Breaking Branches Pictures

08/20/2024

Big thanks to Barbara Murray, Carolyn Chiffelle & 2 Anonymous donors for their generous support today!!

MARCH 2023: Thank you all for making Season 1 of SLATERSVILLE a great succ… Christian de Rezendes needs your support for Complete SLATERSVILLE Film Series

08/17/2024

This morning I will be a guest on Dave Kane’s radio show at 9AM on WARA 1320AM

Coming up on WARA The Century Game One hundred years ago, in the autumn of 1921, the players of the Attleboro and North Attleboro High School football teams met on the gridiron for the first time and initiated a century-long friendly rivalry between our two communities. This storied rivalry is both....

08/16/2024

Reminder: World War II Comes to the Valley, a collaboration between Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park and ValleyCAST!, is this Saturday!
Where: Open Sky Community Services
50 Douglas Rd, Whitinsville, MA
When: August 17, 2024
This event runs from 1-5 PM.
📍Learn about homefront production in the Blackstone Valley during World War II. Free exhibits, lectures, demonstrations, and more.
📍1:30 Slatersville: America's First Mill Village screening
📍2:30 National Park Service lecture
📍3:30 The Hopedale Women's History Project
Partners include: 3-5-0 Girls, Baker Company, 1BN, 21st Marine Regiment - Reenacted
International War Museum
Slatersville: America's First Mill Village
ValleyCAST!
The Hopedale Women's History Project

08/16/2024

Going to print soon :-)

08/16/2024

https://www.valleybreeze.com/lifestyle/museum-of-work-culture-hosts-labor-day-open-house/article_0ffd94c2-5596-11ef-ad11-e7f043b2b61c.html

WOONSOCKET – The Museum of Work & Culture, 42 S. Main St., Woonsocket, will host its annual Labor Day Open House on Monday, Sept. 2, from 10 a.m. to 4

08/16/2024

Looking forward to this Saturday in Whitinsville for a talk on the making of "Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - Episode 7: The War Years." Hope to see you there :-)

08/16/2024

New poster for its new distributor... and its 10th anniversary... Raising Matty Christian

08/15/2024

After a great week of the world watching SLATERSVILLE, I was surprised to learn that nearly half of the viewership is coming from down under… in Australia!! Like 45% Wow… 😮 This was a stunner, because the only viewers I have heard from are based in the U.S. While Season 1 is available for folks to purchase in the U.K. through Amazon Prime, Tubi is showing Seasons 1 & 2 in 3 countries, but not in the U.K.yet 😢 Hopefully that changes soon. We are also gaining a little traction in Canada. All this while we work on raising support to complete Season 3!! Keep watching, everyone!! Share with friends. Thank you 😊🙏❤️

Support us 💵
GoFundMe.com/SlatersvilleFilm

Watch us 😊
https://link.tubi.tv/vw8SiMwR4Lb

In this series, discover the origins of industrialized America through the unknown history of the first planned mill village in America.

08/13/2024

Today, for the first time in I-don't-know-how-many-years, I watched parts of Raising Matty Christian, which I directed a decade ago. I was prepping it for FilmHub, and I found myself crying. When you don't look at your own work for a long time, you tend to blank on how you did things, only to play it back and be reminded.

But what hit me the hardest was the fact that I am NOW the father of an 11 year-old boy on the Autism spectrum. Our sets of challenges may be radically different, but they are the same in spirit.

In fact, the very day Nick was born, I was editing the scene where Matty's parents talk about his birth. In this film, we visited the Mass Hospital School and kids with cerebral palsy. Today, I visited the Neurologist and gave my son brain meds.

I'm knocked out by the sequences I constructed. I knew they were emotional then, but I could never truly feel then like I do now. In fact, I'm not even sure I could emotionally stomach the making of this film today.

