Category Archives: Pitt-Starter

Pitt-starter: Steel Town – A Film About the Homestead Steel Strike

steel-town-scriptI love this Kickstarter project and I hope you will take a minute to watch their intro video.  Steel Town is a film about the Homestead Steel strike in 1892.  This strike led to a violent battle and in the end 12 people were killed.  The Homestead Steel strike had major implications for the labor movement and it all happened here, in Pittsburgh – near where you find the Waterfront shopping center.

I sat down with the folks behind this Kickstarter and I’m really excited for what they are putting together.  I think this film is a great way to share some important Pittsburgh history.

I’ve asked the filmmaker, Nick Hurt, to share what inspired him to make this film.  I think it is pretty interesting that Nick isn’t from Western PA, but he is inspired to make a film about Pittsburgh history.   Check out his statement and consider supporting the Steel Town Kickstarter – they have just 4 days left to meet their fundraising goal.

Why I am making “Steel Town”

It’s a valid question to ask why a young guy from Vermont has decided to tell a distinctly Pittsburgh story. I came to Pittsburgh four years ago to study at Carnegie Mellon, and at that point I had not even heard of the Homestead Strike. Like most incoming freshmen, I had a limited understanding of local history that went something like this: Andrew Carnegie made his fortune in the steel industry, he promptly gave away his fortune by putting a library on every street corner, and finally when he died in 1919, he burst into flames and from his ashes rose the Pittsburgh Steelers football team.

Coming to Pittsburgh for the first time and hearing the way people talk about the old steel barons is a lot like hearing people talk about dinosaurs. They were the “giants who walked here before us.” If you go down to the Waterfront, you can even see some of the fossils that they left behind, complete with a nice commemorative plaque. So when I finally learned about the Homestead Strike in a college history class, that was only the tip of the iceburgh. I took it upon myself to research this incredible event and the people involved so that I could tell the story in the best way I knew how—by making a movie.

“Steel Town” is that movie. It’s an 18-minute historical drama about the 1892 Homestead Strike. The story follows a family of poverty-stricken steelworkers who strike against Henry Clay Frick and eventually face off against an army of Pinkertons. We will be shooting the film in November at locations all throughout Pittsburgh.

But the Homestead Strike happened 120 years ago. Why tell the story now? Well, the inspiration for me stems from an appreciation for the strength of character of individuals on both sides of the conflict, including the rags-to-riches robber barons of the Gilded Age, like Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick, and the blue-collar champions of the workers, like strike leader Hugh O’Donnell. I want to remind audiences of the heroism embedded in the nameless Pittsburgh steelworkers whose backbreaking work shaped our country westward and skyward. This story of charismatic leaders and ruthless capitalism holds a certain relevance to key issues of wealth and organized labor that our nation faces today. “Steel Town” will address issues of workers’ welfare, labor rights, and economic equality that hold a special importance in the wake of the recent Occupy Movement and the empowering of the “Ninety-Nine Percent”. One-hundred and twenty years after the Homestead Strike, the context of organized labor debates has changed, but the underlying message of workers’ rights remains the same. By presenting the story as a dramatic film with high production quality, I hope to prompt an important dialogue on the relationship between capital and labor in the context of past tragedies and triumphs.

About the filmmaker: Nick Hurt is a current 5th Year Scholar at Carnegie Mellon where he studies business and film. Last summer he produced the winner of the 2012 Steeltown Film Factory competition, The Perils of Growing Up Flat-Chested alongside producing partner Yulin Kuang. Nick plans to use the “Steel Town” short film to gain attention and financing for a feature-length film about the Homestead Strike and the cutthroat feud between Carnegie and Frick.

Related articles

Four Awesome Pittsburgh Projects That Need Your Support

Here are three amazingly awesome crowd-funding projects by some of my favorite Pittsburghers and my current project that are looking for some crowd-funded support.  I know each of these projects creators personally and I think all of these are great projects for Pittsburgh.  Check out some of  the great thank-you perks for supporting each projects.

http://storify.com/iheartpgh/four-awesome-pittsburgh-project-to-support

Pitt-Starter: FLIPSTAND for iPad

Occasionally we like to feature some Pittsburgh related Kickstarter projects here on the blog.  This one caught our eye because it was designed by the folks who own 21st Street Coffee and created the FLIPSTAND for use in their shops.  We know a few others local businesses that use an Ipad to process credit cards and could use something like the FLIPSTAND to keep their iPads from walking out the door.

There are 4 days left to support this project – so if you think this is a nifty idea – make sure to contribute ASAP.

Here are some other blog posts about iPad stands for a variety of different places (including 2 different stands designed for iPad use in the bathroom?!?)

Pitt-Starter: The Brew Gentlemen Are Bringing a Brewery to Braddock

There is just 2 days left on this Kickstarter project, and these guys have already passed their goal to raise $25,000.  They have even passed their 2nd goal to raise $30,000.

But I wanted to share their video anyways.  I met these two gentlemen last year at the first Grub With Us dinner last January – you can read a recap of the dinner here.  This is a cool little video and gives you an intro to their brewery and Braddock.  But I also think that the Brew Gentlemen is a great example of something happening in the local economy and it is the opposite of Pittsburgh brain-drain. We spend alot of time talking about folks growing up here and not coming back to town and we often overlook the the stories of those who come to Pittsburgh and decide to stay – which is just as important.

Matt and Asa (aka The Brew Gentlemen) came to Pittsburgh to attend Carnegie Mellon.  Before they graduated they started working on their business and less than a year later – they have started a new business in Braddock.

You can read more about their brewery on The Brew Gentlemen blog here.  They have been posting about their new space in Braddock, updates to their Kickstarter campaign, beer events around Pittsburgh and more.  Even if you don’t give to the Kickstarter campaign – and they do have some cool rewards – keep these guys on your radar.

Some additional links about beer in the burgh …

Pitt-Starter: Help The Funniest Kids in Town, Move Across Town

One of the best kept secrets in town just maybe the Steel City Improv Theater (aka SCIT).  SCIT was founded about 2 years ago by two folks who met doing improv in NYC and decided the burgh needed a space for Improv.  Since it’s founding – SCIT has hosted classes and performances almost everyday of the week – and they have outgrown their little theater on the North Side.

Well the SCIT folks are moving across town – and they need your help.  A new space for the theater and classrooms has been rented in Shadyside – just beneath the Highland Ave bridge and demolition has begun.

Even these kids have fun tearing down walls, well at least they take funny pictures…

while their Kickstarter project has met the initial goal of $5000 – they are eager to raise the full $12500 – money will go to the build out of their new theater space.

Watch the Kickstarter video below and support the SCIT here.  They have some great thank you gifts – including the option to name the bathroom in the new theater.