Eagle Peak Media

Return to Pickens, holiday DVDs

2010-12-03T12:48:00.001-08:00

Newport's Jane Pickens Theater will present a special showing of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 16. Be there!
And keep in mind a great holiday gift: DVDs of the director's cut with bonus footage are now being sold at the Pickens, at the Newport mansion stores throughout Newport, and the Newport Museum & Shop at Brick Market on Thames Street.
They are also available online, with next-day shipping at the official HEDGEROW site. Mail orders are also accepted.
Happy holidays!

HEDGEROW DVDs now shipping!

2010-11-04T05:44:00.000-07:00

The DVDs of the critically acclaimed BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society arrived on November 2 from the manufacturer and pre-orders were shipped immediately. New orders will be shipped as they are received. Order now!

Big-screen premiere of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW director's cut!

2010-10-25T06:48:00.001-07:00

After a successful August premiere and month-long run at the Pickens, filmmakers David Bettencourt and G. Wayne Miller returned to the editing booth to add about five minutes of superb footage that premiere deadlines prevented. The result is the director's cut, which is included on the deluxe DVD (along with extensive bonus footage) -- and it will be shown at Newport's Jane Pickens Theater at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 14, for the first time.

Participants will not only see the new cut -- they will each receive a DVD and, while supplies last, a movie poster, all for the price of admission. And, they will get to meet Miller, Bettencourt, associate producer Calvin Miller, and, possibly, members of the Slocum family and others in Newport Society.

For more information, visit the Jane Pickens site.

Festivals, DVDs soon to arrive

2010-10-18T09:54:00.001-07:00

After successful showings at the 2010 Rhode Island International Film Festival, in August, and just this month at the inaugural FLICKERS North Country Film Festival, we are looking at a select few additional festivals to show Hedgerow. We were asked to submit the film to Big Sky, one of the nation's premiere documentary fests, and we hop to be an official selection.
Meanwhile, the director's cut DVDs -- a longer version of the movie, with bonus footage -- should arrive from the manufacturer in less than two weeks. Order the DVD here!

HEDGEROW director's cut DVD

2010-10-01T07:43:00.001-07:00

Having completed a successful month-long run at Newport’s Jane Pickens Theater, the critically acclaimed BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society is now headed to DVD –– with bonus footage of scenes and interviews not in the theatrical version.

“We made a movie of just under 60 minutes, which means that we left hours and hours of great material on the proverbial cutting-room floor. Now the best of that will be available to the viewing public,” said producer G. Wayne Miller.

Among the bonus features: footage of Yusha Auchincloss talking about growing up with his step-sister, Jackie Kennedy Onassis; Betty "Boop" Blake with more detail on her mother, who survived the sinking of The Titanic; and historian Michael Budd with more on the history of Newport's mansions.

The deluxe DVD will be available in late October, but preorders are being accepted now at the Hedgerow order page.

BEHIND THE HEDGEROW premiered in August 2010 as the opening-night feature of the 2010 FLICKERS: Rhode Island International Film festival. It received four stars from The Providence Journal, and was called “shockingly refreshing and funny” by Newport Mercury, “daringly intimate” by Newport Patch, “fascinating” by NPR Morning Edition and “don’t miss” by Rhode Island Monthly.

BEHIND THE HEDGEROW, from Emmy-nominated filmmakers director David Bettencourt and Miller, is an unprecedented look inside the private world of Newport, Rhode Island, High Society –– a world whose roots lie in the Gilded Age of Vanderbilts and Astors.

BEHIND THE HEDGEROW is the second title from Eagle Peak Media, the production company founded in 2008 by Miller and Bettencourt. ON THE LAKE, EPM’s first title, premiered in February 2009 and has been broadcast in PBS markets across America It was nominated for an Emmy by the New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Hedgerow sells out at Newport premiere, 9-day run starts Aug. 20

2010-08-16T06:45:00.001-07:00

The August 14 Newport premiere turned out to be a success beyond what we had hoped. Nearly 400 people filled Salve Regina University's Bazarsky Auditorium and dozens who had hoped to buy last-minute tickets were turned away. Apologies to them -- but the good news is that the movie will have a nine-day run at the popular downtown Newport Jane Pickens Theater. The run begins 6 p.m. Friday, August 20, and continues through Sunday, August 29. For times and tickets, visit the Hedgerow movie site or the Jane Pickens Theater.

