Boathouse Row - 100 Years Ago!

See how the Boathouse Row in Philadelphia is turning more than 100 years old in 14 seconds - click here (and then on the 'play button'). Thanks to Mrs. B., who finds these odd things....

Thomas's 'Backwards' is Out!

Slightly more than a year ago, 19 August, 2011, HTBS wrote about Sarah Megan Thomas and the making of her rowing movie Backwards in and around Philadelphia. Not only was she playing the lead role, Abi, but she had also written the film script and produced the film. Last Thursday, the film opened in Philadelphia, with some of the members of the U.S. women’s rowing team present at the premiere (see photos from Row2K here).

Above you can watch a video how the film was made, while below is a trailer of the film ~ enjoy!

New Rowing Documentary: 'Making Waves'

Boathouse Row is the setting for an independent documentary which looks at diversity in the sport of rowing.

A new film documentary on rowing, Making Waves, will air on Wednesday, 12 October, 2011, on the Philadelphia PBS channel, WHYY, at 10 p.m. Making Waves is produced by Shirley Road Productions, a Philadelphia-based, award winning non-profit production organization founded in 1991. In a press release the company writes,

“Philadelphia’s historic Boathouse Row, where great rowers and Olympic champions have trained for over 150 years, is the setting for Making Waves, a documentary that looks at the elite world of rowing and how it perpetuates exclusion in subtle ways. Beautifully shot in high definition, the documentary focuses on several passionate rowers from diverse backgrounds. Recounting their own experiences with exclusion and change as class and gender barriers have gradually worn down, their stories also reveal the sport’s failure to truly reflect today’s diverse society. Making Waves examines the nuances of race and ethnic relations, makes us think about the complexities of change, provides a lesson in basic fairness and encourages dialogue about inclusion and equal access to opportunity.”

Frances McElroy, producer and director at Shirley Road Productions, says in an e-mail to HTBS that she is working with Philadelphia’s PBS station on trying to air the film on a national level. Of course, the dream is also to get an international distribution, Frances writes.

Frances and her team at Shirley Road Productions have worked for four years with the film, which runs for 52:30 minutes. DVDs of the documentary are available for individual home viewing for $30, which includes first class postage and handling. The production company is still working with establishing a rate for institutions of higher education, public libraries, museums and other organizations.

Inquiries about purchase should be addressed to:

info@shirleyroadproductions.org.

To watch the film trailer, please click here and then click on 'play trailer' by Making Waves movie clip.

Here at HTBS we are keeping our fingers crossed that Making Waves will be shown nation wide and eventually also reach rowers and rowing friends abroad.

With special thanks to rowing historian Bill Lanouette!

"Backwards" Is Being Filmed In Philly

We read about and watch the top-notch athletes who are rowing at the World Championships and at the Olympics. They win medals and we are happy for their success, they lose, and we feel sorry for them, maybe thinking about all those years of hard work that left them without something to show for it. Well, at least, they can tell their children and grandchildren that they competed at the Worlds or the Olympics. Maybe they were not the best of the best, but at least they raced against the best. Now, how about those who almost made it to these Championships, the rowers who probably train and practice as hard as the rest of the National Team, but still end up ‘an alternate’?

Sarah Megan Thomas (seen above) is soon going to show us. She has written a film script, raised the money to shoot it, and is right now filming it in and around Philadelphia, with the beautiful Boathouse Row as a backdrop. She is also staring in the lead role, Abi. Thomas’s film Backwards is the story about Abi, who has spent eight years of her life to reach her dream to row in the Olympics. Twice she has been named ‘an alternate’, and now she is a high school rowing coach, working for her ex-boyfriend…..

Thomas, who is a rower, got the idea for Backwards from her rowing coach in college who left Williams College to train for the 2000 Olympics, only to be named the spare. In an article on the Philadelphia blog Uwishunu.com, Thomas said, “Philadelphia is a major rowing city. I think the film captures the beauty of the sport and the city.” She has managed to gather quite a nice crew for this film. Read the whole article here.

Below is a video clip with Thomas:



HTBS wishes Thomas luck with her film!