Fort Wayne man plays big role in creating new movie starring Tom Hanks

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) - “It’s fun to take the family down to the theater and sit through the credits,” Kelly Lynch said.

Most people will never work on a Hollywood film. But Kelly Lynch was ready when that opportunity came rolling in.

“Growing up in the railroad industry, growing up in the railroad preservation industry has set me on the path to doing what I’m doing now,” Lynch said.

Born and raised in Fort Wayne, Lynch is the Vice President of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society.

Recently, he was the Railroad Transportation Coordinator for the movie ‘A Man Called Otto’, starring Tom Hanks. Lynch’s job was to find and spearhead the use of an early 1970s commuter train for the film.

“For four or five minutes of screen time, it’s a full-time job for six months,” Lynch said. “It’s 20, 30, 40 hours a week doing the research, figuring out the shipping logistics, physically being present for the shipping equipment.”

Lynch began working on the project in October 2021. Even though it wasn’t his first feature film he’s worked on, it was the first time he was in charge for his part.

“You’re in charge of making sure the train hits its mark,” Lynch said. “It’s like having this exotic 200-ton animal that you hope performs the way that the film needs it to.”

It was challenging, but Lynch says it was gratifying to see his work come to life on the big screen.

“There are moments along the way, certain milestones, where you can be like ‘oh yeah, that’s why I do it’ or ‘oh yeah, this is why I’m here doing what I’m supposed to do be doing’.”

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