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Arizona Department of Transportation is closing the major freeway for three weekends without charging Universal Studios any type of fee!

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DOT Commissioner must have the IQ of a rhododendron, either that or he's a corrupt SOB (what a surprise....a corrupt political hack) and he's getting a kick-back under the table from the production company. Why haven't the citizenry turn into a raging mob like in FRANKENSTEIN and beat him to a pulp? I know in NYC, if a studio wanted to use public property, we are smart enough to make them pay thru the nose. Disney paid something like 4 million $$$ to use Central Park for their premiere of POCAHONTAS.

The Arizona heat must be frying the Commissioner's brain out there, and I bet the Universal executives are giggling over their wine and brie parties.
 

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Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 07-29-2006, 09:14 AM:
 
So when you say "universal" and "major motion picture"... is this actually Universal that is filming this or have they just picked up the distribution of the film. And when it comes to major motion pictures, there are hundreds of films made in Utah under the banner of "major" and even major studios that have never seen the light of day.

There is also the issue that often states will clear any fees and taxes that would otherwise be due in order to gain work and revenue for the locals, as we do here in Utah. It also promotes further film development within the state.

I would admit that shutting down an entire freeway or street system makes things very difficult, and coming from Utah where we had our main freeway pretty much down for about four years prior to 2002, it can be a pain in the arse.

Was there any appropriate warnings given in order to allow people to accomodate the mess would be one of my main questions.

Ciao
 

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Posted by Will Kutler (Member # 770) on 07-29-2006, 09:39 AM:
 
This is a Universal Picture due out for release next year. And there are several big name actors/actresses in town for filming.

The film has something to do with the Middle East.

There was major set construction at the ASU Polytechnic Campus in Mesa (formally Williams AFB). The main entrance...formally the main entrance to Williams AFB was made up to look like the entrance to a military installation in some Arab country. For a few days I had to take a different approach to work and added about antother 20minutes to my commute.

This film has been getting a lot of local media coverage. Major car crash scenes were filmed on the portion of closed freeway. Some filming was already done and some was shown on the local major network local news.

It was also on the news last night that AZ DOT was not charging Universal for the use of the freeway. AZ Government stated that they hoped that bring major film productions into Phoenix would help boost local business revenue.
 

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Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-29-2006, 09:51 AM:
 
In Toronto this is a daily occurance
sometimes with different film crews shutting down multiple parralel routes creating havock
But it also brings in lots of dollars to the city coffers and it isn't uncommon for a film crew to shutdown a residential street and then you don't have access to your own house for the duration all you get is a notice on your door a week ahead of the shoot saying that do to a permit issued there will be no access to this address during the times of _____ on the following days
 

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Posted by Will Kutler (Member # 770) on 07-29-2006, 10:00 AM:
 
Here is some info about the Film:

Cast and Crew

"The Kingdom" is starring Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper and Jason Bateman. Peter Berg is directing and Michael Mann is producing.

Film Synopsis

"The Kingdom" centers on Jamie Foxx's character, who is leading an elite team of counter-terrorism investigators who work in a previously off-limits desert kingdom trying to find those responsible for a deadly bombing attack on American workers in the Middle East.

Hey Gord: Blocking access to peoples homes???? I would be the last person they would want to mess with. I could think of all kinds of creative ways to fuck with the director and producers!!!!!
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-29-2006, 10:39 AM:
 
Man, what a bad situation!

The city limits of Phoenix alone has well over 1 million people. That metro area doesn't have nearly enough superhighways to serve its population. So shutting down any major artery, be it I-10 or I-17 (or even Loop 101 for that matter), will cause big trouble.

Maybe they want Phoenix residents to think back to 20 years ago when the Interstate system wasn't even completed in the area (there were gaps in I-10 and that small downtown loop was not done).

Considering how sophisticated various 3D modeling/animation and motion graphics compositing programs have become I'm surprised the movie studio isn't simply doing a lot of the work in the computer. It sounds like a good amount of this stuff will be CGI anyway.