Most importantly, this proves one thing - That getting this film the wider audience that it deserves is long overdue. It's been rentable on Amazon Prime and available on DVD for years, but now I am finally taking a break from Slatersville: America's First Mill Village to make that happen. :-)

https://www.amazon.com/Raising-Matty-Christian-Allie/dp/B0718YKYC5/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2G5FB8TVD3HJ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ykMs7kEOjQrXreLRzm3qRUSM3uexnHYNosbRnhl_YZuFl76RSGXj-Og7HVywVhaxtScIgchcyIxGWk4hq4CEK0R2udRn2eCzKANnxACZWuI5cqnXhz0aVkcupcuJY08dlSFyjPVx8eMqKYbGo1fyIQ.KviKtfvJP-2SiWeZLtpfDgQYOHmZyy-yibInVqq0Yq8&dib_tag=se&keywords=raising+matty+christian&qid=1723581952&sprefix=raising+matty+christian%2Caps%2C134&sr=8-1

Winner of 9 film festival awards throughout the U.S., this inspirational documentary by Christian de Rezendes profiles the life of Matthew G. Christian (1983...

08/12/2024

Looking forward to filming this amazing and historic event at the Samuel Slater Experience in Webster soon.

08/11/2024

Today I wanted to share Kitty Sun's post about "Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - Episode 8: The Power of Nostalgia." If you have already seen it on TUBI, or if you plan to attend our Labor Day screening of it at the Museum of Work and Culture, then you will recall she is the wife of Black-Eagle Sun along with their daughters Summer Sun and Luna Vigil, who we filmed in New Mexico. This was moving to read, with great appreciation for their involvement, especially when it came to dealing with a personal and sensitive subject. Thank you ALL again :-)

"Hello Christian and friends and family! I watched part of this series yesterday afternoon with my son and son-in-law. Yes, we watched the part about Eagle, but we watched the story of the first mill town, Slatersville, Rhode Island unfold after WW2. We were transfixed at how beautiful Christian wove the story with music, with interviews of living townspeople, some older than 100 years, stories and photos from that time. It depicts a time in our country where racism was front and center and how the people navigated through those years. Eagle and his family are a big part of that story. The interview of myself and our daughters, Summer and Luna brought tears to my eyes, as the memories flooded through me but this is a story of our country, told lovingly, historically and beautifully by Christian. Thank you, Christian and my nephew, Bruce Curliss who helped with Eagle's portion! Now, I will watch from the beginning of Season 1 and I hope everyone else does too!"

FEW SEATS REMAIN. You can register for our SLATERSVILLE Episode 8 Screening here: https://www.simpletix.com/e/labor-day-screening-of-slatersville-episod-tickets-178076. You can also support completion of the series at gofundme.com/slatersvillefilm. Thank you :-)

Please check the URL and try again or, alternatively, you can browse fundraisers currently receiving the most donations worldwide below.

08/10/2024

Cool 😎

NORTH SMITHFIELD – The epic story of a little mill village and its important place in the nation's history will now reach a worldwide audience. Slatersville, America's First Mill Village has been licensed by Tubi and is now available for streaming, anytime and from anywhere that the international ...

08/10/2024

08/09/2024

Big news!!! 😊🙏❤️

NORTH SMITHFIELD – The epic story of a little mill village and its important place in the nation's history will now reach a worldwide audience. Slatersville, America's First Mill Village has been licensed by Tubi and is now available for streaming, anytime and from anywhere that the international ...

08/09/2024

“I just finished watching Season 2 (of SLATERSVILLE). Thank you’ does not convey the feelings of gratitude that I have to you for bringing to me a deeper understanding of the town I called home for 36 years. It was a hard watch in some spots for sure, and I commend you from not shying away from it. From my heart, Thank you.”

- An Anonymous Woman who now lives out of state 😊

This comment was so incredibly kind to receive, and I am grateful to her for sharing it. It may have been hard for her to watch, but it was also hard for me to make. You know who you are. Thank you!!

Seasons 1 & 2 of SLATERSVILLE
Now on TUBI
😊🙏❤️

In this series, discover the origins of industrialized America through the unknown history of the first planned mill village in America.

08/07/2024

Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - Season Two is now streaming on TUBI, along with Season One. This is its trailer. Enjoy!! Visit https://tubitv.com/.../slatersville-america-s.../season-2. Help us complete the third and final season: www.gofundme.com/slatersvillefilm. Thank you!!