A few scenes from the Newport premiere:

-- The line at the door.

-- Standing-room only in Bazarsky Hall.

-- Writer/producer G. Wayne Miller with friend Andy Kinnecom and Judy and Laurence Cutler at the High tea Reception that followed at the Slocum's Bellevue Avenue estate. Laurence is in the movie.

-- Script consultant Y.T. Gabrielle, Miller and R.I. State Police Col. Brendan Doherty and his wife Michele. Col. Doherty is in the movie.

-- Gene Quinn and wife Margy Slocum Quinn, hosts of the reception.

-- Gabrielle, Miller, Adam Powell IV, Beryl Slocum Powell, sponsorships director Katherine L. Miller, and Coleen Richards Powell. Beryl is in the movie.

Photos by Y.T. Gabrielle and Katherine L. Miller

Awesome HEDGEROW premiere!

2010-08-11T05:05:00.000-07:00

We had a fabulous opening last night at Vets Auditorium in Providence -- a great audience that really seemed to dig the film, and fun parties before and after at this beautiful hall. The film itself, in high-definition, looked and sounded like nothing else. Now it's on to Newport for our August 14th premiere, followed by High Tea at the Slocums' Bellevue Avenue estate.
Pictured here are:
-- Script consultant (and fiancee!) Y. T. Gabrielle and writer/producer G. Wayne Miller, me, in the lobby.
-- Three Millers: Associate producer Calvin, sponsorship director Katherine L., and me.
-- Director David Bettencourt and me introducing the film to the audience of hundreds.
-- The hall beginning to fill up.
-- The writer's own after- after-party at The Temple Restaurant, next door.
-- G. Wayne Miller

25 hours...

2010-08-09T15:08:00.001-07:00

... until the world premiere, 7 p.m. August 10 at Providence's Veterans Memorial Auditorium, of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society. And just five days until the Newport premiere, 2 p.m. August 14th at Salve Regina University. Information on both screenings, which are followed by gala parties (the August 14 Newport soiree is on the grounds of Eileen's Bellevue Avenue estate!), is available through this link. Tickets will be sold at the door, at both events.

In the days before the premiere, we have received tremendous publicity, in newspapers, on the radio and online. To see some of it, go to this page on the Eagle Peak Media site.

And now, we basically cross our fingers, knock on wood and hope to break a leg. And hope to see friends, film fans and anyone else.

Score!

2010-07-30T06:27:00.001-07:00

Early this morning in the studio, we completed the last phase of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW the movie before the final technical fixes of image and sound, which will occupy much of the next week or so. We brought in the excellent musical score by Lonnie Montaquilla and Ben Mesiti. Here are Dave and Lonnie, right, doing some fine-tuning.

The sound is beautiful, to match the quality of the high-def images.

See you at the Aug. 10 and Aug. 14 premieres!

HEDGEROW TICKETS!

2010-07-16T04:20:00.001-07:00

BEHIND THE HEDGEROW OPENS
R. I. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

July 14, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PROVIDENCE, R.I. –– Tickets are now on sale for the World and Newport premieres of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society, the exclusive and first-ever movie about the secret world of old-money aristocratic Newport and one of its -- and Rhode Island’s and America’s -- most prominent families.

Both premieres, which are presented by the 2010 FLICKERS: Rhode Island International Film Festival, will be followed by gala parties. Admission to these parties is included in the ticket price.

The World Premiere will be 7 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 10, at the VMA Arts & Cultural Center, 1 Avenue of the Arts, Providence, R.I., 02903. This screening is the feature event of the opening night of the FLICKERS: Rhode Island International Film Festival. Tickets are $25, including the post-screening soirée.

