Jacobs is the producer and assistant director for "The Informant," the movie starring Matt Damon as FBI informant Mark Whitacre due to be released in March 2009. For six weeks during April and May this year, Decatur was home base for Jacobs during pre-production and filming of the movie.

When asked about his first impression of our community, Jacobs talked about the weather. "During filming in Decatur we have seen it all - one day there's snow, sleet, rain, and freezing temperatures and the next is warm and sunny," said Jacobs. "I guess I've gotten used to the milder climate in LA, but it's been fun to experience all this weather in just six weeks. I've forgotten how much I miss the changing seasons," he adds.

Jacobs also cherishes the wide, open spaces - and quiet - of small town life in the Midwest. "Spending time in Decatur has been a nice reprieve from the crowds, traffic, and noise of LA," he said.

Weather was not the only thing that made an impression on Jacobs. "When I think back about my time spent in Decatur, I'll remember the people," he said. "It's fun to make a movie in a city where the people are nice. Everyone respected the job we were doing, and went out of their way to make us feel at home," adds Jacobs.

"You have to understand that when we're working on a project, we're away from our families - husbands, wives, and children - for a month to six weeks at a time. It's tricky for us to be away from home," said Jacobs. "During filming, we're working seven days a week, so to be in such an accommodating community like Decatur makes our job so much easier."

For most of the cast and crew of The Informant, "home" was the Decatur Conference Center & Hotel. "I can't say enough about the staff at that hotel," said Jacobs. "It has to be challenging taking care of a large group like ours that's staying for an extended period of time, but they did. Susan Keene, director of sales for the hotel, managed to find us what we needed and took care of any request, no matter how small. Remarkable service," he adds.

Jacobs other "favorite" places in Decatur were "Bizou for dinner a few times, the Beach House, and Coney McKane's - that little place downtown."

Jacobs spent a lot of time scouting locations for shooting before the cast and crew arrived in early May. "My first trip to Decatur was in 2003 when we started working on this movie," he said. Filming was delayed for several years because of other projects, so he didn't make it back to Decatur until last December.

"To scout locations, we spent time walking around Decatur and talking to people - we went everywhere," said Jacobs. The goal during pre-production is to find the "sense of place" of a city. The accommodating environment, the nice people, the wide, open spaces all came together to make a lasting impression.

"What we found in Decatur made us feel right at home," said Jacobs.

Special thanks to Spooky Stevens, unit publicist for "The Informant" who arranged this interview with Greg Jacobs. We hope the weather warms up enough so you can take off that "attractive" rain gear...

More of The Informant Special Features:

Extra! Extra! (story) | Matt-Mania (photo gallery)

This is a supplement to an article which originally appeared in the June / July 2008 issue of Decatur Magazine.
It may not be reproduced or redistributed in whole or in part without the publisher's consent.
© Copyright 2008 Decatur Magazine - First String Productions. All rights reserved.