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| A GRASSROOTS EFFORT TO PRESERVE BETHLEHEM'S PAST WHILE ENSURING ITS ECONOMIC FUTURE | |
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SOS In The NewsFilmmakers feature Bethlehem Steel as 'American Ruin'Redevelopment plans play role in site's inclusion in project.By Kristen Gerhard Of The Morning CallDecember 10, 2004 In a shadowy crevice of Bethlehem Steel's blast furnaces, under a beam tagged with the graffiti ''THIS PLACE IS DOOMED,'' filmmakers Bryan Papciak and Jeff Sias lie silently on a dolly laden with camera equipment. They're waiting for the right light — which they describe as something between foggy morning and shadowy dusk. Despite claims that the sun has been their nemesis and the cold has made it hard to feel their fingers, the team's excitement to begin ''The American Ruins Project,'' a feature-length documentary that explores architectural remains throughout the country, is palpable. ''This is just such an amazing place,'' said Papciak, a native of Coopersburg. ''Everything is composed for you, all you have to do is just point the camera and shoot it.'' But perpetual patience doesn't seem to hurt either. And 2 1/2 hours on a recent afternoon, after the light finally shifted, two seemingly simple shots of the Bethlehem Steel's huge old blast furnaces were complete. Since the film's conception, the Bethlehem Steel plant has been first on the movie-making duo's list of architectural ruins to visit. Papciak said he spent his childhood in awe of the immense structure. ''I grew up in its shadow,'' he said. ''I mean, it built America.'' The filmmakers' vision for ''American Ruins'' is to portray the country's most derelict places through a series of vignettes, set to music. They describe it as a ''rotting Fantasia'' and ''a road trip through the ruins of abandoned America.'' Julia Solis, founder of Ars Subterranea, a New York group that aims to increase appreciation of abandoned spaces, is co-producing the documentary. The filmmakers met Solis while working on their first film ''MET STATE,'' an official selection at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival, Robert Redford's premiere festival for independent films. While she has been exploring ruinous places for most of her life, Solis said she is particularly grateful for this chance to get a glimpse inside Bethlehem Steel. Staring up at cracks of sky through the peeling metal of the furnaces, she said, ''You could never have a site like this in New York. And the amazing thing is nature is taking it over again. You can actually see the plants sprouting from the brick work and masonry.'' Indeed, nature reclaiming man's achievements is one of many themes with which ''American Ruins'' will grapple. The film's most basic goal, however, is to counteract the notion that Americans tend to forget their relics rather than celebrate them. According to the filmmakers, the plan to redevelop 120 acres of Steel land into Bethlehem Works, an entertainment, retail and residential district in the South Side, was the main reason they wanted to include the site in their film. But even though, as artists, they admire the space for what it is now, they see the upcoming changes as a positive step. ''What's great is that they're not just demolishing it,'' Solis said. ''They're really trying to make something out of this amazing place.'' Once they've wrapped their cross-country adventure, Papciak and Sias will head back to their Boston film collaborative, Handcranked Film Projects, to cut the documentary, adding music and sound clips on the history of each space. If all goes well, they plan to bring it to Sundance within the next few years. To find out more about the film or to suggest a place for the filmmakers to visit, check out the Web site: http://americanruins.com Copyright © 2004, The Morning Call
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