The Pitch
Extra, extra!
It's been a minute since I've had the opportunity to step on a movie set. I had the privilege to do so a couple of weekends ago as background on Marisa Guterman and Keith Gerchak's freshman project, "Lost and Found in Cleveland." I say freshman project, but it's my understanding it took several years for the filmmaking duo to bring their script to the screen. Talk about tenacity.
Being on set - anyone's set, for any purpose - was one big, selfish reason I launched Midwest Movie Maker more than a decade ago. Anyone who loves the craft knows what a magical world a movie set can be. On "Lost & Found," I'm a parade attendee, one cheering body among three or four dozen more. My location in the crowd (tucked away on one far side) led me to believe there would be little way you'd see me in the finished project. But then I discovered I was standing next to one of the film's producers - camera B focused directly on him. Score.
I hope to interview Guterman and Gerchak soon, though I suspect they are recovering from a busy shoot, just now wading into post-production. Fingers crossed.
Until then, keep your eye out for "Lost & Found in Cleveland" - and the parade attendee in the orange winter hat.
Dailies
Columbus film center showcasing Black cinema through March
“Pioneers of African American Cinema,” a new series at the Gateway Film Center in Columbus, Ohio, showcases Black filmmakers and actors from over a century ago. Each work has been restored from the early 1900s and will premiere due to local artists and authors who are passionate about bringing these films to the big screen.
The brand-new film series debuted in January and runs through March at the Center.
Pictured is filmmaker Oscar Micheaux. His 1920s era silent film, titled ‘Within Our Gates,’ was a featured presentation and was accompanied by the Columbus Jazz Orchestra, which performed a new score during the presentation.
New documentary film series focuses on Cleveland artisans
About two years ago, Andrew Spirk, the managing director of Clockwork 9, a creative agency that specializes in animation, video production and graphic design, began putting together Artisans of the Land, a documentary film series that would focus on Cleveland artists who do everything from cut hair to frame artwork.
The series recently debuted with a short film about Black Cat Barbershop, a Detroit Shoreway barbershop.
“Those [Black Cat] guys are so passionate about their lives, and it seems so criminal that they have this skill and don’t get recognition for it,” says Spirk in a recent phone call. Episodes about Arko Picture Framing and Cleveland Print Co. have just come out, and three more episodes will be released in the next three weeks. "They’re entrepreneurs like I am and deal with the same kind of issues. They have the same attention to detail and passion for what they do. I doubt most people think about how they cut hair. That’s when it hit me that it would be cool to do documentaries about these entrepreneurs who have true crafts.”
Dayton comedians make friend’s film a reality
“Find Eddie,” written and directed by the late Dayton-area comedian Corey Mintz, premiered Feb. 1. Mintz, who died April 11, 2017, was unable to see the film’s completion, but his friends are going to make sure everyone else does.
“I wanted everyone that helped to see it,” said producer and actor Brock Shank, who met Mintz while performing stand-up comedy at Wiley’s Comedy Club. “It’s a thank you to everyone who helped get it done.”
Behind the Scenes
Downtown street transformed into 1950s New York for 'Wise Guys'
A stretch of downtown Cincinnati is being transformed into 1950s New York for a new movie.
"Wise Guys," a gangster drama starring Robert De Niro, is currently filming Downtown after starting production in the Queen City late last year, Kristen Schlotman, CEO of Film Cincinnati, confirmed to The Enquirer.
A stretch of Eighth Street near Arnold's Bar and Grill was blocked off to cars and pedestrians earlier this week. Film set equipment and vintage cars with New York license plates could be seen nearby.
Russos wanted to shoot 'Avengers: Infinity War' in Cleveland - but no sound stage
Imagine Medina standing in for the rolling hills of Wakanda or the steps of the Sanctum Sanctorum leading down to E. 9th. With a little more infrastructure, it may have happened.
Cleveland natives and "Avengers: Infinity War" directors Joe and Anthony Russo said as much during a Q&A after a screening of the film at the Cleveland Cinematheque in 2018, adding that they would have loved to bring "Infinity War" to Cleveland. One of the reasons the brothers couldn’t is because it lacks a modern sound stage suitable for a film its size.
The Russos shot much of Marvel’s "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" in Cleveland. If the right sound stage was available, they could have kept the film in Northeast Ohio longer. Eliminating the tax incentive cap in Ohio would provide enough investment, potentially, to require sound stage construction, much like what has happened in Atlanta.
Call Sheet
'A League of Their Own' production designer Victoria Paul on paying homage and dealing with Pittsburgh weather
"A League of Their Own" hit a home run with viewers and critics, as did the work of Production Designer Victoria Paul, whose team crafted the physical universe in which the ladies of "A League of Their Own" live, play, unwind, and let their hair down — most notably, the stadium that the Rockford Peaches call home in 1943.
Paul’s 50-plus film and TV credits include "Saturday Night Live," "The Hunger," "My Cousin Vinny," "Lie to Me," "The Finder," and "NCIS: New Orleans." "Below the Line" recently caught up with her for an extensive interview in which she discussed her early days in the business before revealing the challenges and joys of stepping up to the plate for "A League of Their Own."
The Vault
Will big-name movies set in Indiana ever be filmed here again?
In September Academy Award-nominated producer and director Lee Daniels finished filming "The Deliverance," a Netflix-backed horror film loosely based on a series of reported supernatural occurrences in Gary.
And where's the best place to film the dramatized story of Latoya Ammons, first shared in the IndyStar in 2014, and the apparent demonic possession of her son in northern Indiana?
Why, Pittsburgh, of course.
A lack of state tax credits has been partially to blame for the lack of mainstream films made in Indiana in recent years. As film production costs have increased, other states began refunding 30, 35, sometimes 40 cents on the dollar for expenditures made within their borders.
"At this present time, the way in which the tax structure is in these various states, there's not a chance in hell we would ever shoot 'Rudy' and 'Hoosiers' in Indiana," said Angelo Pizzo, creator of two iconic films, "Hoosiers" and "Rudy," set and shot in Indiana. "We couldn't afford to give away 30 cents on a dollar. By moving it to either Illinois, Kentucky or Ohio, we could find similar locations."
'Interstate 35' movie leverages tax credits to shoot in Northern Kentucky
A Hollywood movie described as a "character thriller linking historical events from the 1990s to today" is getting tax credits to film locally.
The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) on Jan. 26 approved tax credits for a film titled "Interstate 35." According to the KEDFA report, the filming will take place in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties and production is set to begin as early as Jan. 30 and wrap up by April 7.
You Gotta Permit?
New Pittsburgh Public Safety office to oversee film productions and events
A new Pittsburgh Public Safety office will be in charge of film productions and events.
The new Office of Film and Event Management will be responsible for vetting applications for film productions and events as well as ensuring industry standards, safety regulations and city policies are met and followed.
Public Safety said the office will also make sure events and film productions don't negatively impact the city's operations.