THE MUSKEGON CHRONICLE

March 29, 2001

Lights, camera, sub: Film to be shot here
By Dave Alexander and Bill Iddings
CHRONICLE STAFF WRITERS

Part of a major motion picture featuring the USS Silversides submarine will be filmed in Muskegon this June.

Local officials were expected to announce this afternoon that a portion of "Below," a thriller set in World War II and starring Bruce Greenwood and Olivia Williams, will be shot here using the Silversides. The submarine, which is moored in the Muskegon Channel, will be taken out on Lake Michigan for on-water scenes.

Local officials said filming a portion of the movie here will provide a huge boost for Muskegon's economy and image.

"This is just huge for Muskegon," said Joanne Hatch, tourism development director for Muskegon County. "This is how communities get noticed internationally through successful films."

Grand Haven will play a role this summer in "Secret Disguise," the sequel to the hit movie "American Pie." "Secret Disguise" is partially set in a Lake Michigan shoreline community called "Grand Harbor," inspired by Grand Haven; some footage will be shot here this spring.

Greenwood is the Canadian actor widely praised for playing late U.S. president John F. Kennedy in "Thirteen Days," a current film that dramatizes the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. Williams is best-known for playing Bruce Willis's wife in the 1999 mega-hit "The Sixth Sense;" she also has starred opposite Bill Murray, in "Rushmore."

"Below" stars Greenwood as Lt. Brice, commander of a submarine sent to rescue survivors from a British hospital ship sunk by the Nazis. In the film, Greenwood and his sub must overcome a pursuing German destroyer, survive a decreasing supply of oxygen and deal with an "unknown menace" haunting the sub.

"Below" is being directed by David Twohy, who co-wrote the script for the 1993 movie "The Fugitive." "Below" is being produced by Miramax Film Corp., a subsidiary of Walt Disney Co.

Patric Scott, unit publicist for "Below," said this morning from England that "Below" will film here four days during the second half of June.

Greenwood will be in Muskegon for the shoot, Scott said, as will cast members Matt Davis (who will appear in "Pearl Harbor," scheduled to be released this May) and Holt McCallany, who last year appeared in the film "Men of Honor."

Filming of "Below" began earlier this month at Shepperton Studios in England, where it will shoot a total of 15 weeks.

Approximately 100 crew members also will be in Muskegon for the June shoot, Scott said.

Scott said a portion of "Below" is being filmed here to use the Silversides, the famed WW II submarine. The Silversides is serving as a stand-in for a submarine called the Manta, Scott said.

Co-producer Mark Indig has been in Muskegon twice to secure a contract with the USS Silversides for the use of the submarine, according to Silversides President Robert Morin.

"Mark said that one of the reasons we got the contract was our hospitality in Muskegon and we had a good ship," Morin said. "The crew will spend millions of dollars in Muskegon before they are done."

Special effects supervisor Peter Chiang already has been in Muskegon to photograph and measure the Silversides. The production company will build a model of the Silversides in England that can accommodate the filming of "Below," Morin said.

Film crews will begin arriving in Muskegon next month and continue to grow in numbers up to the middle of June when the company will peak at 200, Morin said. Below Productions Ltd. will need from 2,000 to 2,500 room nights during the crew's stay in Muskegon and will be based at the Park Plaza-Best Western in Roosevelt Park.

Just from the film project, Muskegon County will receive more than $11,000 in room taxes. Besides hotels, the film company is expected to spend plenty on restaurants, leased vehicles and equipment rentals.

The Michigan Film Office assisted the Silversides group in securing the "Below" contract. The Silversides will be paid a minimum of $40,000 for seven days of exclusive studio use of the vessel and non-exclusive use of another 30 days, according to Silversides attorney David Bossenbroek.

The movie crew will disrupt the Silversides daily operations and overnight Boy Scout stays. The movie studio payment will replace lost revenue, Bossenbroek said.

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