The Newport premiere will be 2 p.m Aug. 14 at Bazarsky Hall, O’Hare Academic Center, Salve Regina University, Newport. Tickets are $30, including a post-screening High Tea hosted by members of the late Eileen Gillespie Slocum’s family on the grounds of Slocum’s Bellevue Avenue estate.

Online ticketing for both events is available at the Film festival site or through the film site. Phone orders can be placed at 401-861-4445 or in person at the FLICKERS/RIIFF office, 83 Park Street, Suite, 1, Providence, RI 02903. Tickets will be sold at the doors but seating is limited, and advance orders are recommended.

Part history, part contemporary look, BEHIND THE HEDGEROW is told through the focus of Slocum, Newport’s last grand dame, who died in the summer of 2008. Slocum’s family has granted the filmmakers exclusive access to her archives and private Bellevue Avenue estate, where much of the film was shot over the last year.

The film features the on-camera appearances of several members of Newport Society, many of whom have never appeared on the screen before. The film is narrated by the late Eileen Slocum herself, through audio recordings made before her death.

Slocum was not only Newport’s last grand dame –– she was a leading national Republican political figure for many years, a friend of both Presidents Bush, Presidents Reagan and Ford, and many others on both sides of the political spectrum. She was a descendant of prominent Rhode Islanders, including Roger Williams and the Browns of Brown University. These stories are told in the film in Eileen’s own words and appearances by several friends, including former Governor Bruce Sundlun and Hugh D. “Yusha” Auchincloss, stepbrother of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

BEHIND THE HEDGEROW is the second title from Eagle Peak Media, the production company founded in 2008 by writer/producer G. Wayne Miller and director David Bettencourt. ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place, its first title, premiered in February 2009 to critical acclaim. PBS broadcasts in major national markets began in March 2009 and continue today. ON THE LAKE was nominated for an Emmy by the New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

George T. Marshall, RIIFF Executive Director, is the executive producer of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW.

Soft light, Bellevue Avenue evening

2010-07-01T13:19:00.001-07:00

Yes, we really did return to Eileen's mansion for one last shoot, the evening of Tuesday, June 29. We had some additional scans provided to us by Eileen's daughter Beryl Slocum Powell, which production assistant Brenda Rourke handles; a sound-recording of Patricia Painter, the diarist voice of Eileen, which musician/soundman Lonnie Montaquila oversaw; and an on-camera interview of granddaughter Phyllis Trevor Higgerson, which Dave and I conducted. That's Phyllis, back to camera, and me in the distance, in this photo by Dave.
Phyliss beautifully narrated an important era in her grandmother's life: her coming of age in 1930s New York City society; her engagement to richest-bachelor-in-the-world John Jacob Astor VI, whose mother was pregnant when she survived the sinking of the Titanic (the second Titanic story in the film, by the way); and the eventual meeting and marriage of Eileen and her husband John.

Final, final, we keep saying final...

2010-06-22T14:20:00.001-07:00

And what happened on HEDGEROW the last two days?!

HEDGEROW approaches...

2010-06-11T12:18:00.000-07:00

With the premiere now less than two months away, we are intensely editing. I spent a couple of hours today with Dave, pictured here, in the studio helping refine the opening sequence, Folks, it's starting to look kick-ass.
Information about the 7 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 10 world premiere at Vets Auditorium in Providence can be found through this ticket link, and as always, more is at the official movie site.
And please join the Facebook World Premiere events page. There will also be a Newport premiere at 2 p.m., Aug. 14, Bazarsky Lecture Hall, Salve Regina University.

'LAKE' GETS TOP JOURNAL THUMBS UP

2010-05-24T12:58:00.000-07:00

We didn't win the New England Emmy Saturday for On the Lake, but we did capture another, larger honor -- one with resonance outside the region. "An impressive documentary, studded with intriguing detail... Its tenor is elegiac," said The Lancet, Britain's leading medical journal, and one of the most prestigious in the world, in its issue of May 22.

Emmy Nomination for On The Lake!

