Monday, August 11, 2008

Nelson Chipman and Jeremy Braverman: Regent Square





Regent Square

Editor’s Note: As Pittsburgh celebrates its big 250, Andrew Halasz and Kristen Lauth Shaeffer have found their own way to commemorate the city – through a series of short films collectively titled Pittsburgh Neighborhood Narratives. To make their project even more interesting, Halasz and Shaeffer invited local filmmakers to submit story treatments highlighting one of the many diverse neighborhoods of Pittsburgh. This article is the sixth in a series profiling each of the filmmakers selected for participation. Be sure to check back in two weeks for the next profile.

Situated in the cross-section of four municipalities (Edgewood, Pittsburgh, Swissvale and Wilkinsburg), Regent Square has managed to carve out its own identity, framing brick-paved streets with Victorian architecture and large canopy trees. A single strip running through its middle provides local residents with all the basic amenities that a modern life requires – food, drink, shopping and entertainment. For exercise, there is Frick Park. And for happy hour, the front porch.

It is in this small, but charming neighborhood that local filmmakers Jeremy Braverman and Nelson Chipman tell their story for Pittsburgh Neighborhood Narratives. Both residents of Regent Square themselves, Jeremy and Nelson came up with the outline for their film while swapping stories with neighbors.

“We talked to people from the neighborhood and shared our favorite stories, things that were unique to Regent Square,” said Jeremy. “A lot of that stuff found its way into our film, such as the front porch happy hours. Those are pretty big around here.”

Their film, called “Regent Square,” is about a New Yorker who is forced to relocate to Pittsburgh when his wife lands a job with UPMC. For him, the transition was not an easy one. For Nelson and Jeremy, who are also big city transplants, the move to Regent Square was a no-brainer.

“I was immediately taken with the neighborhood even before coming here,” admits Nelson, who moved from New York about a year ago. He researched the neighborhood online prior to the move. “There are some amazing, friendly people in Regent Square. I met more people in my first week here than I met in all seven years on my street in New York.”

Jeremy uprooted from Chicago about five years ago.

“We were both really excited to come here. So we took the angle, ‘What if we came here and didn’t like it?’” he said, referring to the idea for their film. “This is a story about someone who has to accept changes in his life.”

Acceptance can be found in unlikely places, as “Regent Square” proves. When the main character breaks his ankle in Frick Park, it is his older, legally blind neighbor who volunteers to drive him to the hospital. The incident helps to break down some walls for the skeptical New Yorker, as he gradually learns to appreciate the neighborhood.

Filming in Frick Park was important to Jeremy and Nelson because they feel that the park is “a huge asset to the neighborhood.” In fact, the two meet on a regular basis to jog the park’s trails.

They were also fascinated with the historical aspects of Regent Square, which they tried to incorporate into their film. It is said that George Westinghouse encouraged his executives to build houses in the area. The larger, grander homes of the Westinghouse execs greatly contrasted those of the lower-paid workers, who lived in more modest “Hulley” homes.

“Regent Square appears to be very diverse in terms of economics,” said Nelson. “You can get a small apartment or condo … and then right down the road are these huge homes.”

According to Nelson, the neighborhood was very cooperative during filming. Many of the businesses in Regent Square are independently-owned and were more than willing to help out. Dunning’s Bar and Grill, for instance, provided the cast and crew with free lunches. Others provided discounts. The Regent Square Civic Association funded the catering for food and drinks.

Both Jeremy and Nelson are instructors in the cinema and digital arts department at Point Park University and were grateful for the opportunity to work on a project together.

“Jeremy and I live on the same street, we ride the bus together and we sit three offices away,” explained Nelson. “We were looking for an opportunity to collaborate on a project together. Plus, we’re obviously big fans of Regent Square, so it was serendipitous that this came along.”

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