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Testimonies Now Available Online
Testimonies of a Quiet New England Town is now available on this site. Click on "The Movie" tab at the top of the screen to view the film.
Governor Rell Announces $200,000 for Hebron
Governor M. Jodi Rell announced today that the town of Hebron will receive a $200,000 grant for restorations to the Peters House. The funding is expected to gain approval when the state Bond Commission meets September 25.
“One of the distinct characteristics of Connecticut that makes the state a wonderful place to live is the historic homes that dot our landscape,” Governor Rell said. “This funding will not only help to preserve the historic Peters House in Hebron, it will also provide the town with an opportunity to make it a focal point for community activities.”
This funding will allow Hebron to restore the Samuel Peters House located on East Street. Acquired by the town in 2004, the Peters House was built in the late 1700’s and was a single-family farmhouse until 1967.
The objective of the project is to preserve and convert the existing structure and utilize it for municipal or community purposes, such as housing the town’s parks and recreation department. The project will entail bringing the house up to current building codes, addressing Americans with Disabilities Act requirements and performing some interior modifications.
State Representative Pamela Sawyer played a pivotal role in securing funding for this project.
These funds are being made available through the Connecticut Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP). STEAP provides financial assistance for projects that encourage economic development and preserve the character of the state’s less-populated towns.
The state-funded STEAP program provides funds to eligible towns for economic development, community conservation and quality of life projects. To be eligible, a town must have a population of less than 30,000 residents, not be designated as a distressed municipality or a public investment community and not have an urban center. The state Office of Policy and Management administers this program and individual projects are managed by several state agencies including DECD.
Production Assistants Named for Testimonies Film
Local volunteers have rallied to the cause of the upcoming film, Testimonies of a Quiet New England Town.
Last weekend, Matthew Troy, writer and director of the project, traveled to Hebron to meet the volunteers and do final location scouting. He was joined by Ivaylo Getov, Cinematographer, Amanda Rohlke, Producer, and Charlotte Royer, Set Design Manager. Troy, Getov, Rohlke and Royer are all graduating from Tisch School at New York University on May 12.
“We are so pleased with our volunteers,” said Troy. “They bring the most extraordinary skills to the production, and exemplify the amazing talent we have right here in Hebron.”
Some of the New York-based Testimonies film crew recently traveled to Hebron to meet the production volunteers for the project. Front row: Ivaylo Getov, Matthew Troy, Debra Rushford, Amanda Rohlke, Donna Raheb, Amanda Goode, Jeff Jacques. Second row: Chris Ambrose, Lori Lee, David D'Auria, Tina Blinn. Back row: Vickie Miorelli, Barbara Soderberg, Charlotte Royer, Steven Goode, Fred Brehant.
Area residents who have been cast as actors in the film include Chris Ambrose, a teacher in the Hebron Elementary Schools; Jeff Jacques, a RHAM graduate who continues to serve the community as assistant director in AHM’s summer youth theatre; and T.J. McGuire, a popular actor who has appeared in many local productions. Ambrose will play the part of Elihu Marvin, Jacques will appear as Nathaniel Mann, and McGuire will recreate his role of slave trader David Prior, which he first portrayed in last year’s production of Quest for Home.
Production assistants have a broad range of experience and talent. Donna Raheb, a systems analyst and author of the popular Henrietta Ham children’s book series, will be working in sound. Tina Blinn, who is Vice President of Quality Management at a manufacturing firm, will serve as a general production assistant. Lori Lee, an actress and former Casting Manager for Warner Brother Films, who recently moved from New York to Hebron, will serve in the Cast department.
Jon Minard, already well-known in Hebron (and on the set of Rachel Ray and the Food Network), will be lending his many lighting and grip talents to the film. Lifelong resident Fred Brehant is serving as a location and properties consultant; he also handcrafted the slave shackles and sword handle that will be used in the film to bring a true sense of reality to the slave seizure. Barbara Soderberg, in consultation with Certified Historian Gregory Farmer, designed and sewed the dustcaps and kerchiefs that will be worn by female actors.
The Shattered Endz staff of Colchester – Debra Rushford, Vickie Miorelli, Alyce Pipton, and Cindy Klaja – are providing hair and makeup services to the actors. Amanda Goode is working in the Art Department, creating a sketch to be used on film posters. David D’Auria, who plans to pursue a future in film making, will serve as general assistant, and Richard Fleming, a recent UCONN graduate in Environmental Law, will manage Craft Services. Steven Goode will manage location and company moves between scenes, currently scheduled in Hebron and Lebanon.
Testimonies Executive Producer Karyl Evans Nominated for 3 Emmys
On April 15, 2009 it was publicly announced that Connecticut filmmaker Karyl K. Evans received three Emmy Award Nominations from the Boston/New England Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Ms. Evans is serving as Executive Producer for Testimonies of a Quiet New England Town, written and directed by Matthew Troy and produced by Hebron Historical Society.
