The Seagal has landed

Steven Seagal, the raven-haired, Aikido-fighting Hollywood action star, left Poland last week after filming wrapped on his latest movie. The film, "Foreigner," was shot over the past seven weeks entirely in and around Warsaw. It's the first film Seagal has shot in Poland. But according to Phillip Goldfine, the president and CEO of Seagal's production company, Steamroller Productions, Seagal will be back. "Steven loved shooting here and I know he wants to come back," Goldfine said. "He loves the people and he loves the locations." He must also love the prices: Goldfine estimated that shooting in Poland was at least 50% cheaper than shooting in the United States. "And once this movie is done," added Goldfine, "we'll go back and do a cost analysis and we'll know for sure."

According to Alison Semenza, a producer with Franchise Pictures - the company that was hired by Steamroller Productions to make "Foreigner" - the biggest savings are the cost of location hire fees and crew wages, both of which are considerably cheaper in Poland when compared to Western Europe and America. Of the film's 170 crew members, Semenza estimated that 150 of them were Polish - everyone from the film crew to sound, wardrobe, the art department and even some of the stunt people. Franchise Pictures also employed the Polish film production company NVC to facilitate things here - everything from catering and on-set support to flying over Seagal's pet Alsatian, Tyson, to keep the 50-year-old actor company. "And while some of the film's crew may not be as experienced as a crew in America," said Semenza, "they are more than willing to learn and they will put in 110% effort, which is sometimes better than having an experienced person who doesn't care anymore."

But it's not all bargain-basement film making in Poland: Semenza had to fly in film regularly and ship it out again to Berlin for developing. She also used a Berlin-based special effects company, Flash Art. What impressed Goldfine about Warsaw was the versatility of the city's locations. "Warsaw is an undiscovered secret," he said. "You can shoot any European country here and you can even do some exteriors of America shooting in Warsaw and shooting in Poland in general." "Foreigner" is about a freelance secret agent (Seagal) who couriers a package from France to America. Some of the locations doubled as Germany, France and Norway. "I think in a couple of years, as more (foreign) films come to Poland and the crews get more experienced it will become a very popular place," Semenza added. "And the locations are amazing. You can't beat them. The look that this film will have, because it was shot in Poland, will be amazing." "Foreigner," which is being distributed by Screen Gems, a Sony Pictures distribution label, is scheduled for release some time in 2003.