Hollander to make Pittsburgh-set pilot for TNT
From:Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Date: May 22, 2006
By Rob Owen
David Hollander, the Mt. Lebanon native who created CBS's 2001-04 Pittsburgh-set legal drama "The Guardian," received an order Friday from TNT to film a pilot episode of a new Pittsburgh-set drama, "Heartland." The proposed series is about a transplant doctor.
"It is a character-driven piece about relationships that are drawn through the transplant community," Hollander said last week. "It's primarily an intense look at relationships both inside the transplant community and outside, looking at the recipients and donor families."
Hollander wrote the script for the pilot and is planning to direct.
The primary characters include a transplant surgeon and his ex-wife, an organ recovery coordinator. No actors have been cast in the pilot so far. If TNT executives are pleased with how the pilot turns out, they could order a first season (likely 13 episodes).
Hollander said it's possible TNT could insist on changing the location from Pittsburgh, but he's pushing for his hometown. He'd like to find an abandoned hospital in which to film the series, maybe even in Pittsburgh, although he admits that's unlikely.
"There are many scenarios that could play out. One is a very long shot: If the city can make it affordable to move the entire thing there and make it there, we would," he said. "We're looking for a city that will host the show permanently. But if we get big stars, it's hard to believe we can shoot it there."
Brand-name actors generally don't like to stray too far from Los Angeles or Vancouver, where many cable series film due to Canadian tax incentives that lower production costs.
"If Pittsburgh can make the best deal, we'll come, but I think the state is not quite ready to incentivize this filmmaking budget," Hollander said of Pennsylvania's limited tax incentives for movies and TV shows. "There are states -- and clearly Canada -- that are prepared to give [the studio] money back in different ways that take 15 to 25 percent right off your budget."
Dawn Keezer, director of the Pittsburgh Film Office, said she's trying to convince Warner Bros., which will produce "Heartland" for TNT, to come to Pittsburgh.
"We've been working with David and Warner Bros. Television, and we're hopeful that combined with the new Pennsylvania incentives and the great reputation Pittsburgh has, we will soon be seeing 'Heartland' filmed in Pittsburgh," Keezer said Friday.
If the series doesn't film here, Hollander said, he'd like to do what he did on "The Guardian" and bring the cast to town to film scenes once or twice a season -- if he can work such trips into the show's budget. (The budgets for cable series are generally lower than those for series on broadcast networks.)
After "The Guardian," Hollander had scripts purchased by several broadcast networks, but the projects never got as far as a pilot order. He thinks his odds of getting "Heartland" on the air are better at TNT.
"They'll probably only green light two pilots out of their development [roster], so your odds are much, much better than at a major network," Hollander said. "There's no guarantee, but certainly it feels more secure to me."
From Pittsburgh Post-Gazette .
Date: May 22, 2006
By Rob Owen
David Hollander, the Mt. Lebanon native who created CBS's 2001-04 Pittsburgh-set legal drama "The Guardian," received an order Friday from TNT to film a pilot episode of a new Pittsburgh-set drama, "Heartland." The proposed series is about a transplant doctor.
"It is a character-driven piece about relationships that are drawn through the transplant community," Hollander said last week. "It's primarily an intense look at relationships both inside the transplant community and outside, looking at the recipients and donor families."
Hollander wrote the script for the pilot and is planning to direct.
The primary characters include a transplant surgeon and his ex-wife, an organ recovery coordinator. No actors have been cast in the pilot so far. If TNT executives are pleased with how the pilot turns out, they could order a first season (likely 13 episodes).
Hollander said it's possible TNT could insist on changing the location from Pittsburgh, but he's pushing for his hometown. He'd like to find an abandoned hospital in which to film the series, maybe even in Pittsburgh, although he admits that's unlikely.
"There are many scenarios that could play out. One is a very long shot: If the city can make it affordable to move the entire thing there and make it there, we would," he said. "We're looking for a city that will host the show permanently. But if we get big stars, it's hard to believe we can shoot it there."
Brand-name actors generally don't like to stray too far from Los Angeles or Vancouver, where many cable series film due to Canadian tax incentives that lower production costs.
"If Pittsburgh can make the best deal, we'll come, but I think the state is not quite ready to incentivize this filmmaking budget," Hollander said of Pennsylvania's limited tax incentives for movies and TV shows. "There are states -- and clearly Canada -- that are prepared to give [the studio] money back in different ways that take 15 to 25 percent right off your budget."
Dawn Keezer, director of the Pittsburgh Film Office, said she's trying to convince Warner Bros., which will produce "Heartland" for TNT, to come to Pittsburgh.
"We've been working with David and Warner Bros. Television, and we're hopeful that combined with the new Pennsylvania incentives and the great reputation Pittsburgh has, we will soon be seeing 'Heartland' filmed in Pittsburgh," Keezer said Friday.
If the series doesn't film here, Hollander said, he'd like to do what he did on "The Guardian" and bring the cast to town to film scenes once or twice a season -- if he can work such trips into the show's budget. (The budgets for cable series are generally lower than those for series on broadcast networks.)
After "The Guardian," Hollander had scripts purchased by several broadcast networks, but the projects never got as far as a pilot order. He thinks his odds of getting "Heartland" on the air are better at TNT.
"They'll probably only green light two pilots out of their development [roster], so your odds are much, much better than at a major network," Hollander said. "There's no guarantee, but certainly it feels more secure to me."
From Pittsburgh Post-Gazette .
posted by nikita | 10:10 PM
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