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Printed From Acorn-Online.com Redding Pilot by Susan Wolf
When the Georgetown History Project was initiated, its organizers said the 30-minute documentary they would make about Georgetown’s past would be an “appetizer” to the village’s history. Today that “appetizer” is ready to plate, and organizers hope it will whet the palate for even more courses of history. Nearly two years in the making, A Georgetown Story covers the history of the village that encompasses parts of Redding, Wilton, Weston and the Branchville section of Ridgefield. The documentary “is not focused on the Gilbert & Bennett plant, but the people of Georgetown,” said filmmaker John Maher of Redding, who produced the documentary through his JEM Films and with the editorial skills of Craig Mikhitarian. A Georgetown Story is set to premiere to an invitation-only audience on Saturday, April 5, at the Georgetown Bible Church, which will be followed by a public viewing at the church at 5. In Redding, there will be another showing on Sunday, April 6, at the Redding Community Center. “When I made the film, I had one foot in Georgetown, but the other foot in the rest of the world — there are universal themes that do apply anywhere. Whether it be in Albania or the U.S., people say they recognize that guy or that situation,” said Mr. Maher. He described the film “as a hologram of American life.” It is about a wire mill community, how the town grew up around it and the relationships involved. There are vignettes in the film, “which are short, like memory moments,” he added.
Storytellers The documentary has three Georgetown narrators — Bertil Rosendahl, Art Moore and Serena Nazzaro. They were selected from among the 25 people who gave oral histories about Georgetown’s past. “We could have picked anyone in Georgetown and it would have been great,” said Mr. Maher, but “in the interest of time, we focused on three people.” He refers to the three as “storytellers.”
“They gave us a view of Georgetown and their experiences. This led us to what we were going to re-enact,” said Lynn Hyson, film project director and an organizer of the Georgetown History Project. One of the vignettes is called “Ghost Bell,” but Mr. Maher won’t tell the tale, instead insisting on some suspense for viewers of A Georgetown Story. He does reveal the subject of the “Walk of Doom,” a school story from the perspective of two first grade boys who are called to the principal’s office. “Clothesline Gossip” hearkens back to the days before dryers, when neighbors met around the clothesline to discuss the news of the day. A highlight for the filmmaker was the day Danny Mecozzi brought him about 10 cans of 16mm film of old home movies “that had not been seen in 40 years. It is a chronicle of life in Georgetown — from parades to ball games to a family eating in the backyard.” Even though the film was in bad shape, a specialist was able to salvage about 98% of it, said Mr. Maher, and some of the film is used in the documentary.
Another highlight Another highlight for Mr. Maher was the recording session for the original song at the end of the film. The title is Run River Run and the music was written by Martin J. Fegy, who has written music for some of Mr. Maher’s other films. Some members of the choir at Sacred Heart Church in Georgetown are featured in the recording.Ms. Hyson said Mr. Maher wrote the lyrics by adapting an Oliver Wendell Holmes poem. “It is touching and very beautiful,” said Ms. Hyson. Besides other original music by Mr. Fegy, there are two songs from Rolan Mattson’s play, “A Georgetown Story.” The late Mr. Mattson lived in the Wilton section of Georgetown. He was a hat designer professionally and also wrote music, Ms. Hyson said. A highlight for her was the filming of the Old Mill Road scene. The road was a main artery through Georgetown circa 1795, she said. “It was challenging to get costumes, find a suitable road, get the oxen, horse and sheep,” she recalled. And according to Mr. Maher, that scene gets just six seconds in the film. Another highlight, said Ms. Hyson, was a scene filmed on Portland Avenue. It was particularly hectic because it involved many children, some on bicycles, a dog and a baby carriage. “I enjoyed the research and the stories you hear from people,” said Ms. Hyson. The making of the film “has been a fascinating experience,” as well as a learning experience,” she said. “It was a lot of fun being on the inside of the making of a movie,” she added, with the proviso that it is also “a huge amount of work.” There was a big commitment of time on the part of the volunteers who helped with the project, she said. There was a lot of detail involved as well, said Ms. Hyson, from researching, to acquiring props and costumes, to finding locations, vintage vehicles — anything to do with recreating the past.
Contributors Among the contributors was Georgetown History Project organizer Bonnie Ensor of Redding and Pat Hegnauer of Wilton, who joined the effort early on. “Both are collectors and have an amazing collection of old furnishings and costumes,” said Ms. Hyson. “When we needed a power keg, Pat had it; Bonnie has vintage clothing. Their knowledge and passion for antiques and the old days was a very valuable contribution.”For Ms. Hyson, a writer, there was “a natural tug of war between image and words. John has the visual sense, but you have to balance with words, narration.” Ms. Hyson said there was a group effort to develop rough sketches for the vignettes and to look for ways of phrasing things “to make the points we wanted included.” The documentary includes appearances by Kathleen von Jena, town historian, local archaeologist and a project organizer, who gives a professional perspective, said Ms. Hyson, and Dr. Thomas Dublin, a Ph.D. of history at the State University of New York at Binghamton. His expertise is in 19th- and 20th-Century industry. “His focus is on miners in Pennsylvania, but it parallels the wire mills in New England. We interviewed him for a broad perspective of how Georgetown fits into the national and international themes of history,” Ms. Hyson said. Referring to these two professionals, the three storytellers, still images and the vignettes, Ms. Hyson said a combination of these elements fed each other to illustrate the story and to make it interesting. Other help came from Brent Colley, the unofficial Georgetown historian; Jan August, an organizer who headed fund raising; Amy Atamian, another organizer who contributed her design skills to fund-raising brochures; and residents of Meadow Ridge who provided research “and were generous in backing us,” said Ms. Hyson. Mr. Maher pointed to the many people who got involved in the project and said he was “blessed” to have the team he worked with. They all put in “a huge amount of effort with the only reward the making of a huge gift to the towns,” he said. Collection All of the oral histories are on videotape and will ultimately be available for study in the future, said Mr. Maher. “This film acts as an engine to collect history. We’ve collected more than we’ll ever use.” There are hundreds of photos and thousands of words and other memorabilia, he added. The film is essentially “a history advertiser,” he said. “We hope to preserve these in a place like a museum or library,” said Ms. Hyson. “These are things that might have been lost, but were instead given to this project..” There are some possibilities for storing the archives, she added, saying when they have a home, they will be made available to the public. “We definitely want everyone to see (the film) and enjoy it. It’s such a community effort — you’ll see people and places you know and find more significant history in Georgetown than you were aware of,” said Ms. Hyson. The Georgetown History Project began in the fall 2005. The project’s organizers wanted to find a way to tell the story of the village before the area is changed by the redevelopment of the wire mill site. The documentary is intended as an overview of the research for the project and to serve as a way to amass stories and memorabilia of the area’s past. Organizers have raised just under $60,000 to cover the cost of the project, although initially the goal was $64,000. Mr. Maher said the amount for the film is “a fraction of the cost to do it on the level we are doing it.” He said for every hour he has been paid, he has donated about five more. Organizers are hoping to receive further donations to cover any remaining cost, including the projection and sound equipment that will be used at the premiere showings at the Georgetown Bible Church. © Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers |
