During filming, Minneapolis Police officers were summoned no fewer than four times: 1. Neighbors thought the actresses playing prostitutes in the opening scene were actual ladies of the night and police were summoned. A new location was found the following week and actress Jamee Hegelberger was cut from the scene due to scheduling. 2. The scene where T.K. (Greg Hernandez) and Scotty (Ezra Stead) assault two women in an alley. After realizing it was a film shoot, one of the officers joked that if the filmmakers ever make a reenactment, he wanted to be played by Brad Pitt. 3. Original poster shoot at Minneapolis Community Technical College. As director James Vogel and actor and prop-master Paul von Stoetzel entered the building, security detained Vogel. They were carrying props for the photo shoot: firearms including two shotguns strapped to von Stoetzel's back! Ezra Stead was subsequently terminated from his job working in the Film Department and Vogel was 86'd from premises and expelled from school. Paul von Stoetzel suffered no consequences. 4. Following a party to raise funds for post-production of The City (2008), an altercation between one of the actors and one of the filmmakers ensued involving punching, scratching and a lit cigarette. The assault was reported and a restraining order was secured. Charges were dropped and the two eventually resolved their differences.
Scott Valdez (Ezra Stead) attended the Minneapolis Community and Technical College for screen writing in "The City."