Actor Dave Annable flashed a shaka and a smile at the camera after filming a two-minute take.

During breaks, Katharine McPhee burst into spontaneous song, from "The Star Spangled Banner" to E-40's "U and Dat" — complete with playful dancing.

And Rob Schneider rocked some short, short shorts while shooting his scenes earlier in the day.

The antics helped pass a long day of filming this week in Mokule'ia for the cast and crew of "You May Not Kiss the Bride," a romantic adventure comedy scheduled to hit theaters nationwide next year. Set in Chicago and Tahiti, and filmed entirely on O'ahu, the movie is produced by Honolulu-based Hawaii Film Partners.

"It has been such an incredible experience," Annable (seen weekly on ABC's "Brothers and Sisters") said on set at Dillingham Airfield, which was filling in as Tahiti's Papeete Airport. "I'm having so much fun."

The movie revolves around Annable's character, a pet photographer who accidentally maims the cat of a Croatian mobster's wife and, as an alternative to swimming with the fishes, is forced to marry their daughter (McPhee) to keep her in the country. It also stars Tia Carrere, Mena Suvari, Vinnie Jones and Ken Davitian.

"We're just thrilled that we're producing a movie in Hawai'i that will compete in the world market," said Rann Watumull, co-founder and executive producer at Hawaii Film Partners, who was on set working all day. Partners also include Gina Watumull, David Jackson and Shauna Shapiro Jackson.

Carrere, who plays a cocktail waitress in Tahiti, said she's happy to be home for the project.

"It's a beautiful place to grow up and always a shame to leave," Carrere said after wrapping her scenes for the day.

ISLAND FEVER

Some of the cast and crew were shaded from sunshine and showers under the wing of a Cessna airplane, used in the backdrop of a scene. Despite the wacky weather and long hours, they kept the humor going throughout the day.

"It's a real shame Hawai'i is so ugly," a playful Annable joked after filming a scene, then fessed up, "Actually, I enjoy Hawai'i and I enjoy the people."

Annable said he hopes to extend his stay and visit either Kaua'i or Maui after completing the movie.

"Rann is the greatest producer ever," Annable randomly added, smirking, as Watumull stood beside him.

McPhee, an "American Idol" first runner-up, said she's just as taken by the Islands.

"When I found out I got the part I was excited, then when I found out we were filming in Hawai'i I was triple excited," said McPhee, dressed for a scene in a floral halter bikini and matching sarong.

Davitian, who plays McPhee's mobster father, said he has enjoyed sightseeing in Waikiki and at Turtle Bay, and snorkeling for the first time in his life.

"I don't want to go home," said Davitian, best known as Sacha Baron Cohen's sidekick in "Borat."

During a lunch break, Davitian joined the rest of the cast and crew who were shuttled back to the production's base camp, where the playfulness continued.

"I was 128 pounds when I came here," the rotund Davitian quipped as he walked to his trailer with a full plate in hand.

LOCAL TALENT

There was a constant flurry of activity on set among the scores of crew members, including director Rob Hedden, who wrote the film's screenplay.

"It's hard to think that I'm not going to do my next movie here," Hedden said during another quick break.

Hedden and others from the Mainland who are working on the movie emphasized their appreciation for what Hawai'i has to offer the film industry.

"Shooting in Hawai'i is always such a pleasure," said director of photography Russ T. Alsobrook ("Paul Bart: Mall Cop" and "Forgetting Sarah Marshall"). The local crews are fantastic and the locales are ... spectacular. You can't describe it any other way."

Besides using Dillingham Airfield as a Tahitian airport, producers got creative with their various settings. Some of their Chicago scenes include Oceans 808 as "Club Zagreb," where a wedding reception takes place, and a brick building in Chinatown as the main character's photo studio. Watumull said computer effects will be used to create the Chicago skyline in the film.

Local casting includes entertainer Willie K as a Tahitian village chief and Jeanne Rogers, real-life wife of Scott Rogers, president of the local Academy of Film & Television, as the mother of McPhee's character.

The production's cast and crew is made up of about 150 people, 90 percent of whom are from Hawai'i, Watumull said.

"I feel like I've got the best of both worlds," Watumull said of his Mainland and local colleagues. "We've pull- ed together the best of the best."