2010-04-14T06:13:00.001-07:00

ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place, has been nominated for Best Documentary in the 33rd annual Boston/New England Emmy competition, sponsored by the New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. This is quite an honor for David, me and the rest of the crew who made the movie. Congratulations to all of us here at Eagle Peak Media (as we move toward completion of our second doc, BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society. Winners will be announced at a ceremony May 22 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass.
ON THE LAKE premiered in February 2009 to critical acclaim, and has since been broadcast in PBS markets around the country. For more on ON THE LAKE, visit the movie site.

First look at HEDGEROW

2010-04-12T08:49:00.000-07:00

April 12, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BRISTOL, R.I. –– This year’s Roving Eye documentary film festival will feature an early look at BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society, the first-ever feature-length movie about the secret world of old-money Newport that will premiere at the 2010 Rhode Island International Film Festival.
Writer/producer G. Wayne Miller and director David Bettencourt will be on hand April 25 at Roger Williams University to screen selections from the film and join RWU professor Edward Delaney to talk about the making of HEDGEROW and participate in a more general discussion, “The Art of Creative Storytelling.”
Part history, part contemporary look, HEDGEROW is told through the focus of Eileen Gillespie Slocum, Newport’s last grand dame, who died in the summer of 2008. Slocum’s family has granted the filmmakers exclusive access to her archives and private Bellevue Avenue estate, where much of the film was shot over the last year.
The Roving Eye event will be at 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 25, at Roger Williams’ Global Heritage Hall 01. It is free and open to the public.
HEDGEROW, scheduled for PBS broadcast, is now in post-production. A second advance look and discussion will be staged in Newport on Wednesday, April 28. This session is by invitation only. Those interested in attending should contact Eagle Peak Media for time, location and other details.
BEHIND THE HEDGEROW is the second title from non-profit Eagle Peak Media. ON THE LAKE, its first title, premiered in February 2009 to critical acclaim. PBS broadcasts in major national markets began in March 2009 and continue today.
For news, links to the HEDGEROW blog and Facebook page, and more, visit the Hedgerow site.
More information about Roving Eye at the festival site.

Fire and Thievery

2010-03-08T15:56:00.001-08:00

Another fine shoot on Behind the Hedgerow...

HEDEGREOW listed on IMDB

2010-02-02T06:02:00.000-08:00

You know you are "official" when IMDB, the authoritative Internet Movie Data Base, lists your movie. We are now -- again -- with HEDGEROW. Visit the IMDB HEDGEROW site. Or visit the ON THE LAKE IMDB site.

HEDGEROW wins major grant!

2010-01-13T15:46:00.000-08:00

Dave and I went to the Statehouse today for a press conference announcing the winners of the major 2010 grants from the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities. We received one to help with the post-production costs of BEHIND THE HEDGEROW: Eileen Slocum and the Meaning of Newport Society,, which will have its world premiere at the 2010 Rhode Island International Film festival. We graciously thank the Council for their continued support -- this is the second grant for HEDGEROW that they have awarded us, and these two grants follow one that helped push ON THE LAKE toward its completion in early 2009. Thanks also to George T. Marshall and Flickers Art Collaborative, which serves as our fiscal sponsor.

EPM IN THE NEWS AGAIN

2009-12-16T10:06:00.001-08:00

A nice story about documentary filmmaking, with reference to Eagle Peak Media, ON THE LAKE, and BEHIND THE HEDGEROW appeared in the Dec. 13 issue of DocumentaryTech magazine. Check it out!

Production nearing its end...

2009-12-01T05:04:00.000-08:00

We returned to 459 Bellevue yesterday to put Jerry Slocum on camera for BEHIND THE HEDGEROW. Jerry is Eileen's oldest child and only son -- and he was outstanding, filled with wonderful stories and insights about his mother that we had not heard.
We are nearly through production, with one or possibly two more shoots to go. And then we begin editing.
To learn more about the documentary, due to premiere at the 2010 Rhode Island International Film festival, visit the movie site.
-- Wayne

"namby pamby,' `idiot,' `coward'

2009-11-16T14:32:00.000-08:00

Are among the words used to describe Claiborne Pell for his early, vocal and longstanding opposition to the Vietnam War. More at the Pell bio blog.
And more about A VERY DIFFERENT SENATOR at the official book site.

