Members take the offensive in battle over layoffs

By DEBORAH A. MILES
Angelina Jolie flew into the New York State Thruway Authority headquarters helipad in late April to film a few scenes in a movie called “Salt.”

Transportation for the star was a covert operation, with plans to avoid the paparazzi. It worked. Jolie snuck in and out of Albany twice without a hitch.

The feat was the result of behind-the-scenes work by a PEF member at the state Department of Transportation (DOT), Mark Pyskadlo, a civil engineer.

Working with the “Salt” film crew for two weeks was a different experience than Pyskadlo’s usual routine as head of DOT’s traffic signal operations and the intelligent transportation system groups.

Instead, Pyskadlo along with Jan Peterson Jr, a DOT regional permit engineer, found themselves shoulder-to-shoulder with the Hollywood elite.

On the top floor of the Albany Parking Authority garage at Orange and Water Streets, Pyskadlo and Peterson chatted with Joe Guest, Columbia’s location manager, about filming action shots.

They talked about how the stunt double hurls across the tractor trailer over and over, and how exhausting the work is for the actors. They wondered if rain would spoil the plans, and how Jolie arrived on an 89 degree day and had to wear a winter hat and wool coat for the shoot. They discussed the smallest details such as the “extras” sitting in their cars with Virginia and Maryland appliqués over their New York plates.

On location
“Salt” actually takes place in Washington, D.C. with Jolie playing a rogue CIA operative named Evelyn A. Salt. The Albany roadways and ramps resemble the D.C. beltway, so the chase scenes were filmed in the Capital Region.

DOT and PEF members Joe Rutnik and Matt Haggerty also played an important role in the production. Rutnik helped review the road closure and detour plans, while Haggerty was involved with the day-to-day operations during filming. But not at taxpayers’ expense.

Pyskadlo explained Columbia Pictures had to pick up the tab for the work done by state and city employees who assisted with the production. Columbia estimated it pumped $3.5 million into Albany’s local economy for the two-week stint.

One of the reasons the area was selected was the state’s 30 percent tax rebate to movie companies on money spent in New York. Another is Guest worked here last year on a film called “Taking Woodstock” and was impressed with the level of professionalism and cooperation he received from DOT.

“New York’s DOT crew was helpful and supportive from the very beginning with the “Salt” production,” Guest said. “They helped with scouting, setting up a command center, taking down and putting up signs. I’ve worked all over and they were just great – very instrumental in coordinating this film.”

Take 1
Pyskadlo said DOT was contacted in December 2008 through the Albany County Visitors and Convention Bureau to have an initial meeting with Columbia Pictures. That’s when the red tape began.

“The bulk of my work was done prior to the film crew arriving in Albany,” Pyskadlo said.

“There is actually a provision in the state Vehicle and Traffic Law that has to do with production and movies on state highways.

“I had to obtain the written approval of the closure and detour plan from the state Office of General Services, Albany Traffic Engineering Group, State Police, and the Governor’s Office of Motion Picture and Television Development,” Pyskadlo said.

Peterson said Columbia Pictures was required to hire a private engineering firm to develop the detour plans.
“We review the plans, but DOT doesn’t produce them. We don’t give a free service to a for-profit company such as Columbia Pictures,” Peterson said.

With all the permits and plans in place, Interstate 787 and the ramps leading to the Empire State Plaza became filled with Columbia cameramen, sound technicians and lighting experts. Beneath the roadways, one could hear “Action!” being shouted.

It’s a wrap
“Every day when we get to the set, it’s a new adventure,” Peterson said, during the filming. “We do a lot of troubleshooting, such as tracking down the owner of a lift truck to have it removed. It clouded the background of the scene they were shooting.”

There’s also a lot of coordination with the state and city police.

“We have to figure out how to make things work for them out in the field. At the same time, we want members of the traveling public to get where they want to go as efficiently as possible,” Peterson said. “There are changes by the hour. Sometimes it is because of the weather or when the stars come in to film.”

Pyskadlo said DOT had a good working relationship with the Columbia staff with a lot of compromise and agreement.

“They continuously asked to extend the time they were assigned to on the roadways,” Pyskadlo said. “There was a restriction in the highway work permit, and we had to make sure all traffic control was done to DOT specifications.”

Filming in New York also took place in Manhattan and on Long Island at an airplane hangar set. “Salt” will be released in 2010 and co-stars Liev Schreiber.

Guest said the DOT crew “helped pull it all together without a hitch.