Pitt group brings ‘Terriers’

Donal Logue (“Grounded for Life”) and his “Terriers” co-star Michael Raymond-James… Donal Logue (“Grounded for Life”) and his “Terriers” co-star Michael Raymond-James (“True Blood”) are taking a more personal approach to advertising their show.

Today, the FX show’s stars will appear in Room 352 of the Cathedral of Learning at 5 p.m. The room opens at 4:30 p.m. The actors are currently traveling around the country in a tour bus plastered in “Terriers” materials in order to show episodes, talk to audiences and answer viewers’ questions about the show.

If you think the show “Terriers” is about dogs, you’re quite mistaken. The show is really about two friends, Hank Dolworth (Logue) and Britt Pollack (Raymond-James), who start a small private-investigation business together. The website describes their situation as one where they’re “too small to fail.”

Carl Kurlander, screenwriter and Pitt professor, was a self-described “lightning rod” in getting the men to make a stop here through the Pitt in Hollywood program, which has brought in more than 30 speakers from the entertainment industry.

“This goes to what Pitt in Hollywood is really about. A lot of our aim is really to demystify the process of filmmaking to students,” he said.

“Demystify” is the same word Logue used in explaining what he hopes his presentation does for students, particularly those who hope to break into the industry.

“Listen, we were sitting where you’re sitting now and this is just from the benefit of two decades of hindsight and experience,” Logue said.

Logue, who earned a history degree at Harvard and performed in more than 30 plays during that time, explained that both his academic and life experiences have been crucial parts of his education. He said finding a balance between the two is incredibly important.

“You can’t just wing it in structural engineering or heart surgery,” he said. “[But] I think if life presents a cool opportunity to you, take it. You can continue your education [later]. Your education should continue anyway.”

Those aren’t the only words Logue hopes to pass along to students who are entertainment hopefuls. He brought up a line that his co-star, Raymond-James, says frequently in relation to being successful, particularly in acting.

“Just like ballerinas have to stretch and athletes have to exercise, if you want to do this … there’s no reason not to do it every day,” he said.

Kurlander said that he appreciates Logue’s down-to-earth approach to acting.

“The interesting thing about Donal is, first of all, a lot of times when you meet people in Hollywood there’s an air about them and he’s real, he’s a very real person … He just brings a special humanity and a realness that’s so refreshing,” Kurlander said.

In the spirit of that nature, Logue is most excited about the Q&A portion of the night’s event, where he and his co-star will hang around for as many questions as the audience would like to ask.

“If they have any kind of weird questions, even about any of the bunch of jobs we’ve been in … whatever, there’s no motivation that’s not legit and there’s no question that’s silly,” he said.

Kurlander hopes this kind of event will enable attendees to interact more closely with the behind-the-scenes aspect of an industry that most people watch on a weekly basis. In doing so, he hopes people make the connection between the people and the show.

“I think that’s one of the things that’s hard to do, when you’re doing something real and less flashy and not about the superhero, but the opposite. And that’s what ‘Terriors’ really gives you a good feel for,” Kurlander said. “You start to feel like you’re intimately watching these people’s lives and they have problems like you do and it’s not the canned stuff that you’re used to. The people behind it in these movies and TV shows that are really rooted in reality.”

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