The Brittany Coast

This a beach on the Côte du Granit Rose, or the Pink Granite Coast of Northern Brittany, on La Manche/The English Channel. Jaqueline and Pierre have stopped to climb on the cliffs, enjoy the view, and discuss the possibilities of lunch.

"It's Great! Britain" Testimonial

We have made four travel films which we sell over the internet at montyandmarsha.com and we often get feedback from customers. This one is particularly nice because it concerns our film, "It's Great! Britain," and it's from Deryk of Coventry, England. He ordered two DVDs so he could bring them with him to the States as gifts for American friends.

A bit of Corfe Castle, Dorset.

Singing in an English folk club with Martyn Babb on accordion.

Dear Monty
Just to let you know that the parcel arrived this morning - with a comfortable week to spare ahead of our departure. And to say also that we are very pleased with the contents of your film. The DVDs are intended as gifts for close members of my family who, like you it seems, have their origins here but have lived most of their lives in the US. The idea is simply to awaken memories, or to forge new links. In making your film you could only make an impossibly small selection of places to visit, but as it happens your choice well met the bill. We all know London, our son was married in an area of Suffolk that you display, my wife and I have visited Lindisfarne, and spent a recent holiday walking the length of Hadrians Wall; as children I and my sisters had seaside holidays at Presytatyn, we took my Mother on a tour of Exmoor on her very last return trip to England before she died (she was utterly delighted by it), and we've done some splendid walking in Hardy country. So you see - spot on! You must return some day and do another, perhaps this time visiting the Highlands of Scotland, doing a bit more of Wales (the wonderful Snowdon Mountain range and the glorious Pembrokeshire coast), and of course our beloved Lake District.
But again many thanks.

Deryck

Hollywood on the Bayou

There we are on the set of “The Great Debaters,” directed by and starring Denzel Washington, produced by Oprah Winfrey and also starring Forest Whitaker. Los Angeles? No, it’s Mansfield, Louisiana, twenty-five miles south of Shreveport, a city which has suddenly become a Hollywood hotbed.

It’s the talk of the town: Kevin Costner has done two films here, “The Guardian” and “Mr. Brooks;” there’s been a Stephen King story about fog (or mist;) Tom Hanks came for “Homeland Security;” Tom Cruise came for wife Katy Holmes who was working with Diane Keaton and Queen Latifah; Samuel L. Jackson was talking to school kids between takes; and Cedric the Entertainer was, uh, entertaining. And according to an NBC News story, “Hollywood stars have been pretty happy here, too, because for some reason the paparazzi can’t seem to find Shreveport on a map.”

What were we doing on the “Great Debaters?” Along with maybe one hundred other locals, we were providing some “background:” populating antique buses and cars; walking up and down sidewalks, entering shops, cafes, hardware and grocery stores; standing on the corner watching all the grips go by. It is not a dignified job and it doesn’t pay well, but for a while you feel like you’re part of something big.

“The Great Debaters,” set in the Depression Era 1935, is the true story of a debate team from all-black Wiley College in Marshall, Texas. They compete in a national debate contest, come up against Harvard, and win. Denzel plays Melvin B. Tolson, the poet-professor who molds the debate team and encourages his students to become real-life proponents of civil rights. Forest Whitaker plays the father of James L. Farmer, Jr., a student who later co-founded the Congress of Racial Equality.

Back on the set: one evening, about six p.m., some dignitaries had arranged a public ceremony in front of the Court House to present Denzel Washington with the keys to the “city” of Mansfield. A goodly crowd gathered. A few youngsters were holding up a twenty foot banner which read “Welcome to Mansfield Great Debaters,” when suddenly from around the corner there was a concerted squealing of the sort one associates with Elvis Presley’s teenage fans. A group of local girls had spotted Denzel.

So it goes. Marsha started the Office of Film and Video here in Shreveport in 1989, and the office continued to do its work long after she had gone to live on the Côte d’Azur and make travel films with me. But it was not until the disaster known as “Katrina” that Shreveport really took off as a filmmakers destination. Practically every film that had been scheduled to be made in New Orleans had to find a new location, while still getting the various tax breaks provided by the State of Louisiana. Shreveport filled the void.

If you think of cypress trees growing in lakes, little old rundown southern towns, decorative ironwork balconies, rows of shotgun houses, oil wells and cotton fields, baptisms in the river, stately plantation homes, think Shreveport, an undiscovered landscape. In fact, think “Hello Louisiana,” our atmospheric travel film about this steamy southern French-fried culture. Hellooo!

“Hollywood on the Bayou” by Monty Brown. Monty and wife Marsha have produced four travel films, the latest of which is “La Manche/The English Channel.” It’s a tale of two cultures. This article was originally published in Travel Adventure Cinema magazine.

Hello Louisiana

By Alexandyr Kent
akent@gannett.com

Bossier City filmmakers Monty and Marsha Brown have documented their love of Louisiana food, music and culture in their latest travelogue, "Hello Louisiana."

To Marsha Brown, the 80-minute DVD's message about Louisiana is simple. "It's just that we are so wonderfully unique."

It includes segments on Elvis Presley and the Louisiana Hayride, the blues musician Huddie "Leadbelly" Ledbetter, Mudbug Madness, the Natchitoches Christmas festival, the legend of Bonnie and Clyde and the state's rich musical heritage.

The Browns have been screening this film and providing live narration in venues around the country, including the Harvard Club in Boston.

Marsha Brown is proud to promote the state and hopes audiences take something away from the experience.

"These travelogues are kind of like armchair travel," she said. "They get to see places they don't always get to travel to."

In addition to "Hello Louisiana," the Browns have made "La Bell France" and "It's Great! Britain."

More information about the films can be found at montyandmarsha.com and adventurecinema.com. Copies are being sold locally at artspace, 710 Texas St. in Shreveport, and Tubbs Cajun Gifts, 615 Benton Road in Bossier City. They also can be ordered by calling the Browns at (318) 220-9966.

©The Times (of Shreveport, LA)
January 28, 2006