Movie money goes to pay Pyramid debt

Now that "Little Nicky" has moved on, all that remains from the on-campus filming is an estimated $75,000 university paycheck, said Mark Edrington, general manager of The Pyramid. An exact figure will not be available until next week.

"For a couple shots, that's sounds like a good deal," said senior Marty Menna, an electrical engineering major. "It seems like they wanted exposure for the school, so that outweighs the financial gain."

The New Line Pictures movie starring comedian Adam Sandler moved into The Pyramid Feb.15 to film basketball scenes for three days.

The rental for The Pyramid alone came to $30,750.   All additional charges were paid for by The Little Nicky Production Company, including security, parking, damages and clean up, Edrington said. 

Bills related to the filming are still filtering through, he said.

Parking and Transportation Services will receive between $11,000 and $12,000 for the rental of 500 parking spaces in Lot 11 and other miscellaneous charges, said Thomas Bell, senior director of Parking and Transportation Services. Bell said the bulk of the money is slated for the general parking revenue fund. 

The private security firm used during filming, Totally Secured, will receive an estimated $15,000 for providing its services on the four-day location shoot, Edrington said.

After all payments have been taken care of, the university stands to make between $25,000 and $30,000 from the rental, Edrington said. Some of this money will go toward maintenance, upkeep and repairs, but the majority will go toward the annual debt payment on The Pyramid. 

Half of the money for the facility built in 1994 was provided by the state, which considers it an educational center. Funding for bleacher seating, concessions and other additions necessary to turn The Pyramid into a competitive athletic venue were not included, Edrington said. 

To facilitate these improvements, the university relied on fund-raising efforts, including a $2 million loan for the seating alone. Because of these efforts, The Pyramid carries an annual debt payment of $243,000. The payments are made to the CSULB Foundation and the loan is set to be paid off in June 2007. 

Making the payment each year makes it necessary to rent the facility, Edrington said, stressing that the interests of the university are always taken into highest consideration. Classes scheduled in The Pyramid are never cancelled during a rental, merely relocated for the duration, he said. 

"We understand the priority of this building," Edrington said. "These opportunities don't come along every day, so we work very closely with the Physical Education and Athletic Departments."

Because of the film shoot, nine physical education classes relocated to either the East or West Gym, said Dixie Grimmett, chairwoman of the Kinesiology and Physical Education Department. 

"Whenever you change a location it's an inconvenience," Grimmett said. "But I haven't had any complaints from students."

CSULB President Robert Maxson said he was not able to visit the movie shoot, but supports all efforts of The Pyramid's management office to raise revenues. 

"It always bothers me if a single student is inconvenienced," Maxson said. "But the revenue from filming and other events at The Pyramid ultimately benefits everyone at the university, especially students."

The production company's location manager, Craig Van Gundy, echoed Maxson's sentiments, saying The Pyramid was a lucky catch for the "Little Nicky" crew.

"Not only does it suit our aesthetic needs, but also the scheduling was just right because all of your major sports teams are on the road this week," Van Gundy said last Friday. 

Another plus for the film company is Long Beach's proximity to Hollywood. Because The Pyramid falls within what Van Gundy calls the "filming zone," the production was able to save money.

"The 'filming zone' is a 30-mile zone or radius from the Beverly Center up in Los Angeles," Van Gundy explained. "Anywhere within that zone, a production company can require their people to travel without incurring any distant location expenses" such as hotel rooms and per-diems for meals.

The production company first approached the university in January and struck a rental deal within a few weeks. A city permit was not necessary because the university is state property, Edrington said.

"I will go away from this experience with a very good recommendation for any of my colleagues about filming here," Van Gundy said. 

And, he is not the only one smiling.

"You always see the finished product up on the screen, so it was really interesting to watch how they actually do it," said Jennifer Diaz, a sophomore majoring in journalism. 

She said a highlight was watching Sandler get beat by a young boy playing a game of one-on-one basketball.

Diaz and a few friends spent almost eight hours in The Pyramid last Friday, watching the movie crew work. 

Attempts were made to reach Sandler through his publicist, Wendy Laski, but she did not return calls.