Several years ago two guys made a bunch of news by making their little "405" movie using off the shelf PCs and Lightwave3D. They found some way to land an American Airlines DC-10 on L.A.'s I-405 freeway without shutting it down. What's the excuse for Universal Studios?

Here's an even bigger issue: the production says they will shoot some major car crash scenes on the closed highway. Will the production pay for repairs on the roadway? They're already getting use of the freeway gratis, but these roads cost a huge fortune to build and no small amount of money to maintain.

Sure, many of our Interstates are merely paved with asphalt or have concrete roadbeds 8" to 12" thick while the German Autobahn concrete roadbed averages 27" in thickness (and has more gradual turns and grades for higher speed ratings). However, many of our roads wind up getting built after urban sprawl has swallowed up available land and sent land aquisition prices through the roof. A major freeway upgrade project, such as the one for Katy Freeway just west of Houston will amount of billions of dollars. Mere sections of that project cost more than the gross earnings of a major hit movie.
 

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Posted by Will Kutler (Member # 770) on 07-29-2006, 12:11 PM:
 
The Phoenix East Valley was literally the boon docks...all agriculture. Within the past few years that has all changed. Many of the farms have sold out and residential/commericial has boomed within the past 2 years. A complete change of landscape!

Anyhow, the freeway where the major car crash scenes are being filmed is literally brand new, just having opened up within the past 6 months or so.
 

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Posted by Aaron Sisemore (Member # 145) on 07-29-2006, 12:49 PM:
 
Downtown Petaluma was once the darling of Hollywood for its eternal 'Small Town USA' look and feel. In the 70's and 80s numerous films, TV shows, and commercials were filmed downtown, usually with merchants and the city compensated by the producers for loss of revenue becuause the streets were closed or the shops were closed for use as locations.

Some of the films that feature downtown Petaluma prominently:

American Graffiti (probably the most famous example)
Heroes (1977)
P.K. & The Kid
Peggy Sue Got Married
Explorers
Howard The Duck
Inventing The Abbotts
Lolita (1997)

Around the time of the filming of the 'hang glider' scene in Lucasfilm's Howard The Duck, the downtown merchants became irritated with the loss of traffic and the long hours of filming, and successfully pressured the City Council to legislate new rules and regulations for film crews working downtown. To further discourage Hollywood from using downtown for its 'Small Town USA' look, the city allowed a new very modern looking building to be erected at one of the main 'old-timey' corners of town.

Inventing The Abbotts and Lolita are the last two major movies filmed downtown since the new regulations were implemented in the early 90's. Most other filming in Petaluma now occurs away from downtown (usually countryside scenes), in private homes (exempt from the regulations if the public streets aren't blocked) or in sound stages built elsewhere in town (as was done for Mumford, where they turned an abandoned supermarket into a sound stage).

Most of the city council members that put this draconian legislation in are no longer in office, but the laws are still active.

-Aaron
 

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Posted by Mike Heenan (Member # 392) on 07-29-2006, 01:25 PM:
 
Actually bobby, I think the figures are higher, Phx has over 2 million now, possibly 3 million but I think it's closer to 2. So yeah it's quite a pain in the ass. And I read that not only are they closing on the weekends but some weekdays too (not entirely positive). It'd be cool to go down there and check it out but I probably wont even see the film when it comes out I'm sure.
 

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Posted by Rick Raskin (Member # 1561) on 07-29-2006, 01:26 PM:
 
They filmed a scene from "Deep Impact" out on the Manassas bypass before it opened to traffic. Some locals were paid to sit in a traffic jam. Today they sit there for free.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-29-2006, 03:05 PM:
 

quote: Mike Heenan

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I think the figures are higher, Phx has over 2 million now, possibly 3 million but I think it's closer to 2.

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quote: Aaron Sisemore

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Howard The Duck

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I don't think I would have admitted to that fact .

When they were filming Blues Brothers in Chicago they literally shut down downtown Chicago on weekends for this. Now of course its a classic film and everyone is glad they did it.