08/07/2024

VERY FEW SEATS REMAIN.
We expect to be SOLD OUT.
They will soon be starting a WAITING LIST.
Register here today!!
https://www.simpletix.com/e/labor-day-screening-of-slatersville-episod-tickets-178076

08/05/2024

As we return to working on the remaining SLATERSVILLE episodes, today in Glendale, we had the privilege of filming Steve Carlson, an engineer who was active in both conservation and preserving ground water quality in North Smithfield during the 1970’s. Many thanks to Steve, his wife Jacky, their photo-bombing son Kurt, Judy Beauchemin for printing, camera guy #2 John Dolber and Co-Producer Gail Denomme for making it all work!! 😊🙏❤️🎥🎥🎥

08/04/2024

Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - New and Original Episodes!! Now on TUBI.
https://tubitv.com/series/300012834/slatersville-america-s-first-mill-village/season-2

08/04/2024

Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - SEASON ONE & TWO ARE NOW available for STREAMING on TUBI!!! That means the 5 original episodes plus the 3 NEW Episodes CAN NOW BE SEEN. This channel is FREE and can be streamed worldwide!! SPREAD the WORD!!! :-)

In this series, discover the origins of industrialized America through the unknown history of the first planned mill village in America.

08/04/2024

One thing I have heard from industry people is that Slatersville: America's First Mill Village is "too many episodes about one thing, or one place."

As its filmmaker, I have always fought to reveal the contrary, because I could not disagree more, and countless people I have spoke to about this view agree with me. My impression is that those who say this have not taken the time to view the series or know it. Its themes are American and universal, and yet the storytelling is personal in its approach.

For those who have seen the series - Including Season 1 and any episodes we previewed that you may have caught at the Museum of Work & Culture last year - What is your opinion of the above statement?

08/02/2024

THIS EPISODE will strike many chords.

ONE MONTH FROM TODAY it will premiere.

AS OF NOW very few seats remain.

TIME is running out to register.

DON'T be left out!!

VISIT the link below :-)

https://www.simpletix.com/e/labor-day-screening-of-slatersville-episod-tickets-178076?fbclid=IwY2xjawEV5pNleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHTNacOmLPoVhcwc07fRQ5QxVqO__PxzWBbLW7beLUfjQFzyFPsJROwlyog_aem_REh5HDpOraaQXX5nwyJZRQ

08/01/2024

OKAY!!! Now I am diving back into Slatersville: America's First Mill Village Episodes 9 and 10 by moving pieces around, reorganizing files and filling in the gaps. After my team and I completed a full episode and a new season of 3 episodes ready-to-go, we await news on funding and distribution this month that could drop at any time. It's all very exciting!!

You can tell by two of these photos that we will be heading to South Carolina in the next installment. I hope by now that they've shown that water tower some love with a new paint job.

The last time I assembled these was in the spring of 2023. Since then it's been about completing 6, 7 and 8 100%. Now it feels like revisiting an old car that hasn't been run in a while and that you need to get reacquainted with again. Let's see... How did this go? Oh yeah... It's like starting all over again, except it's not. How do I explain that one?

The only way to make progress is by putting one foot in front of the other, to keep our fingers crossed that we receive good news and that it will all fall into place. After 13 years of working on this series, I have no doubt that it will.

I can't tell you how incredibly awesome it feels to only have 3 episodes (3-4 hours) to juggle instead of 6 or more episodes. It's a great breath of fresh air coupled with the "Oh God! Here we go again" vibes. But putting that aside, the journey and its results so far have been worth every minute.

www.gofundme.com/slatersvillefilm
www.firstmillvillage.com

08/01/2024

The ABC6 News story I appeared in today.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. (WLNE) — A fire at a mill in Woonsocket on July 29 provided a reminder of what one documentarian said is an ongoing problem. “It’s one of countless examples, particularly in Woonsocket,” Christian de Rezendes said. “But throughout the Blackstone Valley of beautiful mill bu...