Claiborne Pell bio

2009-10-24T11:45:00.000-07:00

Making great progress, check out the blog

More Press; Newport in New York

2009-09-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

Producer/writer G. Wayne Miller wrote a piece about narrative storytelling on the page and on the screen for DocumentaryTech, a web site devoted to "exploring the techniques and technology of documentary filmmaking," Sept. 25, 2009. BEHIND THE HEDGEROW was prominently included, along with a photograph of an on-location shoot of prominent Newporter Nick Brown.

The Providence Phoenix published a story about A VERY DIFFERENT SENATOR, Miller's forthcoming biography of Claiborne Pell, in its issue of Sept. 24, 2009, and HEDGEROW was included.

The biography brought Miller over the past weekend to Fort Ticonderoga in New York, which has been in Pell family hands since 1820 -- a place dear to Claiborne's heart. Pictured here is Robert Pell-deChame, family genealogist, with one of the fort's canons -- donated, Robert told me, by John Slocum, Eileen's husband. Small world...

A VERY DIFFERENT SENATOR

2009-09-19T10:42:00.001-07:00

Pell was a railroad buff -- and a visionary of high-speed passenger-rail service in the United States, which after the Second World War developed an interstate highway system but allowed passenger rail to suffer. In this clip from the projo, spring of 1962, Pell gets a favorable reaction to his plan for high-speed rail, run by a public entity, to serve the Northeast corridor. Yes, this is the root of today's Acela Amtrak service. Note the map!
For more on the Pell Biography, visit A VERY DIFFERENT SENATOR.

Claiborne Pell Biography

2009-09-11T10:10:00.000-07:00

With 36 years in the U.S. Senate and a long list of legislative accomplishments that included the Pell Grant program, the late Claiborne Pell had few equals. But he was much more than that -- a quirky and colorful man born into great wealth who spent most of his life in service to the people, a true example of noblesse oblige. A VERY DIFFERENT SENATOR (working title), by G. Wayne Miller with the cooperation of the Pell family, is the first and only book about his life. Due in 2010.

For details, visit the book site.

NEWPORT MOVIE AFTERNOON

2009-08-12T17:00:00.001-07:00

Thursday, Aug. 13, 4 p.m., please join as at the Redwood Library, 50 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, R.I., for a showing of ON THE LAKE and the teaser-trailer to BEHIND THE HEDGEROW. Discussion with the filmmakers and members of Newport society and wine and cheese included. Details at the Redwood Library site.

NO SHATNER, BUT SHOW GOES ON

2009-08-06T12:08:00.001-07:00

As has been reported widely this week, William Shatner at the last minute -- literally, the last minute -- canceled plans to come to Rhode Island for an appearance during an evening that includes a showing of ON THE LAKE and the teaser-trailer to BEHIND THE HEDGEROW. We were as disappointed as the folks at The Rhode Island International Film Festival, which handled the discussions with Shatner's people.
BUT the show will go on -- both OTL and the BTH trailer will be shown tonight starting with a discussion with Dave and me at 6:45 p.m. at the Columbus Theatre in Providence. Hope to see you there!
-- Wayne

ANOTHER GRANT for HEDGEROW!

2009-07-09T14:00:00.001-07:00

We learned this week that the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts has awarded us a production grant for BEHIND THE HEDGEROW. Few documentaries get support from RISCA, so this is a vote of confidence in the artistic merit of the movie. Thanks, RISCA!
Our first grant was awarded in April by the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities.

-- Wayne

NEW ON THE LAKE WEB SITE!

2009-06-09T17:30:00.001-07:00

Today, we went live with an exciting new design of our ON THE LAKE movie web site, designed by our friend James Nicholas at www.easywebcreations.com Be sure to check it out.

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER!

