Cast and Crew

Teamsters manage logistics for new SF-based TV drama

“We take people to the hospital. Some live and a lot die. Then it happens all over again.” That line, said by actor Jamie Sheridan on the pilot that first aired September 28, is the premise for a new TV show called Trauma, being shot in San Francisco. And the Teamsters are there.

The series is about first responders— the EMTs, ambulance drivers and helicopter pilots who bring all manner of patients to the hospital. Like most TV dramas, this one is chock full of special effects and getting inside the personal lives of the main characters.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the pilot cost $8 million to shoot—partly because it included blowing up a tanker truck on the King Street Interstate 280 on-ramp and landing a helicopter on the Grand Hyatt in Union Square. The next 12 episodes are costing about $3 million each, for the cast and crew, police overtime, permits and catering. That kind of budget creates a lot of jobs for Teamsters and brings a lot of money into the city’s coffers.

Several Teamsters credited San Francisco Film Commissioner and Local 85 member Stephanie Coyote’s successful fight to keep the city’s film incentive program which bolstered the producer’s decision to set Trauma in San Francisco.

The series pilot was shot in February, and the crew is working on the first 12 episodes. Everyone on set is hopeful that the show will be a hit and the network will call them back for more work in January.

“Our job is logistics—getting everything and everybody from place to place,” explains Rob Johnson, who, along with Howard Bachrach, have 62 years combined as Teamsters. What’s changed over the years, they both agree, is that the trucks are bigger and there are more of them. “The crews are bigger, too. It used to be 50-75 people on a show. Now, it’s 125.”

These two transplants from Local 399 in Los Angeles say that when shooting is going on, they work 14-16 hour days, five to six days a week. “No day is the same,” adds Johnson. “And I love working in San Francisco, getting away from the LA heat.”

Tony Sacco works as the transportation captain for Teamsters Local 85 members. “I coordinate all the transportation logistically, moving people and equipment around from location to location. Sometimes we have three or four moves in a day. We’re the backbone, one of the biggest departments in the film industry.”

“We do what we’re told,” says Diana Curtis, who’s been a Teamster since 1997. “We listen to instructions and move the vehicles where they need to be moved.” Curtis says proudly that she learned to pull movie trailers through the Joint Council 7 driving school. “I enjoy the job, but it’s a location, not a vacation.”

This show’s base camp is near Kezar Stadium. That’s where the wardrobe, the actors, hair and makeup, and production trailers are based. “That’s the nerve center,” explains Sacco. “This show is doing a lot of location work, which is great. That means they use a lot of drivers.” Trauma also shoots at two hangars out on Treasure Island; one stays set as the hospital, and the second is the fire house and other indoor locations.

Sacco adds that on TV shows, unlike movies, the actors don’t have their own cars and drivers. “They’re real people. Everybody climbs into the same van.”

Jack Curtis drives the camera truck. When asked about the content of the series, he answered calmly, “I stay away from the sets and take care of the equipment and truck and just do my job.”

Percy Williams, who has worked for the movies for 26 years, drives the grip truck. “My crew is magnificent,” he says. “Everyone knows their business.”

Long-timer Danny Lenz adds that San Francisco needs more movies and TV series. “It would be great if this show gets picked up. This is my last year.”

Patti Bode-Kunakov works in the Local 85 office and handles dispatch and light grievances. “California has been losing a lot of movie jobs to Michigan and Canada,” she says. “The city is working hard to make itself attractive to producers.”

Greg Rogers drives the prop truck. “It’s a good time for us to have this shoot as everything else— freight, trade shows—is slow. I’m glad to be working. We can only hope for the best, that the series is good, and we keep on working.”