Since Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed into law legislation that offers tax incentives to movie productions that move to Michigan, many movies have been filmed in the state — including some that have set the stage in Ann Arbor and on campus.

Despite the growing popularity of filming on campus, the University has chosen not to lend its name to any film productions — until now.

“Trivial Pursuits” — the most recent movie being produced on campus — is an independent film that captures the life of trivia fanatic Paul Tarson, an Ann Arbor native and University student played by actor Christopher Gorham. Gorham is known for his portrayal of Henry Grubstuck on ABC's “Ugly Betty.”

Director Christopher Farah, an Ann Arbor native and University alum, credits his knowledge of and love for Ann Arbor as inspiration for the basis of the film. He said the story was not based on real life events, but that his experience living in Ann Arbor helped shape the movie.

“People who are students here really get to know the campus very well, but a lot of times they don’t really know anything outside of the campus,” Farah said. “Maybe they go to Main Street every now and then, but the little parts that are kind of tucked away — they don’t really get to experience those because there’s really no reason for them to.

“So my broader experiences in Ann Arbor helped me to write something that was about the whole city,” he said.

The idea of including pub trivia in the story appealed to Farah after attending his first pub trivia competition in New York.

“I loved seeing how much of a subculture it was,” he said. “(The competition) was very much populated with these disgruntled academics or former academics who just wanted to kind of prove their worth by showing that they knew more crap than other people did, which to me, is just a naturally funny scenario.”

Farah graduated from the College of Literature, Science and the Arts in 1998 and later returned to the University to earn his master’s degree in Near Eastern Studies. During his undergraduate years, Farah took numerous classes with former English Prof. Ralph Williams and became one of his graduate student instructors.

“I kind of understood what Professor Williams meant to the campus as kind of an iconic professor and a well-known member of the Ann Arbor community overall,” Farah said.

When Farah decided to create a story centered on growing up in Ann Arbor and the University experience, Williams immediately stood out as a potential cast member. Farah asked him if he would like to star in the film as a professor and the main character’s father.

Williams said he accepted the role to help out longtime friend Farah and because he was interested in learning more about film production.

“Not only did I want to do for my former student and colleague whatever I could, but as a new experience, it would help me to grow and understand more about a major form in the arts,” Williams said.

Though Williams has had experience in live theater acting before, he said acting for a film differs because it requires performing in a more intimate setting.

“The two of them are really quite different experiences,” Williams said. “In screen work the camera studies you — it’s a very intimate sort of medium. And so presentation which would work in the theater would generally seem overwrought in screen work.”

Though film is a new medium for Williams, he’s able to draw inspiration for his role as a University professor from his teaching experience. Williams taught at the University for 39 years, before retiring in April.