2009-04-24T10:50:00.000-07:00

Follow us on Twitter! as we make BEHIND THE HEDGEROW, about the secret world of old-money Newport, Rhode Island, home of the Gilded Age.

OTL PRESS NIGHT SCHEDULED

2009-01-31T09:27:00.000-08:00

January 29, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Filmmakers David Bettencourt and G. Wayne Miller invite you to a press screening of ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place, a feature-length documentary movie about the tuberculosis epidemic in America in the 1900s and globally today that will be nationally broadcast on PBS.

The press night will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10, at the Cable Car Cinema, 204 South Main Street, Providence, R.I. Bettencourt, Miller and members of the cast and crew will be on hand to answer questions.

ON THE LAKE will have its world premiere on Feb. 13 at the Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket, R.I., and will be broadcast on Rhode Island PBS (WSBE-channel 36) at 8 p.m. on March 25 (and other dates). The film has just been accepted for national distribution by NETA (National Educational Telecommunications Association).

ON THE LAKE had three successful test screenings last fall: in Pittsburgh, at Harvard College, and at state-run Zambarano Hospital in Pascoag, R.I., where much of the film is set. Zambarano opened in 1905 as a tuberculosis sanatorium.

Production of ON THE LAKE began in late 2007 at Zambarano, and later took filmmakers to Colorado, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Maryland and New York. The final version has images and reports from overseas. Globally, tuberculosis is the number-two infectious disease killer, after HIV/AIDS.

Even before its release, ON THE LAKE has garnered honors. The film is a member of the Geneva, Switzerland-based worldwide Stop TB Partnership (www.stoptb.org), run by an executive committee that includes members of the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The film had also been endorsed by the globe’s most prominent fight-TB advocate, Harvard’s Dr. Paul Farmer, subject of Pulitzer prize-winning author Tracy Kidder’s Mountains Beyond Mountains. Farmer said:

“Tuberculosis -- one of humankind's oldest documented illnesses -- has been placed, by some, in the category of 'emerging infectious diseases.' The truth is, TB has never gone away. It has been and remains one of the world's leading infectious killers… I applaud the efforts of Eagle Peak Media and their film 'On The Lake' to tell the human story of the tuberculosis epidemic.”

ON THE LAKE is the first production from Eagle Peak Media, a multi-media company founded in May by Bettencourt, the award-winning director of YOU MUST BE THIS TALL: The Story of Rocky Point Park, and Miller, Providence Journal staff writer and author of seven books. More Eagle Peak documentaries are in pre-production.

ANOTHE PRE-RELEASE HONOR

2008-12-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

With ON THE LAKE already accepted as an educational partner in the Geneva, Switzerland-based Stop TB Partnership, the world's leading fight-TB advocacy group, we have just been accepted as a partner with the United States advocacy group Stop TB USA. We thank the American group for bringing us on board.

Both the international and U.S. organizations are devoted to eliminating TB through treatment and research, and the public education and awareness required to support the End TB effort. Their recognition of us is in appreciation of the outreach/education role the film will play, beginning in February.

-- Wayne

EMOTIONAL FINAL TEST SCREENING

2008-12-05T09:02:00.000-08:00

Following successful test screenings in October in Pittsburgh and last month at Harvard College in Cambridge, Mass., we showed the movie Wednesday, Dec. 3, for the last time before the Feb. 13 world premiere at the place where it all began: Zambarano Hospital in Pascoag, R.I. We went into production a year ago at this distant place on Wallum Lake, and we have been many places since then as the movie grew from a look at a Rhode Island institution to include a national and global look at tuberculosis today. More than 100 staff, patients and former patients came this afternoon to the auditorium -- the very same place that appears in the film several times, albeit in historical context of a half century and more ago.

We thanked everyone for their extraordinary cooperation in helping bring this together, and we recognized several former patients and residents who are in the movie -- and who made the trip to Wallum Lake today. And that list includes Emily Martineau and Sheila O'Brien, both of Harrisville, R.I., and the four people pictured in the photo below, none of whom had seen each other in years, left to right: John Lynes, of Pascoag; Drew Greene, of North Carolina; Barbara Parkos, of Newport; and Russ Denham, who summers in the Ocean State winters in Florida. There were tears and memories galore... we have touched many lives as we've been blessed by so many stories shared and now preserved forever...

