Dormont Native Wins at Pittsburgh Independent Film Festival

For five years, Dormont native Sean Crowell has watched, edited and re-edited his documentary, “Grounded,” on a computer screen in his studio. In June he got to bring it to the big screen in his hometown—and watch it win.

Crowell took home the Best Feature Film award at the Pittsburgh Independent Film Festival.

Winning a film award in his hometown, for a film about people from his hometown, was a surreal moment, Crowell said, and it took a few days for the accomplishment to sink in.

“At the time, that was actually the furthest thing from my mind. But I was thrilled to be in it,” he said. “Everybody says that, but now I know what they mean. I was just so happy to be home, so happy to show everyone what the story was in my hometown.”

The film follows the story of Crowell’s uncles, Terry and Jimmy Dougherty, originally of Pleasant Hills, who spent much of the 1970s smuggling marijuana from Columbia to the United States.

Crowell, who has worked on “The Hangover,” “I Love You Man,” and “Scrubs” among other well-known titles, described his uncles’ story as “a great adventure story where no one gets hurt.”

After all the attention, his uncles, Crowell said, are a little bit stunned.

“It went from ‘Oh, Sean’s working on that home movie’ to everyone, I think, realizing how great the story is, and I think they were blown away by it,” he said.

Crowell said everyone in his family seemed to know bits and pieces of his uncles’ story, but before he made the documentary, no one had laid out all the details in order.

He said it also gave him a chance to show his family what he really does for a living.

“This is a great part of storytelling that I created and nurtured and brought to life,” he said. “It’s not ‘Hey, let’s go see The Hangover because I was the key grip.’ Although my fingerprints are on that movie, it’s not my story.”

The documentary also was shown in June at the Dances With Films Festival in Los Angeles. He also has submitted “Grounded” to the Knoxville Film Festival, Napa Valley Film Festival, the Santa Fe Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival.

Crowell himself starts work soon on a new Zach Braff film, “Wish I Was Here,” and on HBO’s “Silicon Valley.”

He said it would be fun to bring his work back to Dormont in the future.

“On the way [to the festival], I passed where South Hills Theater was and where Hollywood Theater is. That’s where I went to see movies,” he said. “It’s a magical place, definitely. I would love to come back and be able to show something there.”