Mark
 

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Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 07-29-2006, 04:16 PM:
 
Howard the Duck? That set Geo. Lucas back 16 years! Louis
 

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Posted by Jennifer Pan (Member # 2035) on 07-29-2006, 04:53 PM:
 
Bobby, you sure seem to know a lot about Phoenix... Do you live here or something?
 

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Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 07-29-2006, 05:17 PM:
 
I'm surprised that people in Film-Tech, who presumably make their living projecting the product of film studios, would object to location shooting because it brings some inconvenience to the locals.

While local officials should do everything possible to limit hassles to the local population, film shoots generally bring in lots of dollars. For many years, between NIMBY, government permit ridiculousness and the film unions, almost nothing was shot in NYC. Then the unions and the city wised up...the unions changed their rules, the city moved to a single-permit system and new film studios were given tax abatements and the city now thrives with film shoots and work at film production studios everywhere.

While locals sometimes get pissed if access to their block is limited, most of the time, film shoots are taken in stride.
 

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Posted by Will Kutler (Member # 770) on 07-29-2006, 05:37 PM:
 
Sorry Martin, but I disagree with you:

These films generate millions and millions of $$$$ and the actors, directors, producers, etc are all very $$$$ over their products.

That being said there is no reason why Hollywood should not compensate thousands of inconvienced taxpaying commuters for their trouble via fees for the use of such privledges.
 

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Posted by Wayne Keyser (Member # 2420) on 07-29-2006, 05:37 PM:
 
Part of the problem may be that this is being coordinated by inexperienced locals - New York, Washington (my town) and numerous other cities ALREADY used to hosting film crews have fulltime offices to coordinate these things - to balance the need to attract this kind of money while not ticking off the wrong people. (Okay, acknowledged, they can upset as many people as they want - just not the WRONG people).

Hollywood crews at home in LA have a lot of economic pull, but they also have to obey some very strict rules as to how badly they can disrupt a neighborhood. "Street closures, activities that will prevent merchants from opening their shops, and exceptional production activities such as gunfire, explosions and aerial work may also generate a survey [of local businesses and residents] to identify issues and concerns about the proposed activity and related impacts. Typically, the company will have its staff go door-to-door in the affected area and collect the surrounding neighbors' specific concerns (for instance, "Disabled, need to park in front of my home" or "Having a wedding party on Thursday night"). FilmL.A., Inc. will then work with the production company and concerned neighbors to address relevant issues."

You may find their site informative - FilmLA.com ("the new face of your old friend, the Entertainment Industry Development Corporation of Southern California") - especially the form that has to be filed for street closures:

http://www.filmla.com/html/parking___surveys.html

My own hometown has its film production liaison site at
http://www.film.dc.gov/film/site/default.asp
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-29-2006, 05:45 PM:
 
Jen, I lived in Yuma, AZ for a few years when I was a kid. One of my cousins lives in the Phoenix area and another friend of mine taught at a school in Globe right after she got her teaching degree (it was some student loan payback kind of thing). Anyway, I have a little more than a passing fascination with Arizona.

To get back on topic, it can be a huge pain when movie productions disrupt transportation in a big city. I remember back in the fall of 1990 when the production of Hudson Hawk (one of the biggest flops in film history) had the Brooklyn Bridge shut. Thankfully, they did their big chase scene on the bridge during the late night hours. But it still caused traffic problems. Huge Musco portable stadium style lights on 18-wheel trucks were parked at the edge of the East River. You could see all sorts of busy work happening from the Williamsburg Bridge.

quote: Wayne Keyser

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Part of the problem may be that this is being coordinated by inexperienced locals - New York, Washington (my town) and numerous other cities ALREADY used to hosting film crews have fulltime offices to coordinate these things - to balance the need to attract this kind of money while not ticking off the wrong people.