Ms. Evans received one nomination as the Producer/Director/Editor for "Grove Street Cemetery: City of the Dead, City of the Living" about the history and community involvement with the Grove Street Cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut. This film was nominated in the Best Informational Program category.
Ms. Evans was also nominated for Best Director (Individual Achievement) for the Grove Street Cemetery film.
In Addition, Karyl was also nominated as the Producer/Director/Editor for the Best Educational Program for a short documentary she created about the New Haven Symphony Orchestra's Youth Orchestra Festival.
The Emmy Awards ceremony will be held on May 30th in Boston.
Testimonies Art Director Receives Prestigious Awards
April 3, 2009
Charlotte Royer, Art Director for Testimonies of a Quiet New England Town, has been recognized for her talents in cinematic art direction at the 2009 New York University First Run Film Festival.
The First Run Film Festival is the prestigious display of student advanced-level thesis films, drawing crowds from all over New York City to attend screenings. Charlotte received faculty commendations for her work as an art director on the sci-fi drama Bohemibot, as well as the 19th century period piece My Dear Elizabeth Robins.
Congratulations, Charlotte!
Breaking News: On February 19, the Hebron Board of Selectmen voted 4-1 to designate the Peters House, 150 East Street, as a local historic property. Our thanks to the many residents and organizations (local, state and national) who have supported this designation over the years.
Testimonies Gets Green Light from State
Filming to Begin May 2009
After two years of applying for numerous grants, the quest for funding to produce Testimonies of a Quiet New England Town, written and directed by Matthew Troy, has reached a successful conclusion.
On November 10, the Hebron Historical Society was notified that it’s most recent Special Initiative Grant (SIG) application for Testimonies had received a thumbs-up. The Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism (CCT) approved a $50,000 budget for the pre-production, production, and post-production costs needed for the film.
“We’re grateful and humbled by CCT’s support for this project,” said Donna McCalla, who will be producing the film on behalf of the Society. “This grant is in addition to a previous Culture Tourism Partnership grant which was used to launch the website promoting the film, and a May 2008 Special Initiative Grant to hire an Executive Producer and a Certified Historian.”
Using those previous grant funds, McCalla and Troy met with 5-time Emmy Award winner Karyl Evans, who agreed in June to serve as Executive Producer. Evans is best known for her documentary on The Amistad; she has also produced numerous films relating to Connecticut slavery and Connecticut history, including her most recent documentary on New Haven’s Grove Street Cemetery, recently broadcast on CPTV.
Evans will be working on production details and casting, which is scheduled to take place in New York and Hebron during January 2009. At this time, there are six primary speaking roles slated for the film, and approximately 30 roles as extras. Casting calls for actors will be publicized in a variety of media outlets in December and January.
In early November, Gregory Farmer, Circuit Rider for The Connecticut Trust and the National Park Service and Principal Owner of Agricola Corporation in Chicopee, MA, agreed to serve as Certified Historian for the project. Farmer brings a solid background in historical preservation and analysis to the team. As Certified Historian, he will review the script for accuracy and provide consultative services on the film’s costuming and properties. The Society signed a contract with Farmer in January 2009.
Significant corporate grants supporting the film have also been received as a result of the efforts of Society members Mary Melfi (United Technologies) and Lynn Schroder (ING).
Using flashback techniques, Testimonies focuses on the first trial Cesar and Lowis Peters faced following their attempted seizure by South Carolinian David Prior and his gang of slave traders. Troy emphasizes the drama of just one day – September 27, 1787 – to illustrate the moral conflict many colonists felt immediately after the Revolutionary War and their struggle for freedom from England and the issue of slavery. How could men fighting for the notion of “freedom for all” condone the existence of slavery in their very midst?
Following their rescue by Hebron neighbors, a faux trial was necessary in order to “sentence” the slaves to a length of servitude, thus making them “unavailable” for transport to the South for a long period of time. Central to the story is the role of Elijah Graves, the local tailor pressured to lie about Cesar’s purported theft of clothes. Lying in the 18th century, of course, was an unpardonable sin, carrying both religious, legal and social repercussions.
Hebron’s rescue of Cesar and Lowis Peters and their eight children is the earliest documented evidence of abolitionist action in Connecticut. It predates the Prudence Crandall story by 46 years, the Amistad story by 52 years, and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin by 65 years.
Part of this latest SIG grant includes hiring an educational resource consultant, who will determine the most logical and appropriate way to include the film in the current curriculum approved by the Connecticut Department of Education.
“It does no good to widely promote and distribute the film to schools if we can’t demonstrate to teachers and administrators how it fits into the approved curriculum,” said McCalla. “We hope to hire someone who is intimately familiar with the curriculum approval process… someone who will work with us to ensure the film’s message reaches the most viewers.”
In addition to the state and corporate grants that have been received, the Historical Society has been working for over a year to raise funds for their share of the film costs. In addition, almost $30,000 in “In Kind Services” have been raised. “What began as an $8,000 film short has grown into an almost $100,000 project,” said Troy. “It’s exciting to know that this significant piece of Hebron history has the support of so many local residents and state organizations.”
