Underwood Article References to Sienna Miller

I think most Pittsburghers will get a chuckle out of this, but probably not Sienna.

This was in the Valley News Dispatch
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Underwood returns to Pittsburgh to direct 'Bridge to Nowhere'



by William Loeffler
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, April 10, 2007


When Blair Underwood says he's glad to be back in Pittsburgh, he doesn't sound like another slumming celebrity shoveling the schmooze.
Between takes on the set of "The Bridge to Nowhere," surrounded by crew members in ballcaps, headsets and cargo pants, Underwood pauses to sign autographs. He wears a long-sleeve, olive-drab T-shirt, jeans and an Army-style cap that says "Rebel." He sports a goatee. What looks like a tiny diamond earring sparkles in his left ear.

When a woman calls, "Mr. Underwood -- a picture?" she's just asking him to stand still while she takes a shot with her camera phone. But he insists the two of them pose together while a friend snaps the photo.

"I'm not Sienna Miller, and you can quote me on that," he cracks, flashing that killer smile that fluttered pulses on "L.A. Law" and "Sex and the City."





Set in Pittsburgh, "Bridge" is a crime drama about four buddies who get in over their heads when they start pimping and dealing crack. It features Ving Rhames, Bijou Phillips, Alexandra Breckenridge, Danny Masterson, Daniel London, Sean Derry and Bingo O'Malley.

"We're very fortunate," Underwood says. "We have an experienced crew. This cast is amazing. They may or may not be household names, but they all have a body of work."

The indie drama is the second project for Greentree-based Smithfield Street Productions, which was founded in December by Mt. Lebanon native Michael Wittlin and Brian Hartman, who grew up in Shadyside. Both spent several years working in the Los Angeles film industry.

It's Underwood's feature-length directorial debut. If he feels pressure, he's not showing it.

As a drama student at Carnegie Mellon University, Underwood says he underwent a trial by fire his junior year when he got the lead in a production of Moliere's "Don Juan."

"I had a weekend to learn the lines," he says.

If he could survive that, he can get through anything.

"I just try to stay calm in the face of adversity," he says.

Young Brothers Bar, a local watering hole along Woods Run Avenue, has been changed to Duke's Bar. A gaunt yellow-painted building across the street doubles as a hotel where the hookers do business.

That's not the only name change.

"The prostitute that dies, we changed her name to Sienna," Wittlin says, lowering his voice.

Smithfield Street Productions will shoot another four films, here, he says. The first, "Tremble," is set to begin shooting in August.

"Everything we do is under $2 million," he says, gesturing with an unlit cigar. "Think about box office numbers and what you could consider a flop. Flops are moneymakers for us."

"We know exactly how we're going to put the film together," says Hartman, whose first film-crew job was on "Silence of the Lambs." "We know exactly what shots we need. That cuts 70 percent out of the schedule."

Slouched at the head of the alley outside the bar, actors Thomas Ian Nicholas ("American Pie") and Ben Crowley ("Glory Days") get into character for a scene. Wittlin and Hartman watch the action on two high-definition television monitors. They're impressed at how Underwood softened the scene between the two, replacing macho antagonism with a degree of brotherly warmth.

Two other partners in the company are Ben Barton and Mike Dolan. Dolan was defeated last year in a special election to fill the 30th congressional seat vacated by disgraced state congressman Jeff Habay.

The crew shot some scenes in the closed State Correctional Institution down the road, says Barton.

"That place is like Shawshank," he says. "You don't have to do anything."