And our special guest was the extraordinary Frank Beazley, who has been a patient at Zam for almost 42 years. With a round of applause and profound appreciation for this incredible man, we wished Frank an early 80th birthday (it's on Dec. 13)! That's Frank, in the photo below, wearing his Christmas hat:

Thanks, folks, and happy holidays!

-- Wayne

GOOD SCREENING, GREAT WRITE-UP

2008-11-16T11:24:00.000-08:00

A crowd of some 75 people braced cold rainy weather to attend the second test screening of ON THE LAKE last evening at Harvard College in Cambridge, an event organized by our outreach coordinator, Katherine Miller (kudos, Kate!). We had several members of cast and crew in attendance, along with special guests Barbara Parkos and Gale Perkins, former TB patients who are in the film. It was awesome to watch them watch the film for the first time. They, like the audience, were moved.

And in the next morning's Harvard Crimson, we got a very nice write-up, check it out.

Dave and I took questions after -- that's us at the front of Harvard Hall 201 -- and we enjoyed the discussion. Got some good tips, too, from that discussion and the questionnaires as we move in on a final cut.

Here's a sampling:

"Overall, really, really good!" A woman in the 25 to 36 year-old group.

"So emotional. So moving." A woman in the 65-plus group.

Needs "more emphasis on global aspect of TB, relation to HIV, MDR/XDR-TB." A woman in the 18 - 24 group.

"You need to focus a lot more on global TB." A man, in the 18-24 group.

Indeed, the last two respondents hit on the major area where the film needs work -- and Dave and I are aggressively moving on that.

Thanks to all who came, and for all the great input. Third and last screening is a private viewing before an audience of some 200 people on Dec. 3... if you feel compelled to attend, send an email through the link at Eagle Peak Media, our production company and maybe we can sneak you in... next big date after that is the Feb. 13th premiere.

-- Wayne

SECOND TEST SCREENING -- PUBLIC WELCOME!

2008-11-05T07:21:00.001-08:00

November 5, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. _ The second of three scheduled test screenings of ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place, a documentary movie about the tuberculosis epidemic in America in the 1900s and globally today, will be held will be at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 13, at Harvard Hall, Harvard College.

Filmmakers David Bettencourt and G. Wayne Miller will speak at the showing of ON THE LAKE, which is scheduled for PBS broadcast in March 2009. This showing is free and open to the public. The movie will premiere at the Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket, R.I., on Feb. 13.

ON THE LAKE is the first production from Eagle Peak Media, a multi-media company founded in May by Bettencourt, the award-winning director of YOU MUST BE THIS TALL: The Story of Rocky Point Park, and Miller, journalist and author of seven books. Two more Eagle Peak documentaries are in pre-production.

The first test screening of ON THE LAKE was held last month in Pittsburgh, before an audience of nearly 100 people. The final test screening will be before a private audience on Dec. 3.

While less of a public health issue in America today than in the early 1900s, when much of the film is set, it remains epidemic on the planet. Tuberculosis is the number-two infectious disease killer globally today, according to the World Health Organization, with nearly two million deaths and nine million new cases in 2006, the last year for which data is available. The only disease with a higher worldwide mortality is HIV/AIDS.

Audience reaction from the Pittsburgh screening suggests that the filmmakers have succeeded in bringing powerful emotion and personal stories to the screen.

''Our aim was not to produce a 'disease-of-the-week' movie, but rather a compelling narrative of real people,'' Miller said. ''Against this tragic backdrop, against the many deaths, we found love stories and stories of triumph.''

Harvard Hall is located at the main entrance to Harvard Yard, which is in the center of Harvard Square in Cambridge, Mass.

For more information about the movie, visit the movie site.

OTL wide-screen showings set!