Testimonies is scheduled to begin filming in Hebron and surrounding locations from May 22 through May 29, 2009. It will be shot entirely in 16mm format, which is considerably more expensive – but offering a much higher quality – than videotape. Troy’s professional colleagues of at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts have volunteered their production services on the film, significantly reducing the costs of the project.
Developing, processing and transfer to DigiBeta will occur the second week in June, with picture assembly and editing scheduled to be completed by the first of July. Sound creation and production will occur in August.
“Culture and Tourism was clear in its expectations of this project: produce the highest quality film, use the highest quality production crew, and engage top-notch actors,” said McCalla. “That’s our goal, and we’re confident we can achieve it, especially given how well the production principals work together and are committed to this film.”
Other project goals include promoting film production in eastern Connecticut, bringing economic benefits to the Hebron community, and emphasizing the importance of independent film producers in fut. Following its premiere, the film will be offered to CPTV and entered into a number of significant film competitions.
Breaking News: On February 4, 2009, the Connecticut Freedom Trail Site Committee voted to approve the Peters House site as a new member of the Freedom Trail! Stay tuned for further updates.
Film student focuses on local history
BY BRENDA SULLIVAN ReminderNews
Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass , John Brown – these are names that come to mind when people talk about the “Underground Railroad” or the fight to end slavery in this country. There are many more local stories of courage, however, that have disappeared with time, or are in danger of doing so.
Matt Troy, who grew up in Hebron and is now in his final year of film school at NYU, intends to capture one such story that took place in this small rural town, about the rescue of slaves Cesar and Lowis Peters by Hebron townspeople.
The story has become well known in Hebron today, because of the controversy over a house that is tied to the event – the Peters House at 150 East Street. Troy now hopes to bring the story to a larger audience.
Originally conceived of as a short film that he would make as part of his studies at film school, the project has blossomed into a full-fledged project for television, complete with an Emmy Award-winning producer, thanks to a $10,000 grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism.
Producers Karyl Evans – whose film credits include the Steven Spielberg film, “Amistad” – has agreed to collaborate with 21-year-old Troy, who is writing the script and will direct the film.
Work on the project has to be set aside while Troy completes his academic commitments, but he expects to work on the project after graduation.
“It’s very exciting to have an accomplished professional involved, because the scope of the project has escalated from a short film to a half-hour television spot,” Troy said in a phone interview last week.
Evans will handle such things as casting, financing, scouting locations and overseeing post-production . “It’s great to have someone who knows what she’s doing,” Troy said.
Evans learned about Troy’s film project when she came to Hebron in connection with a documentary series on the history of slavery, developed by Yale University. At that time, she met Donna McCalla, the president of the Hebron Historical Society, who has been at the forefront of preserving the Peters House and is a strong supporter of Troy’s vision.
Evans is drawn to the film as someone who has focused much of her 27-year career in television and film on the history of Black Americans, particularly in Connecticut. Five of those projects earned Emmy awards.
“I did a film for Connecticut Public Television on the history of African-Americans in Connecticut... I also did a film on the Freedom Trail in Connecticut , and before that, I did a film on the Amistad... So for the last 18 years, I’ve been working on films about African-American history,” Evans said.
And Evans sees a larger message in Hebron’s contribution to that history. “It’s so inspirational to think of the kind of courage people had to have to do these kinds of things,” she said. “People today take it for granted... we forget that people were breaking laws and risking their lives.”
Cesar and Lowis Peters were the “property” of the Rev. Samuel Peters, who fled to England at the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. He left his home in the care of the couple, who had been accepted as part of the town’s life. Then, in 1787, in order to pay off his debts, Peters sold the slaves to a South Carolina slave trader. When the new owner came to Hebron and seized Cesar , Lowis and their children, townspeople went after the slave trader and were able to bring the family back to Hebron by making up a story that Cesar was a thief because he had not paid a bill at the local tailor shop.
Troy said he is drawn to the story on two levels: his pride in his home town and the historical significance of the event. He noted that by helping Cesar and Lowis, Hebron townspeople were defying slavery laws more than 50 years before the Civil War began.
The story is based on actual documents – testimony of citizens telling the story at the time. “So, it’s great that we have direct documentation and that this is rooted in truth,” he said.
Troy also is grateful for the people who have encouraged him to follow his passion for filmmaking. “I feel the community has really embraced not just me, but a lot of the students who have come through RHAM High School, and they are willing to help... So, I want to include the stories of where I am from,” he said.
He hopes the state will see there is economic promise in supporting independent filmmakers. “Everyone is talking about creating a ‘Hollywood East’ with things like tax incentives – which is great – to get more studio films made here, but if the state really wants to push this initiative, it should be looking at more small projects like this. That’s what will make Connecticut more visible in the film industry,” he said. Instead of losing talented up-and-coming filmmakers to Hollywood and New York, “they should catch the younger filmmakers now,” he said.
