BIG TIME, BIG VALLEY: Area to be featured on upcoming PBS’ ‘Our Town’ series
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REEDSVILLE -- Big Valley is about to go Hollywood. Well, at least on the public television airwaves.
The area has been selected to be the next region featured on the WPSU-TV series "Our Town."
A production team from the Penn State-based PBS station will meet with area residents at the Brookmere Winery, 5369 Route 655, Belleville, at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 24.
"The series started with us going into towns, not areas and not regions," said Cole Cullen, the station's lead producer of local content. "But there are areas like Big Valley that warrant their own program - Moshannon Valley, Bald Eagle Valley, Penns Valley and now
Our Town's Big Valley."
Big Valley includes Allensville, Belleville, Milroy, Reedsville and surrounding areas, Cullen said.
The WPSU crew will come to Big Valley on Saturday, June 10, and do on-camera interviews with community members, Cullen said. Prior to that date, residents will shoot pictures and videos of the stories they will tell on June 10, Cullen added.
Cullen said WPSU has been producing the "Our Town" series for more than 20 years. Lewistown has been the subject of the program, but this is the first time for Big Valley. The Big Valley episode will be the 110th episode of "Our Town."
In the past "Our Town" has produced two shows in the series each year, but Big Valley is the only one scheduled to be filmed this year. There is no production cost to the community.
"You just need to be excited about the town and tell us whatever story you want to," Cullen said.
For smaller towns that don't garner many headlines, the attention is appreciated.
"People really appreciate it," Cullen said of the show's coverage. "Normally, a small town doesn't get a lot of positive media attention until something happens that's usually not positive."
"This gives them the opportunity to brag about their town," he added.
Cullen is hoping for a good turnout at the brainstorming session on May 24. That will produce as many story lines as possible for the one-hour program.
Cullen said between 15 to 25 stories will be included in the program.
"This process is really incumbent on the community members," he explained. "They are very involved - like co-producers on the project. It's not a documentary. We teach them how to tell stories and about videotaping."
A large portion of the community meeting will be devoted to training residents on the basics of shooting quality videos and still shots.
Cullen said WPSU can provide video cameras, but most people use their phones.
"I'm really encouraging people to get to that first meeting," Cullen said. "The meeting is open to anyone who has an interest in the show.
"You don't have to be on video camera, and you don't have to be taped," he added. Residents of surrounding communities who want to share a story about a Big Valley experience are also encouraged to participate.
The production process is still a lengthy one. After an area is chosen, the station's production team comes in for a day and records all the interviews. Cullen and others then spend a couple of months in development, putting the show together by editing the content they've collected.
"We've heard great things from people who were part of the show and those who watched the show," he explained.
The project is also special to Cullen, a Mifflin County native. "I grew up in Allensville and I live in Reedsville," he said. "This is unique for me. I've worked in one capacity or another on 15 to 20 of these.
"But this is the first time, I've lived and grew up in the area where we've filmed. Normally, I walk into a show and don't know anything about the area."
Cullen, who graduated from Indian Valley High School and Penn State, has worked at the station for 18 years.
The air date is Thursday, Sept. 7.
To view previous episodes of "Our Town," visit www.psu.org/our town.