photo by Sydney Schaefer
The production crew filming The Last Witch Hunter sets up camp in the middle of Point Park’s campus.

A major Hollywood feature film has chosen to build its set right in the middle of Point Park University’s campus.

The movie, ‘The Last Witch Hunter,” starring Vin Diesel and Elijah Wood, has been filming here in Pittsburgh since the beginning of September. Filming began in the South Side, but has now moved to Wood Street Downtown.

This is not the first time a major motion picture has been filmed within close proximity to Point Park students. “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Perks of Being a Wallflower” and many others have been filmed in or around the city over the last few years.

Pittsburgh is doubling as New York for “The Last Witch Hunter,” according to Amanda Brand, the film’s Unit Publicist. “[One] reason is because of your incentives here,” Brand said during an interview on the set Oct. 15. “Plus, it’s cheaper to shoot here than it is in New York.” 

Students also agreed that Pittsburgh is a versatile location for film.

“When you shoot in New York, you know it’s New York. When you shoot in Pittsburgh, you don’t know it’s Pittsburgh” Nikki Kalafatis said, a sophomore cinema major and editor-in-chief of Stilo magazine Oct. 13.

“Pittsburgh has a lot of different architectures, so they can make it look like any city or any place in the world” Mike Cooknick, a junior cinema major and president of John P. Harris (JPH) Film Society said Oct. 13. Another reason companies film here is financial savings, according to Cooknick.

“In all honesty, the only reason why these productions are here is because Pennsylvania offers a tax break,” Cooknick said.

The tax break that Pennsylvania offers assists a growing Pittsburgh film industry. 

“I think films like this coming would encourage other productions to come to Pittsburgh,” Brand said.

“There are so many movies being filmed in Pittsburgh recently that it’s just a contributing factor into the growing industry here,” Kalafatis said.

Brand also stated that a big, high profile major motion picture such as ‘The Last Witch Hunter” being filmed in Pittsburgh will make film buffs want to come to the city, which would be good for tourism.

The Pittsburgh film industry also has the potential to expand Point Park, according to some. 

“Once the Pittsburgh film industry grows, that means Pittsburgh grows, and that means [people will] want to come to this school,” Ayla Miller, a sophomore cinema major and chair of promotions of JPH said Oct 13.

As more and more films come to Pittsburgh, celebrity faces may become a more common sight in the city.

 “I love Pittsburgh,” Vin Diesel shouted to a crowd of fans gathered outside the film set on the night of Oct. 14.