Author: Angie Sykeny

Local filmmaker brings a Frost poem to the screen

Local playwright and filmmaker Donald Tongue recently wrapped up filming his adaptation of Robert Frost’s poem “Home Burial” at Canterbury Shaker Village. Tongue discussed what drew him to Frost’s poetry and his approach to interpreting the poem on screen. Follow facebook.com/tonguemtproductions for updates on the film and how to view it.

What inspired you to adapt Robert Frost’s poem ‘Home Burial’ into a film?

A number of years ago, I wrote a play about Robert Frost titled My Neighbor, the Poet that was commissioned by Theater Kapow. I also staged ‘Home Burial’ a number of years ago at Southern New Hampshire University. … I did a lot of research and read a lot of his poetry and was very much taken with the sort of cinematic quality of his poetry; it has very clear actions that he’s describing … and he definitely seems to focus on characters. … Then, he has a lot of dialogue within his poetry between the characters, or, if there’s one character, there’s some sort of internal dialogue going on. I think, in many ways, he just kind of had this [ability to take] these scenes that he was living out himself and convey them through poetry.

You’ve written a number of pieces for the stage; had you ever written for film before this? How are the processes different for you?

I did a 13-part web series called Candid Candidate, which was sort of a mockumentary about two presidential primary candidates, so I had dabbled in [film] a little bit, but this is my first venture into a real full-length feature film. Film is definitely a totally different process. There are certainly things that are the same: You have to work out the acting, the character motivations, things like that, and we rehearse sort of similarly, [as far as] the line delivery and what’s behind it. But for stage, you’re creating something that is to be performed, and it’s going to be the same for each performance, [whereas] in film, you’ve got to think about the different camera angles and how you’re capturing the story through the lens. I had to do a lot of learning about the different types of shots that filmmakers use and what those convey.

How literal is your interpretation of the poem?

I’ve seen other [adaptations] that just use [the poem] as source material; my approach, though, was to use the poem verbatim. There is nothing in the film that’s not in the poem. In the moments where there’s dialogue [in the poem], there’s dialogue [in the film]. When [the poem has] description, [the film has] a voiceover, and the actors perform the descriptive verse [during] the voiceover. I feel that it works really well. … It’s just such a great, wonderfully written poem; I didn’t want to mess with it.

How did you interpret the poem’s more abstract themes and visuals on film?

A lot of the action is clear in the poem. It starts out, ‘He saw her from the bottom of the stairs.’ We had to find a staircase with a window at the top to be able to capture that visual from the poem. … The shot starts from the bottom of the staircase and moves up to her at the window. In some ways, it feels like you’re coming out of the grave, like you’re kind of unearthing this moment in time between these two characters; that was one vision I had as far as capturing the feel and emotion of the poem.

What was it like shooting at Canterbury Shaker Village, and why did you choose that location?

There was a schoolhouse building at Canterbury Shaker Village that had what we were looking for: the staircase in a rustic setting with a window at the top of the stairs. It worked well because, being a schoolhouse, the staircase is a little wider than [those in] some of the older-period farmhouses, where the staircases are kind of narrow. That certainly helped to both create the proper setting and accommodate the film crew in the space. … Canterbury Shaker Village was extremely accommodating for our film shoot; they gave us access to areas in the administrative building for our breaks, loaned us some set pieces and even moved the cows to another pasture and made sure the electric fence was turned off for our outdoor scenes.

Tech Professional of the Year winner talks about inclusion in the industry

Flo Nicolas was named Tech Professional of the Year at the recent TechWomen Connect and Awards event hosted by the NH Tech Alliance.

What is your background in tech?

My background is actually legal. I’m a licensed attorney. I spent a couple of years practicing, and then I ended up working for a big telecommunications company. I spent over seven and a half years in the corporate technology operations department. … When I entered the corporate world, I was a bit naive; I thought, you work hard, you get promoted, easy peasy. Then I started seeing women in the corporate world just weren’t getting promoted. … I ended up … working for another smaller startup company … as their chief growth and community officer, focused on legal technology. I started growing my name in the legal tech sector. … I started doing this show where I was teaching other lawyers how to leverage technology.

What are you doing now?

I wanted to continue my passion for tech education, which I did by creating my show, Get Tech Smart, which is focused on … educating people in a simplistic way on the emerging technologies that are being created right here in our state. I’m also a co-founder and chief operating officer for a tech company … [focused on] Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, but not just in a simple way of consultation and being like, ‘Hey, you should be diverse’; we actually have a platform that helps organizations successfully implement and launch their DEI strategic plan by utilizing data analytics. … That way, they can see clearly what’s working, and what’s not, celebrate their successes, but also see what areas need improvement, and then take action. … I also started doing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion networking events. I’ve done two events so far … [which were] so successful. … We managed to raise over $40,000 in professional development scholarships … which is very needed.

What are some of the biggest challenges women face in the tech industry?

One of the things I noticed when I started doing my show … was the lack of representation of women in the tech industry. … There’s a struggle to be seen, heard and paid our worth. … The weight of the invisible glass ceiling is evident, with women earning only 80 cents for every dollar men make, and the disparity is even more significant for women of color. … Many women experience demoralization and imposter syndrome when they are undervalued and underpaid. …This leads to difficulties in advocating for ourselves, negotiating better salaries and seeking promotions.

What are some steps tech companies can take to be more inclusive?

Companies can address the issue of gender pay disparity by conducting self-audits to ensure equal pay. They should use data to identify and rectify any discrepancies in pay between equally qualified men and women. … Companies should also engage in surveys to gather qualitative data on employee sentiment and assess their sense of belonging. Analyzing hiring and retention trends can provide insights into diversity gaps within the workforce. … Companies need to be intentional in their hiring practices and establish community alliances to tap into diverse talent pools. It’s important to note that diversity encompasses more than just gender and race … [and] companies should consider other dimensions such as veterans, neurodivergent individuals and people with disabilities.

What would you say to young women interested in going into the tech industry?

The tech industry is a fantastic industry to get into. … I would tell them — especially girls that are in elementary school or high school — to not feed into the myth that math is for boys … or that people who want to get into the tech industry need to learn how to code and need to know how to do math. That’s not true. I’m terrible at math. I don’t even code. There’s more to technology than just coding and doing math. … I would tell them to not be afraid to explore the tech world. … I would also tell them that it’s challenging to break into the tech world, so you should start getting that exposure early on and start networking … with other women in the industry. Don’t wait until you graduate college. Go to STEM camps. … Do STEM programs. There are all kinds of opportunities out there.