Kenny Smith, Wood Harris
Wood Harris, shown here in a 2009 photo, will star in a new movie about Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton, the first African-American to sign an NBA contract, which will be filmed this year in Albany and Central New York.
(Rick Scuteri/AP)
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Actor Wood Harris, formerly of "The Wire,'' will star in a movie to be filmed this year in Upstate locations and produced at a DeWitt nanotechnology hub, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced today.
"Sweetwater," a film detailing the story of the ground-breaking African-American NBA athlete and player for the New York Knicks, will be filmed and produced in Upstate New York later this year. This is the second movie announced by The Film Hub, a startup film production company that will locate at the new Central New York Hub for Emerging Nano Industries that state officials are building in DeWitt.
In a co-production with Sunset Pictures & Astrablu Media, "Sweetwater" stars Wood Harris (Avon Barksdale in HBO's "The Wire"), James Caan, Nathan Lane, Brian Dennehy, Patrick Warburton and Ludacris (Chris Bridges). The picture will be directed by Martin Guigui (whose credits include "Beneath The Darkness" and "The Bronx Bull") and produced by Josi Konski, Dahlia Waingort and The Film House's Ryan R. Johnson.
The $10 million production, which could be eligible for the state's film tax credit program, is expected to create 150 full- and part-time jobs, along with hundreds of extras. Locations in the City of Albany, Albany County and Central New York will be utilized for filming. Post production will be done at the new hub in DeWitt.
Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton became the first African-American to play under contract in the NBA when he signed with the New York Knicks in the fall of 1950. Before that, he played for the New York Renaissance, an all-black team, and the Harlem Globetrotters. A pioneer of the game, Sweetwater is being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2014.
Construction of the nano hub began last week in DeWitt. The facility, part of the SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, will provide advanced visual production research and education to support of the film and television industry. The project will create at least 350 new high tech jobs and 150 construction jobs, Cuomo said.
The Film House also plans to film "The Opium War," starring Gina Carano, this year in Central New York.
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