2008-10-01T04:14:00.001-07:00

We are almost done the film. Lots of final editing and sound work, but we are almost there -- just in time for our first wide-screen showing, on October 16th at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. Dave and I will present the film. The next showing will be on November 13th at Harvard College, in Cambridge, Mass., as part of Global Health Week. These showings are for students and faculty of the two schools. The official world premiere will be February 13th at the Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

-- Wayne

on the lake: CLOSING IN

2008-08-28T12:29:00.001-07:00

Labor Day weekend approaches, time for a quick update on our next doc, ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place. Last evening at Ben’s studio, we recorded our major voice: narrator Yemi Sekoni, who wowed us back in March during auditions and did the same in the studio. Yemi has a wonderfully distinctive voice that we adore, and she is a class act work with. She put up well with Dave's, Ben's and my shenanigans, and at the end of almost 2 1/2 hours, we had a thing of beauty.

We are doing some last-minute shooting tonight dictated by our progress on the rough cut –– not so rough any more. The URI band on Tuesday recorded Lonnie and Ben’s original bid-band composition, and it's outstanding. Once we lay Yemi's voice in, they can get to work on the rest of the sound.

With more editing last week and more scheduled for next, we'll soon have picture lock. This is all very exciting, watching almost 11 months of hard work by so many people finally coming together. The emotions seen in the trailer are only amplified here, and the story line remains strong. Cross your fingers, we think we have something here…

–– Wayne

Editing - OTL

2008-07-31T19:40:00.000-07:00

Dave, Harry and me (with camera) editing the rough cut. Looks mighty fine...
-- Wayne

Staff BBQ

2008-07-22T12:42:00.001-07:00

Sunday, July 20, found a bunch of us at EPM North for our first staff BBQ. A hot day, but good food and company, cold drinks, and a showing of a rough rough-cut. A good time was had by all. Pictured here are: David Jr., son of director Dave Bettencourt; Marisa Bettencourt, Dave's wife; and Kate Miller, my daughter and EPM promotions director.

-- Wayne

NOTED TB EXPERT JOINS OUTREACH

2008-07-21T13:10:00.000-07:00

As Eagle Peak Media moves forward with plans to help raise awareness of tuberculosis today, we are pleased to announce that leading TB expert Dr. E. Jane Carter, senior consultant for the RISE tuberculosis Clinic at Providence's Miriam Hospital and assistant professor at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, has agreed to join the effort. Before heading off to Kenya last week, where she is engaged in the global battle against the disease, we met with Dr. Carter and found her to be not only knowledgeable (we expected that) but also excited about her cause and the role OTL will play through its TB Awareness Days program, which begins this fall at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and continues into next year. The program is still being refined, but Dr. Carter will bring great authority to it. So, welcome, Dr. Carter… and a safe trip to and from Kenya.

The RISE clinic, sponsored by the Rhode Island Department of Health, is the state’s TB treatment center, recording some 8,500 patient visits every year –– most by people who carry the TB bacterium, but have not developed the disease. But the clinic does treat active cases –– including a man who tell his emotionally powerful story of his cure in the movie.

-- Wayne

2010 movie in pre-production

2008-07-16T19:50:00.000-07:00

Even as we edit ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place, we are into pre-pro for SISTERS, working title for our next. Here's assistant director Josh Fishlock on site, July 16, 2008.

WEB SITE IS UP

2008-07-02T17:41:00.000-07:00

After some careful planning and great design, our web site is up. A few last-minute touches remain, but it's essentially done -- and it looks fantastic. Our designer is James Nicholas of EasyWebCreations, and we recommend him and his company highly.

Now we have one central point of entry for all of EPM's projects. Drop by, look around, and let us know what you think.

-- Wayne

Trailer to our first movie

2008-06-10T14:28:00.000-07:00

Check it out -- the trailer to ON THE LAKE: Life and Love in a Distant Place, an EPM-sponsored production of a Midway Pictures film by Dave Bettencourt.

Welcome to Eagle Peak Media

2008-06-10T11:22:00.000-07:00

This is a test blog for our new company. which can be found by linking here.