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I would like to see anyone in Los Angeles shut down one of the primary freeways there, such as I-5, I-10 or I-15, for a film shoot. In many cases the L.A. area has had the luxury of using unopened freeways with parts still under construction for movie shoots. Big portions of Speed and major action sequences in movies like Lethal Weapon 3 and Patriot Games were filmed on the I-105 expressway when it was not open to traffic. I'd like to see such kinds of movies try to do the same thing on that now completed freeway today. It won't matter how experienced to experts are in L.A., they'll still wind up with a logistical nightmare.
 

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Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-29-2006, 07:02 PM:
 
Actually acces to your property is a privelege not a right up here if via a public street and the municipality can do as they see fit
in Toronto a film crew can buy almost cart blanche

On a side note Jen that is a hot new pix
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-29-2006, 10:20 PM:
 

quote: Gordon McLeod

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On a side note Jen that is a hot new pix

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That's one of the pics she posted on Magic Box. She posted a lot of pics there.

**Waits for the influx of new members at Magic Box**

**Suddenly realizes that most people won't be able to figure out the Magic Box URL**
 

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Posted by Jennifer Pan (Member # 2035) on 07-29-2006, 10:25 PM:
 
Awww... thanks Gordon.

Hey now.... How much is a lot? I just liked to update the avatar on there. Not as much as that Risky guy that's on there!
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-29-2006, 10:28 PM:
 
I'm not talking about the avatars I'm talking about the larger "embedded in the post" type pics. Not that there's anything wrong with that.
 

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Posted by Jennifer Pan (Member # 2035) on 07-29-2006, 10:35 PM:
 
Yeah, I knew what you meant... but I think I probably posted maybe 4 that were embedded... maybe just maybe 5 and not all at the same time.

Back on topic, I was in traffic today while on the 17 heading North... and that is nowhere near the place they are shooting that movie. Phoenix definitely needs bigger roads. Although the sniper is doing a dandy job at lowering the population out here.
 

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Posted by Mike Heenan (Member # 392) on 07-29-2006, 10:53 PM:
 
And the Baseline Rapist (is he still around?), who's keeping most indoors.
 

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Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-30-2006, 01:26 AM:
 

quote: Gordon McLeod

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it isn't uncommon for a film crew to shutdown a residential street and then you don't have access to your own house for the duration all you get is a notice on your door a week ahead of the shoot saying that do to a permit issued there will be no access to this address during the times of _____ on the following days

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quote: Will Kutler

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...there is no reason why Hollywood should not compensate thousands of inconvienced taxpaying commuters for their trouble via fees for the use of such privledges.

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A couple of problems with this argument...

1. It is more than just the inconvenienced taxpaying commuters who paid for this road system. Larger metropolitan areas who have fewer sqaure feet of road per capita than states with smaller populations pay for billions upon billions of federal tax money for the roads.

Utah is one example that reaped more than 2 billion dollars for 17 miles of road in just one appropriations bill. I am sure Arizona gets a decent share of federal road money as well.

2. This argument that people with money should pony up just because they have it is an age old argument that just doesn't wash in a capitalistic society. It shouldn't matter if the production is a 100 million dollar one or a 10 million dollar one. If it brings economy, it makes sense to make concessions to bring that economy.

Theaters do it all the time with matinee pricing and combo packages in order to get more business. Stores do it with coupons. States do it with incentive packages and yes, even inconveniences to the locals from time to time, if it means a greater prosperity down the road.

Utah invested hundreds of millions of dollars to infrastructure over 20 years in order to win the olympics before they ever were awarded the winter games. It has paid off with federal moneys and the olymipcs, tourism, conventions, business, film production, and so on. Don't bother bringing up the so called olympic bribery scandal, it was proven to be unfounded because no governement officials were ever bribed.

So I must disagree on principle that because they are a huge studio with money that they should be paying lots of fees because of the road shutdown. Imagine if there was never any allowances by anyone or any place for luring business. No coupons, no incentives, price fixing, governmental control of business, loss of freedom, and so on.

Remember we live in a republic of 50 democracies. We get to vote with our feet.

