Darrell Sapp, Post-Gazette photos Geoffrey Cantor, left, who portrays the bank manager Abe, gets ready for a take during the filming of the Spike TV show "The Kill Point" yesterday in Market Square.

By Rob Owen
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A passer-by's double-take was not out of place in Market Square yesterday morning: Everything looked normal except for a caravan of cars simultaneously backing up Forbes Avenue.

"Resetting back to one!" shouted a production assistant on Spike TV's "The Kill Point," giving background extras their cue to return to their starting locations for the scene.

After the cars backed up and the extras were in position, a crew member shouted "Rolling! And background!" to kick things off again.

	Director Steve Shill sets up a shot. Click photo for larger image.

On cue, the cars began moving forward, bikes cruised down the street, and the extras -- pretty much indistinguishable from people who turned up to watch the filming -- began their choreographed movements through the square.

It was just a little slice of Hollywood in Downtown Pittsburgh where "The Kill Point" crew will film through next week.

Scenes shot yesterday morning were calm compared to what's to come: gunshots, protests and rallies.

The eight-hour series, premiering July 22, chronicles the robbery of fictional Three Rivers Trust in Market Square (the old G.C. Murphy building received a temporary facade face-lift to play the role of a bank). John Leguizamo stars as the leader of a group of Iraq War veterans who plan the heist. Donnie Wahlberg plays the police negotiator who makes his command post across the square in La Gondola, which has been renamed Marcos' for the TV show.

Before scenes involving the bank siege begin, the "Kill Point" crew filmed establishing shots, the brief scene-setters that give viewers a sense of place. To avoid continuity gaffes with regard to the time of day, a worker posted a round "Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership" placard over the clock in Market Square.

At Market Place and Forbes Avenue, an entrance to the old G.C. Murphy Building has been changed to the Three Rivers Trust for "The Kill Point." Click photo for larger image.

Brian Balog of Johnstown, a stand-in for actor Geoffrey Cantor (who plays Three Rivers Trust branch manager Abe), took his spot on a piece of colored tape stuck to the sidewalk in front of the bank. Crew members moved cameras into position for the shot that shows Abe talking to an armored truck security guard, who walks away from the bank entrance, past newspaper boxes set up by the production (including one for the long-defunct InPittsburgh alternative weekly) and climbs into the Security Transport Service truck.

Balog responded to a casting call and was given a role as a Pittsburgh police detective extra in scenes with Wahlberg inside Marcos'. Balog, a former territory manager for an outdoor power equipment provider, is about to launch his own technology business with friends, but first, he's learning how Hollywood works. After getting cast as an extra, his ability to follow instructions earned him additional tasks, including work as a stand-in and reading Wahlberg's lines off-camera while Leguizamo filmed a phone call scene.

"I am stunned at the hours they work and the camaraderie they maintain in the workplace at every level, even when they work 14-to-16-hour days," Balog said. He doesn't even mind the commute from Johnstown. "When do you get a chance to read lines with John Leguizamo? It's worth the commute for that alone."

His isn't the only commute affected by "The Kill Point." Because of filming, Forbes Avenue is closed to vehicles from Wood Street to Stanwix Street, including the portion of Forbes that cuts through Market Square. Port Authority buses that normally run along Forbes will detour, taking a left on Wood Street, right on Boulevard of the Allies and right onto Stanwix Street.

At 8 a.m. yesterday morning, detour traffic -- including several buses -- was backed up on Forbes from Wood Street to Smithfield Street, but "Kill Point" producer Tim Iacofano ("24") said early media reports about the street closure probably helped keep backups to a minimum.

"I didn't hear too many horns," he said, adding that merchants in Market Square have been "very generous in their support of what's going on here."

For some of the merchants, the filming has cut into business. Sergio Muto, owner of La Gondola, said his customer traffic was off 50 percent, but he's happy with the publicity the show will give his pizza place.

At Dogs Dun-Wright, owner Michael Wright said the production crew was making a good-faith effort by buying 100 hot dogs for the crew.

"We'll have to see how it goes for the rest of the week," he said.

At the newly opened City Cafe, business partners Emil Lester and Jeremie McKnight said the filming is good for the city (when the project was announced last fall, executives for production company Lionsgate Entertainment said they expect to spend about $18 million locally on the project), but maybe not so beneficial to individual businesses around Market Square.

"We've only been open a week, so it's kind of hard to gauge the ebb and flow," McKnight acknowledged.

Yesterday afternoon's scenes included shots of Leguizamo, dressed in a suit and trenchcoat, entering the bank with his crew. A scene involving a shootout between the robbers and security guards was also planned.

Despite signs warning passersby that they may be filmed, at least one woman seemed unconcerned.

"You're in the shot, ma'am," a production assistant said to a confused woman who was trying to cross Forbes.

Once the take was done and cars rolled backward up the street, she continued on her way.