by Ron Wilshire
BROCKWAY, Pa. (EYT) — Production on a “Quiet Town” film recently started on the streets of Brockway, but the project has been in the works for over a decade.
RedSlate Films–a Pittsburgh-based production company founded in 2019 by Jesse Hutchins, Brian Ceponis, and Brian Kadlecik–picked Brockway because it is the hometown of Hutchins, the writer, producer, and director.
“The movie is a crime drama, the drama between two brothers with the one that’s living in the criminal world, and he’s trying to keep his brother in, but he wants to get out…so, there’s the drama between the two brothers, and it’s all about like loyalty and things like that,” said Jesse Hutchins.
After Hutchins’ parents divorced, his mom lived in Brockway, and his dad took him to live in Kane. He was in Brockway every other weekend for half the summer until he graduated from Kane in 2004.
In 2007, he applied to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and was accepted. He eventually moved back to Brockway in 2008.
“I have been shooting short films since 2007, and over the years, each film I’ve done has gotten a little longer and more extensive regarding production values. Our company shot a short Civil War piece in Gettysburg on the 160th anniversary. I will push myself out of my comfort zone with each film and see what I can do.
“When I was a kid, my dad would rent movies all the time, and I fell in love with the spectacle. He loved action movies, and then my brain started turning, and I wanted to be the person who knew how to do that and make it happen. That’s where the dream started in the late 90s.”
Hutchins started teaching himself how to make videos and movies, and over the years, he has researched, edited, and learned from each film he has made.
“We wrapped shooting in Brockway yesterday, but I’m still on that filmmaking high. It’s a weird feeling, but I got to start editing everything and putting those pieces together to make that big picture out of the puzzle.”
Getting Permission
In June, Hutchins and his team approached the Brockway Borough Council and see if we could get permission.
“We sat down with them, discussed what we wanted to do, and saw what we would need to make this happen. By the end of the day, we all agreed on terms, and they were open to us coming in and doing what we needed.”
Hutchins explained the story was built around Main Street in Brockway because there is a bank and a police station right across the street.
“I built my story around Main Street in Brockway because in the borough building, you have the police station, and then right across the street, there’s S&T Bank. I told them I always thought it would be gutsy for somebody to try to rob a bank across the street from the police station. They all laughed. They all agreed and said let’s do this.
“When I returned to Pittsburgh the next day, I got a message from the Moonlite Drive-In Theatre in Brookville with some interest in our movie.”
RedSlate Films
Although RedSlate Films is a newer production company, the team members have over 30 years combined experience in the industry. Their primary focus is producing quality films and working across other video genres.
“Whether you are creating a music video or promotional content for your business, we provide script-to-screen solutions with a top-of-the-line professional look and sound. We will make the feel that conveys your message,” Hutchins added.
Past work can be viewed here: https://vimeo.com/redslatefilms.
“Quiet Town” is also a proof of concept for a feature of the same name we plan to shoot next year.
“We call this a proof of concept. I had already written a feature script, so we planned to do a short film on it, which is like a proof of concept, and then we can start shopping it around. It’s time for us to get investors to make the future to see the tone, the field, and everything else we need. That is the reason that they’re going to invest in something good.
“We usually enter shorts and proof concept at film festivals, and many of those film festivals have a film market, and in the film market, you’ll have your studio producers who go out and find new talent. With this feature that we had planned, things started making more money.
Making connections is always essential for a company like RedSlate. They are in talks with a distribution company and plan to release it on streaming services like Apple TV Prime Video.