Harriet Beecher Stowe House Hosts Special Film Reception
for Public on Friday Evening February 21, 2014
Harriet Beecher (Jess Denney) and Theodore Weld (Thomas Alan Taylor), with Professor Biggs (Tom Walljasper).
Cincinnati’s historic Harriet Beecher Stowe House will serve as one of the key locations for the new movie Sons & Daughters of Thunder produced by Emmy ® nominated filmmakers Kelly and Tammy Rundle of Fourth Wall Films, and Kent Hawley. A special reception introducing to the public the filmmakers and the film’s stars Thomas Alan Taylor, Jess Denney and Janos Horvath will be held on the evening of February 21, 2014 at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, 2950 Gilbert Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Based on the critically-acclaimed play by Earlene Hawley (of Waverly, Iowa) and Curtis Heeter, Sons & Daughters of Thunder tells the true story of the 1834 Cincinnati, Ohio Lane Theological Seminary anti-slavery debates. The controversial meetings, led by abolitionist and firebrand Theodore Weld (played by acclaimed stage actor Thomas Alan Taylor), were the first to publicly discuss the end of slavery in America. The meetings angered Cincinnati residents and Lane Seminary officials, who promptly slapped a gag order on the entire student body. This action was followed by a freedom of speech protest and mass exodus of Lane students to Oberlin College.
A young Harriet Beecher’s (played by acclaimed stage actress Jess Denney) exposure to the debates and Weld's continuing work to free the slaves sparked a flame that led her to write her magnum opus Uncle Tom's Cabin.
Filming for Sons & Daughters of Thunder will take place at the historic Harriet Beecher Stowe House in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the only remaining structure on what was Lane Seminary land where the ground-breaking debates on emancipation took place in 1834.
“It is exciting to be filming at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House in February, exactly 180 years after the actual debates on the abolition of slavery took place at Lane Seminary,” said director Kelly Rundle. Outstanding stage and film actors from Los Angeles, Chicago, and the Quad Cities area where the Rundles operate their production company Fourth Wall Films, have been cast in the film.
“The Beecher House is the only remaining structure on what was the Lane Theological Seminary grounds,” said producer Tammy Rundle. “We are grateful to the Friends of the Harriet Beecher Stowe House and the Ohio Historical Society for their kind assistance in making it possible for us to film in the very site where this significant story took place.”
Lyman Beecher (Janos Horvath) with Director of Photography Kevin Railsback above--at the historic Jenny Lind Chapel in Andover, Illinois.
On Friday evening, February 21, 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m., the public is invited to attend a special film reception to meet the filmmakers and stars of Sons & Daughters of Thunder. The event will include hors d’oeuvres, a silent auction, and Q&A with producers Kelly and Tammy Rundle, actors Thomas Alan Taylor (Theodore Weld), Jess Denney (Harriet Beecher) and Janos Horvath (Lyman Beecher). Reservations are required. To RSVP, call 513-751-0651.
Principal photography for Sons & Daughters of Thunder continues through July 2014. In addition to the Harriet Beecher Stowe House in Cincinnati, Ohio, filming will also take place at historic sites in Connecticut, Illinois and Iowa.
Sons & Daughters of Thunder is slated for release in 2018 and will screen throughout the U.S. in independent theaters and film festivals. It will be released nationally on DVD, with broadcasts on PBS stations to follow. For more information about Sons & Daughters of Thunder, visit www.LaneRebelsMovie.com.