Leader Staff Report
VALPARAISO — San Pierre native Phil Potempa, a Valparaiso University journalism instructor and columnist for The Times of Northwest Indiana, will portray a reporter in a film about bank robber John Dillinger that stars Johnny Depp.
Potempa, adjunct instructor in communication and a 1992 Valparaiso graduate, was cast as a newspaper reporter in “Public Enemies,” a Michael Mann film that depicts the rise of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the 1930s as it pursued Dillinger, starring Johnny Depp in the title role. Scenes for the movie recently were shot in Crown Point, site of Dillinger’s 1934 escape from the Lake County jail.

While Potempa regularly interviews movie stars and other celebrities in his job, he never planned to get in front of a movie camera himself. But unlike many directors, Mann often tries to cast people who actually work in a particular profession for roles in his films, and in February Potempa was contacted by a Chicago casting agency that was looking for working reporters.
“The fact that this was a historical film that was also connected to Northwest Indiana made it an interesting opportunity,” said Potempa, who grew up in San Pierre and used to work at a grocery store next to a bank robbed by Dillinger in the 1930s.
In becoming one of three reporters from Northwest Indiana to win a role in “Public Enemies,” Potempa’s long-time interest in collecting historical items also came in handy.
“When I went to an initial audition in Chicago, we were supposed to look the part of a reporter in 1930s, so I wore a fedora hat and cufflinks that I had won at an estate auction of gossip columnist Walter Winchell,” he said. “Winchell wrote many columns about Dillinger and his bank heists, and I think that really captured the casting director’s attention as something that could add to the authenticity of the film.”
Potempa spent three days on the set in Crown Point, filming a scene in which reporters question Dillinger as he is brought to the Lake County sheriff’s house for booking. During those three days, Potempa said Mann shot more than 20 takes of the scene.
“It was fascinating to see how involved shooting just a single scene can be, with the director trying different camera angles and lenses,” Potempa said. “I’m very interested in what the final product will turn out to be.”