An effort to shape, fund and support an alternative to the Pittsburgh Film Office is picking up steam and allies.

	Charlie Humphrey has emerged as spokesperson for a group seeking an alternative to the Pittsburgh Film Office. Click photo for larger image.

Roughly 70 people, including elected officials, union leaders, producers and behind-the-scenes players in the movie business, met yesterday to talk about a newly configured film office. City Councilmen Bill Peduto and Doug Shields were there, along with a representative from state Sen. Jim Ferlo's office.

They took over an auditorium at Pittsburgh Filmmakers and emerged with a committee of 20 that will continue to hammer out the details and to choose a spokesperson. That task has fallen, by default, to Filmmakers head Charlie Humphrey, but he is not part of the smaller committee.

Still, he said the group agreed on a number of points during the 90-minute session: A new office should lure outside production here but also "take into consideration the local interests and the local community of filmmakers, film workers and independent artists."

That could mean an office with a slighter bigger staff and budget, which means working for financial support from the state, Allegheny County and, once it can afford it, the city.

Yesterday's participants also envisioned: a not-for-profit organization that would be powered by members who would have a vote in who sits on the board, along with a voice in a meeting County Executive Dan Onorato is trying to arrange, with help from the Allegheny Conference.

As Humphrey said, "If we're not at that table, we're just playing in a sandbox."

The existing film office, which opened in 1990 as "The Silence of the Lambs" was completing production, has come under fire for allowing director Dawn Keezer to relocate to Los Angeles and split her time between the West Coast and Pittsburgh.

Word of that move reopened old wounds between Keezer and some critics, even as others offered staunch support.