Working with big stars, on the big screen

That’s Brian Siefkes, a 1997 Baker High School graduate and the son of Sig and Cathy Siefkes of Baker City.

He attended the film’s premiere in New York City last week.

“That’s pretty weird, to see yourself on the big screen,” he said.

Siefkes, 30, lives in Beaverton where he works in marketing for the software company Axium.

He served with the U.S. Army from 1999 to 2003, and in that last year of service he was part of a mobile exploitation team in Iraq.

“Our task was to conduct a search for chemical weapons,” he said.

He was there for about six months, then returned to the U.S. and was honorably discharged two months later and enrolled at the University of Oregon in Eugene.

Five years later, in 2007, he was sitting at his desk when he answered a call from Michael Bronner, co-producer of “Green Zone.”

He asked if Siefkes would be a consultant for the film.

“Of course I said yes,” Siefkes said.

When he agreed to consult, Siefkes didn’t know that Damon was involved.

He thought the film was a documentary.

“I hopped on a plane, flew to Spain — and it was an upside-down world,” he said. “That’s when I found out Matt Damon was going to be in it, and it’d be a huge film.”

Filming began in January 2008. During the next four months, production moved from Spain to Morocco to London, plus more time in Morocco in October 2008.

Nine veterans were cast in the film. Siefkes went as a consultant and ended up with a speaking part.

“I was the only one driving who wasn’t a stunt driver,” he said. “But I know how to drive a Humvee.”

His character is Brian Keating, Damon’s driver, and he has six or seven lines.

“I didn’t have to memorize anything,” he said.

He said most of the soldiers in the film are veterans, except Damon and a couple others.

And what about that big-name Hollywood star?

“We worked side-by-side for four months. He’s incredibly down-to-earth,” Siefkes said.

He and the other veterans were at lunch when Damon came to introduce himself the first day.

“He told us later he was pretty nervous,” Siefkes said. “We were nervous too because it was Matt Damon.”

They were all buddies by the second day.

“He’d recently been voted Sexiest Man of the Year and we thought that was pretty cheesy,” Siefkes said.

Life on a movie set took some adjusting.

“It was interesting. They certainly spoil their people — it was pretty fun,” he said.

He said filming would last only 30 seconds to one minute, and then it took 15 minutes to an hour to prepare for the next shot.

“You have a lot of time to kill between scenes,” he said. “We played an awful lot of football on the set.”

He also learned how movie scenes are mixed through the editing process. For instance, the opening scene was shot in Morocco, and the next shot, when the soldiers are inside, was filmed in London.

As for his role as a consultant, Siefkes gave advice on how to arrange scenes, such as an airport security checkpoint.

“They didn’t know where the soldiers would be, their postures,” he said.

He also gave Damon suggestions for the military terms and orders used in certain situations.

The movie, he said, does have a basis in fact — but it’s mostly fiction.

“There was no conspiracy we stumbled upon,” he said.

This is true: There were two mobile exploitation teams in Iraq, Alpha and Bravo. Siefkes was in Bravo, and Monty Gonzales, whose work (loosely) inspired the film, was head of the Alpha team.

(Gonzales was the one who gave Siefkes’ name to the film producers.)

Siefkes wants everyone to remember that “Green Zone” is, after all, an action film starring Matt Damon.

“They use real characters but give them fictional situations,” he said. “You have to combine realism with what people want to see. You need some plot twists, some controversy, some obstacles for your hero.

“At the end of the day, it’s a work of fiction.”

He’s expecting a strong reaction from viewers.

“Some people will like it and some people will hate it,” he said. “I told (Gonzales) to brace for impact. We (veterans) don’t want people to think we’re outspoken against the war movement.”

Though he doesn’t agree with the way the movie twists the truth, he still had quite the experience.

Especially at the premiere.

“We walked on the red carpet, all us veterans, and no one knew who we were,” he said.

And no, he doesn’t get any free copies when the film is released on DVD.

“I get them the same way everyone else does,” he said.