In Ventura, New Film Brings Out a Mix of Memories

For weeks, Skip Robinson has anxiously awaited the release of the movie “Swordfish,” eager to catch a glimpse of downtown Ventura amid exploding cars and breaking glass.

The Warner Bros. movie, which stars John Travolta and Halle Berry as partners in cyber-crime, was partly filmed in Ventura last fall.

The crew spent nearly a month setting up and shooting on two blocks of Main Street, making “Swordfish” the biggest movie production ever filmed in the beach city.

“It was definitely Hollywood transplanted to Ventura,” said Robinson, the city’s film liaison. “The stunts and everything we saw were incredible. It was exciting for all the people involved.”

Some of those closest to the filming would argue with that.

Seven months after filming ended, antiques dealer Sheila Clancy says her business is still lagging as a result of street closures.

Clancy and her brother, Michael, who co-own Main Street Antique Mall, were among half a dozen business owners who sued Warner Bros. last fall in an unsuccessful attempt to halt the project.

Those cases have since been settled, although last month the owners of a downtown furniture store, Maison California, sued the studio, alleging that street closures deprived them of more than $322,000 in sales.

Clancy estimates that her store lost about $20,000. As a result, she won’t be lining up for tickets when “Swordfish” opens today.

“It destroyed us,” she said. “I don’t see any benefits that came from the filming of this movie.”

City officials, and some merchants, disagree.

Liaison Says Filming Helped Local Economy

Based on estimates from the studio, Robinson believes that 150 cast and crew members pumped as much as $1.8 million into the local economy for such things as restaurant visits and hotel stays.

Warner Bros. spent more than $115,000 on permit fees, traffic control, police protection and other services, he said.

In addition, the studio paid for improvements at some downtown businesses, giving Nicholby’s nightclub a fresh paint job and providing seed money for a redesign at a former bank building used during filming, Robinson said.

“All in all, we are already seeing some major positive changes in that quadrant right there,” he said.

Debi Dean, assistant manager at Heirlooms Antiques of the World on Main Street, had no complaints about the film production.

Dean said the crew accommodated her customers. And a week after filming ended, Warner Bros. reimbursed the antiques shop for its losses. She declined to disclose figures, but estimated that the store came out ahead.

“I can’t find anything to complain about,” Dean said. “We enjoyed it. We would welcome them back.”

Warner Bros. signed a contract with the city in September to film on Main Street, including a scene in which three Humvees and an armored bus crash into the bank building while being pursued by police and helicopters.

Under the contract terms, the studio agreed to pay a $30,000 refundable security deposit, a $6,000 administration fee and a $250 one-time multi-day filming fee.

It also agreed to replace any trees, trash cans, bus benches or fire hydrants removed during filming, as well as pay costs associated with firefighters and police officers needed to supervise street closures and pyrotechnics.

Some business owners say the city did little to safeguard their interests, however.

In mid-October, anti-”Swordfish” posters began to appear in downtown shop windows as film crews set up.

The studio had offered $1,000 to stores in the filming area, agreed to compensate their losses afterward and promised to keep customer and delivery traffic open during the weekday shoot.

But some merchants remained skeptical.

The Clancys and four other downtown business owners jointly sued Warner Bros. and sought a restraining order to halt filming. Antique dealer Paul Sevoian filed a separate nuisance lawsuit and also sought a restraining order.

The requests were denied, filming went forward, and in mid-November the Warner Bros. crew packed up and went home.

A month later, the suits filed by the Clancys and other merchants were dismissed, records show. Meanwhile, Warner Bros.’ lawyers filed court papers asking a judge to throw out Sevoian’s lawsuit.

They argued that “Swordfish” filming primarily occurred a block away and did not prevent customers or deliveries from reaching his store. Furthermore, they argued, Sevoian could not bring a nuisance claim because the city granted Warner Bros. a film permit and authorized the street closures.

Before a court hearing on the dismissal request, several Ventura merchants and a city councilman filed declarations testifying to noise, smoke, obstructed streets and lost revenue created by the filming.

“There was total disruption, chaos, and, very often, a total blocking of the entrance to our shop so that we and our customers could not get into our place of business,” wrote Michael Clancy in support of Sevoian’s suit.

Councilman Jim Monahan joined the chorus of disgruntled voices, saying in court papers that he was denied access to a sidewalk while visiting the set.

Warner Bros. Says Legal Action Was a First

Warner Bros.’ lawyers responded by calling the declarations “irrelevant, improper and otherwise impermissible under California law.”

In January, retired Ventura County Superior Court Judge John Hunter sided with the studio and tossed Sevoian’s case. Hunter gave the antiques dealer 12 days to file an amended complaint, which he did.

At a March settlement conference, Sevoian demanded $65,000 in damages. Court records show that the studio offered $20,000. A month later, the case was settled, for an amount Sevoian said did not even cover his legal fees.

Lisa Rawlins, Warner Bros. senior vice president for studio and production affairs, said that in the decade she has worked for the company, she had never experienced legal action aimed at shutting down an on-location shoot.

“It was disappointing,” Rawlins said. “It was certainly our intention to make it a positive experience.”

Rawlins said the studio would consider filming in Ventura again and is planning to hold a special screening of “Swordfish” for some merchants and city staff in the weeks ahead.

Antiques store manager Dean plans to be there.

Ventura Mayor Sandy Smith plans to catch a showing of “Swordfish,” too, even though action films aren’t his favorite genre.

“I’m not a real big burning-bus kind of guy,” Smith said, “but like most Venturans, I am going to be interested in seeing something that has at least part of the city in it.”

MORE INSIDE

Review: Despite costly stunts and showy explosions, one critic says ‘Swordfish’ is rank with amorality and hardly worth notice. F1