[/media-credit] The actors and producers of The Place Beyond the Pines at the Toronto Film Festival (fourth from left: Bradley Cooper; fifth from left: Ryan Gosling; at podium: Derek Cianfrance; sixth from left: Eva Mendes).
The film is about a motorcycle stunt driver (Ryan Gosling) who starts robbing banks to provide for his new family.
I don’t want to give away too much about the movie, but it also stars Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes and Ray Liotta and was shot entirely in the Schenectady area.
Another thing that you should know about this movie is that it is really three different films in one.
The director, Derek Cianfrance does an excellent job of handing off the lead to different characters throughout the film.
Viewers may expect a similar film to the movie Drive, given that Ryan Gosling played a similar sounding character in that movie recently, but I can assure you the two films are nothing alike.
While Drive has less dialogue and uses its music to help tell the story, Pines has a meaty script and a more complicated plot.
Interning on this movie gave me a new perspective on Schenectady. Because Cianfrance is big on shooting on location, we went to every corner of the city.
I went to places I would never have gone to, like The Boys and Girls Club of Schenectady, if I had not been involved on this set. I now know much more than I ever imagined there was to know about the city I have lived in for the past three years.
After the premiere there was a Q&A session and someone asked Cianfrance the inevitable question: Why Schenectady?
“…[It is] a small town version of Detroit, and one of these American cities that was kind of struggling, that had seen easier times and that was kind of clawing its’ way back up…‘The Place Beyond the Pines’ is the translation for Schenectady in the Iroquois language…we thought it was very important to shoot it in Schenectady where the idea was born.”
Things to pay attention to while watching the film:
1. There’s a shot from far away that you can see the Nott in twice
2. Schenectady landmarks like Vale Cemetary and Ellis Hospital are also in shots in the film.
3. The cop characters in this movie are portrayed as crooked. This isn’t just a fictional account of the police force in Schenectady. Rumors exist that the Schenectady Police Department is corrupt and these characters are intended to reflect that.
4. My name is in the credits!
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Sari-
As Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Schenectady, I am glad that you and the many cast and crew where able to utilize to the Craig St. Unit while shooting the film. Our organization was very happy to accommodate Mr. Cianfrance and the location folks as they shot scenes in the Hamilton Hill section of Schenectady. Congratulations on working on a film that is getting great reviews and for getting your name in the credits! Thanks for the mention in your story and feel free to stop by the Boys & Girls Club anytime!
On point #3, the Schenectady police were active, willing, and helpful participants in the filmmaking process despite having their department portrayed as corrupt. Cianfrance himself has said in interviews that the SCPD helped provide him and his screenwriters good information and research to shoot and write their bank roberry scenes with authenticity, accuracy, and realism. I just think that is important to note because the city did not just provide Schenectady as the backdrop without knowing the subject matter.
Also significant to point out the local connections of co-screenwriter Ben Coccio who is a Niskayuna native and graduate of Niskayuna High School whose hometown bonafides likely was the reason Schenectady became the location than a number of other small rust-belt cities.
Congrats on getting your names in the credits. As somebody who also applied for the internship, consider me jealous.