, about the possibility of having them use their home. He said yes, and after some discussions with the scout and with the help of the Office of Conference Services, the house wa¬s chosen by the scout.

The Nyre family’s on-campus home was used for select scenes in “The Post.” The film, which was nominated for two Academy Awards, focuses on The Washington Post’s publication of the Pentagon Papers. The filming at the president’s home took place on July 14, 2017, according to Allen Chen, manager of conference services at Iona.

The cast stars Tom Hanks as Ben Bradlee, the paper’s editor, and Meryl Streep as Katherine “Kay” Graham, the first female publisher of an American newspaper, according to the film’s IMDb page.

The Nyres’ home was used for several scenes as Graham’s home. The living room, dining room, entryway and exterior of the home were used in the film. The living and dining rooms were switched for the set.

One scene shows Graham, her daughter—played by Alison Brie—and other colleagues having dinner.

The Nyres were away in Italy as part of Joseph Nyre’s sabbatical the day they filmed. Because of this, they did not get to meet Spielberg or Streep. He did say that there were college employees on the set who were able to meet the cast and crew.

Joseph Nyre said that he was told that Spielberg, Streep and the production team commented on how “warm and welcoming” Iona was and how it made him proud to hear that.

Kelli Nyre said that one of her friends is a talent agent who had met with Streep in Hollywood recently. She said that once the Nyres’ home was brought up in conversation, Streep said that the warmth of the home helped her with her performance in the scenes.

Their four children are fans and were excited to have Spielberg in the house. The film director signed a copy of a “Jurassic Park” book that he found in the Nyres’ family room—which he used as his green room—for the kids.

They came back from Italy the following day, and found the home still dressed for the 1970s. Both Kelli Nyre and Joseph Nyre said that soon after, all of the original furniture and home items were returned to their exact spots — they said that they were impressed with how exact the placements were. He did say that some of their furniture was used in the film, which they enjoyed seeing.

Chen, who was on set for the shoot, also was impressed with the process. Chen said that the filming began at around 5:30 a.m. and ended at midnight. A few days before and after the shoot date were used for taking out and replacing the furniture.

Joseph Nyre said that they were understandably concerned about moving their furniture out – specifically moving their grand piano – but were impressed and said that the team was very reliable with the family’s items.

He said that the college received a fee for allowing them to film on campus. He said that this was helpful – he said the college’s focus is to make tuition as affordable for students, and this is one of the ways that the college can help achieve this. He said that they were contacted as a follow-up to make sure everything was back to their liking. Both Chen and the Nyres said that local businesses were involved with the process as well.

Joseph Nyre did say that he offered to waive the fee to use the house if one of the members of the project—including Streep, Hanks, Spielberg, etc.—could speak at the 2018 commencement, but they couldn’t commit their schedules.

They have seen the film – Kelli Nyre said that it captured an important moment in American history well.

When it comes to Iona being used for other projects, Joseph Nyre said that the college’s primary focus is to provide an “excellent education” and choose what is best for students.

“It’s not our primary goal [to have projects filmed here], but when you have people like Steven Spielberg on your campus, I think it’s pretty great,” Joseph Nyre said.

He also said that he wishes the college could have let students know that they were filming so that they could have experienced it too, but they ultimately respected the filming process and the non-disclosure agreement.

Other films that were shot at Iona include “Listen Up Phillip,” a 2014 film starring Jason Schwartzman and Elisabeth Moss.