Ciao
 

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Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 07-30-2006, 06:09 AM:
 
So let me get this straight. They are going to shoot in front of my building. I get a notice a few days before that says there will not be access to this address until the effin filming is over? This is a lot more than an inconvenience, this either keeps me prisoner in my own house or prevents me from entering it, either of which would immediately turn me into raving lunatic as I drive my car with 100 lbs of plastic explosives strapped to the fenders straight into the rigging truck parked in front of my driveway. You bet I would be a lot more than pissed if this ever happened to me. And you are saying this is legal?

On the other point, I think that many times local municipal civil servants as they are euphamistically called, are just as a-gog over celebrities coming to their back yard as all those folk who watch Extra every night. It may be that they give permissions a bit to freely when it comes to "The Movies" shooting locally and always rationalize their eagerness to hob-knob with celebrities by the argument that a film shoot will bring in lots of money to the area and it will encourage other films to be shot there. Well, that might be more wishful thinking than reality. A savvy approach would be to require some guarantees that the LEAST amount of disruption be imposed on the citizenry and that some amount of upfront compensation to the municipality be part of the deal instead of some effemeral hope that the shot will somehow bring money into the area and that the monetary influx will actually cover the real cost to the city in additional service that will have to be provided, especially cleaning and loss of business to local merchants.

And I think there are certain things that a city should just say no to. It is, after all, just a movie, not the cure for cancer.
 

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Posted by Greg Anderson (Member # 235) on 07-30-2006, 09:37 AM:
 
Salt Lake City is a great place to make a movie or a TV show. The industry brings in some outside directors, producers and actors, but almost everyone else is local. The last thing the local film crew folks want is to hurt their own chances of maintaining the workflow locally. When it's a long-term TV series, the Locations department works very closely with the state Film Commission to make sure everything goes smoothly for a long, long time. Occasionally, you'll see a less-experienced group or an out-of-town production that blows through town, not caring about the local industry and those guys can get reckless, leaving behind a lot of bad feelings that other people have to clean up before they can make another movie.

The Avenues area of Salt Lake City got burned a few times (like when The Stand filmed a scene of a house blowing up in the middle of the night). For a while, it looked like no one would be allowed to film there anymore. But I've seen a lot of cooperation between production companies and local organizations to make sure that filming hours are limited, that noise is controlled, that traffic disruptions have specific time limits, etc. And it helps, of course, when the Locations department has a lot of local experience.

If someone slapped a notice on your door and told you that you'd be trapped in your house while they make their little movie and that's the way you interpreted the message, then their locations department needs a tune-up.

Granted, the people of Salt Lake City can be a bit jaded because there's been a lot of production here in recent years. But when I was on location in Natchez, Mississippi a few years ago, it seemed that everyone in town was excited to have a film crew working in the area for 5 weeks. We still behaved ourselves very well, but it seemed like the people would have allowed us to get away with anything. They were very gracious. And a lot of them were happy to get hired as extras, just to make it that much more fun. If the people of a certain area don't welcome filming, there are plenty of other places to go.

It is ironic, of course, that (according to what I've heard) it's pretty-much impossible to get permission to film in Malibu.

If people in Arizona are so upset about this production and if this production marks an attempt by local politicians to lure more productions to the area, then I suggest you get involved. Write letters to the local Film Commission. Arrange to talk to people. Set up the rules now before they lure another big studio into town and you get burned again. The local Film Commission has a lot at stake, and their concern should be towards the long-term health of the local industry.

[ 07-30-2006, 06:02 PM: Message edited by: Greg Anderson ]
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-30-2006, 05:51 PM:
 
Dave,
The best example of that is "The Worlds Fastest Indian". Excepting the NEw Zealand scenes all Utah locations and alot of local Utah help making it. They filmed part of it right in front of CLACO

Jen.... Ohhhh Babe....way awsome shot!!!!! Perhaps its time I crawl out of that console...

quote: Will Kutler

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That being said there is no reason why Hollywood should not compensate thousands of inconvienced taxpaying commuters for their trouble via fees for the use of such privledges.

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