07/31/2024

13 years, 8 episodes of nearly 9 hours later… 3 more episodes in 1 final season remain to be completed. They are E9: Exodus, E10: The Clock Is Ticking and E11: The Ghosts Have Their Say. When all is said and done, we will have accomplished this tremendous amount of work in historical documentary that spans the globe, because people like YOU supported it!! That’s amazing, and we are truly grateful. BUT… We still have work to do!! And we still need the support of grants, individual donors and sponsors in order to do it!! Are you with us? There is more exciting news to come in August… Be a part of our journey today!! 😊🙏❤️

MARCH 2023: Thank you all for making Season 1 of SLATERSVILLE a great succ… Christian de Rezendes needs your support for Complete SLATERSVILLE Film Series

07/30/2024

This event is already 2/3 FULL!! So if you haven't done so yet, registering might be a really good idea :-) You can do so at the link below.
https://www.simpletix.com/e/labor-day-screening-of-slatersville-episod-tickets-178076?fbclid=IwY2xjawEV5pNleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHTNacOmLPoVhcwc07fRQ5QxVqO__PxzWBbLW7beLUfjQFzyFPsJROwlyog_aem_REh5HDpOraaQXX5nwyJZRQ

07/29/2024

That's it!! I can't hold back!!! I am VERY proud to release our official trailer for Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - Season Two. This is for Episodes 6, 7 and 8!! I was going to keep this quiet for a while, but I'm too happy with how it came out and decided to share it now. The official release date for Season Two will be announced down the road, BUT first there IS more exciting news to come before that happens... So stay tuned!!

"Slatersville: America's First Mill Village" moves into its second season with three new and exciting episodes this Fall. Details coming soon. For…

07/26/2024

It's official!! You can now register to attend the premiere screening of "Slatersville: America's First Mill Village - Episode 8: The Power of Nostalgia" at the Museum of Work and Culture on Labor Day, September 2nd at 1:30PM. A Q&A with the film's Director (me), Co-writer Allison Horrocks and consulting historians like Akeia de BarrosGomes will follow. SEATING is LIMITED. REGISTER today. Thank you ALL!! See you there :-)
You can register here: https://www.simpletix.com/e/labor-day-screening-of-slatersville-episod-tickets-178076, and you can read this revealing article about the episode too: https://www.nrinow.news/2024/07/23/season-2-of-slatersville-documentary-now-complete-buried-history-in-episode-8-premieres-on-labor-day/

07/23/2024

This revealing article about our 8th episode was published today by NRINOW.news. For the first time, specific information has been made public.

This powerful chapter is a milestone in the SLATERSVILLE series when it comes to issues of classism, religion and racism.

A ton of research and work were put into "The Power of Nostalgia," which was filmed in 9 states with interviews that span 30 years, from long before I started. It's a critical installment, and one I am deeply proud of, not to mention truly grateful to ALL who played major roles in its making.

Episode 8 will premier at the Museum of Work and Culture on Labor Day. The registration link for this event will be available this Friday.

Thank you, Sandy Hall, for an awesome article.

NORTH SMITHFIELD – In his documentary telling of 200 years of history of the first planned industrialized mill village in the United States, Director Christian de Rezendes has learned that some aspects of the past are easier to discuss than others. Much of the series is marked by interviews of loc...

07/21/2024

On Labor Day weekend, SLATERSVILLE will be present at two events. The first will take place at Old Slater Mill in Pawtucket, RI on Sunday, 9/1, where we will be showing a portion of "Episode 6: They Will All Be My Friends" that focuses on the Saylesville and Woonsocket riots of 1934.

That week will be the 90th anniversary of the event, which labor historians call "The Saylesville Massacre." Four people died.

Saylesville is located within the town of Lincoln, 13 miles south of Slatersville. What happened there attracted news camera crews from Movietone News (Now owned by Fox), Paramount, British Pathe and Hearst (Now owned by UCLA).

All four of these sources had footage captured from four different perspectives. We have painstakingly reconstructed the events by creatively editing this footage that blends between the locations of then and now and covered the events from various angles. This also proved to be one of our most expensive endeavors in the making of SLATERSVILLE.

Patrick Crowley, a Rhode Island Labor Historian, Secretery-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO, author of a book on the Saylesville riots AND... SLATERSVILLE Project Consultant/Interview, will be present with I as filmmaker and Park Ranger Mark Mello to answer questions following the screening. We are looking forward to this event!!

Note that "SLATERSVILLE Episode 6: They Will All Be My Friends" will be the first new episode to premiere as part of Season 2 of the series later this year.

For a full schedule of events, visit: https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/labor-day-weekend-at-slater-mill.htm