Sept. 29--The red carpet outside the Fillmore Detroit was filled with a steady stream of people looking sharp and posing for photos.
But this was no ordinary movie premiere. The crowd was generously dotted with firefighters wearing their crisp dress uniforms and waiting to see "Burn," the acclaimed documentary that made its Motor City debut tonight.
The event was a chance for the members of the Detroit Fire Department to gather together for once not to attend the funeral of a fallen comrade, but for recognition of the fact that they put their lives on the line day in, day out.
"It's going to be significant to show everybody what we do, how dangerous our job is," said Sixth Battalion Chief Robert Zygmontowicz before the screening, a half a block away from the 1937 Seagrave Safety Sedan parked outside, a vehicle that serves as a hearse for firefighters killed in the line of duty.
"Burn," an 86-minute documentary presented by the Free Press, was shot mostly in 2011 by filmmakers Tom Putnam and Brenna Sanchez, who embedded themselves with on-duty firefighters to capture the struggles they face in an economically challenged city with a huge arson problem and a fire department coping with budget and salary cutbacks.
Putnam and Sanchez relied on in-depth filming and technology like helmet cams to tell a story of hazards and heroism that most firefighters are reluctant to share, even with their families.
Many of the men in their dress blues said that being in the spotlight is outside their comfort zone. "It's weird to firemen," said Ninth Battalion Chief Larry Gassel, a 35-year veteran. "Firemen don't strut their own stuff."
His wife of 33 years, Vicki Gassel, said she practically had to force him to come to the premiere. "I told him, if you don't come I'm getting a date," she said before the start of the film. "It's a little bit of recognition that we can puff our chest out and say, 'Yes, these are our guys.'"
Before the screening to a capacity audience of roughly 1,800, firefighters outside the Fillmore greeted each other. At the corner of Woodward and Elizabeth, firefighters took turns hugging and shaking hands with Brendan (Doogie) Milewski, a 33-year-old retired firefighter who was left paralyzed from the chest down after a wall collapsed at an arson two years ago. His life after the injury is covered in "Burn."
"Me and my wife are very private people," said Milewski. "We had to put all that stuff to the side for the greater cause. The story needs to be told. We've been in the shadows too long."
The movie will be donating a significant portion of its proceeds to the Leary Firefighting Fund to buy equipment for Detroit firefighters. The organization's founder, "Rescue Me" star Denis Leary, was so impressed with "Burn" that he came on board as an executive producer.
Even before a minute of footage had screened, emotions were running high. "I'm crying now," said Lt. Kim Bell of Engine 53, who was there the night that firefighter Walter Harris died in 2008 in the line of duty , a loss that inspired Putnam and Sanchez to look into the idea of making the film that became "Burn."
"Despite the problems of the city, we're going to continue to do what we do. We're here to serve the people," said Bell. "When we save citizen's life and they say thank you thank you thank you, that's a great feeling."
On the red carpet before the screening, Sanchez, who grew up in Detroit, was choked up at her homecoming for the "Burn" premiere . "There's not going to be a dry eye in the house," she said. "You're going to see a bunch of crying firefighters ... Mission accomplished."
Screening on Saturday night starts at 7 p.m.
Copyright 2012 - Detroit Free Press
