founding families (those who have lived
in Morgan Hill for 50 or more years) in
a series of videos to be called “Stories
from the Past.”
“The Historical Society wanted to
chronicle a vanishing generation of
people who lived through the boom
and bust years of the 1920s and 30s,
the Great Depression and World War
II,” Nils said. “People who helped build
and shape our community in those
days. We interviewed founding families
and researched the Historical Society’s
archives to find old photographs, post-
cards and letters that helped enrich the
video. Their stories are fascinating and
very touching.”
According to Kathy, “Nils and Mattie
are a delight to work with. They’re
great at coaching people and putting
them at ease on camera. The first video
they did was so well-received at our
2014 Founders’ Day Dinner that we’ve
asked them back twice to continue the
video series. We plan to show the third
installment at our Founders’ Day event
in September.”
Versatility at Work
Among its noteworthy projects, 152
West has produced a public service
announcement for the City of Gilroy
and a virtual tour video for the Gilroy
Museum. They also capture videos of
the stage productions of John Bisceglie,
founder/producer/director of the
San Francisco, South Bay and Gilroy
Children’s Music Theaters. In addition,
they’ve created an ongoing series for
Sigona’s Farmers Market at Stanford
Shopping Center. One segment featured
Andi Mariani, owner of Andi’s Orchard
in Morgan Hill.
Gleeful, a children’s musical, filmed for Director and Producer John Bisceglie.
One of the most powerful and
moving stories they’ve ever documented
on film is that of Carl Clark, a U.S. Navy
veteran who will celebrate his 100th
birthday in July. Clark is credited with
having saved his ship during the attack
on Pearl Harbor when enemy airstrikes
set the deck on fire. As a black soldier
in the 1940s, his heroism went unrec-
ognized. Clark’s fate changed when he
attended a writing seminar and wrote
down his story. The instructor shared his
story with Congresswoman Ana Eshoo,
who then shared it with the military. As
a result, Clark finally received official
recognition for his bravery in the line of
duty.
Nils and Mattie said they are looking
for funding to complete this project,
because the original patron of the
project recently passed away and Clark
is nearing his 100th birthday.
Earlier this year, they wrapped up
filming of a Silicon Valley symposium
for the African Diaspora Network.
The event focused on the Diaspora’s
contributions to Africa through direct
investment, small business development,
philanthropy, and innovation.
According to Chike Nwoffiah,
Founder and Director of the Silicon
Valley Africa Film Festival and curator of
the symposium, “I’ve worked with lots
of filmmakers over the years, and it’s rare
to find people like Nils and Mattie who
possess artistic creativity and conduct
themselves as business professionals.
They stick to the storyboard, which is
important, and then they do extra shots,
bringing their own creative genius. The
end product is always glorious. I’ve used
them to shoot a TV pilot and for count-
less other projects and I’m lucky to have
them as business partners.”
June 4th marked the premier of “The
Biggest Game in Town,” a labor of love
for 152 West. This indie feature film tells
the story of Atticus Cane, a landscaper,
and his cohorts, a realtor and an old
mob boss. The trio sets off on a madcap
adventure to go back in time and play a
legendary poker game. Things go awry
when Cane must face his fears to play
the best poker player around in “the
biggest game in town.” Writer/direc-
tor John Nava brought in 152 West to
handle the cinematography, visual effects
and production. Jason Stebbins, a well-
known Morgan Hill resident, has the
starring role as Atticus Cane. The movie
premiered at Monterey’s historic Golden
State Theater. Follow them of Facebook
for future show dates.
David Buck, Joe Barra, Jayson Stebbins and
Ralph Noe star in The Biggest Game in
Town, by writer/director John Nava, filmed
by 152 West Productions. The film made its
debut at Monterey’s Golden State Theater
in June 2016.
46
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
JULY / AUGUST 2016
gmhtoday.com