Last night was a surreal experience. Thank you to everyone who came out to see the premiere of my documentary Clay, Creativity & the Comeback at Medalta. We seriously underestimated just how many people would show up - which was a great problem to have.
To be in this old factory, surrounded by many of the people who stepped up to save it, while watching a film I'd worked on for months inside what is now a National Historic Site of Canada - it was an experience I won't soon forget.
I've been truly humbled by the reactions and messages regarding the documentary and am so grateful to everyone who made it possible. Thank you for the incredible night!
Clay, Creativity & the Comeback will be released on the Editing Luke website tomorrow, September 20 for those who missed it.
My latest documentary - Clay, Creativity & the Comeback received some attention in the Medicine Hat News today in anticipation of the debut screening taking place at Medalta Potteries this week. The documentary explores the efforts that were made to save the buildings of Medicine Hat's clay district from demolition (including Medalta) beginning in the 1970s - a journey that lead the site to becoming a National Historic Site of Canada.
See the full article on the Medicine Hat News website here.
The debut screening of Clay, Creativity & the Comeback takes place Wednesday, September 18 at 6pm at Medalta Potteries in Medicine Hat, Alberta. All are welcome. Admission is free.
Every project comes with its own unique challenges, but to produce a feature length documentary in just a few months has been a wild adventure in filmmaking. From initial concept to research to production to editing, the last four months have been unlike any I've ever experienced in my career simply because of how much had to get done in such a brief time frame.
On Friday the fine cut of my documentary was completed for a first preview - which means the project is now in the final stages of post-production. It will all be wrapped up by the end of August. I've left a few breadcrumbs online while production was ongoing, but otherwise I've been pretty secretive about what my new documentary is actually about ... until now!
My documentary is titled Clay, Creativity & the Comeback.
It's a story about abandoned industry, creative ingenuity, and the preservation of a community's heritage. Specifically, it's the story of how the industrial ruins and abandoned factories of Medicine Hat, Alberta's once booming clay industry were saved from demolition (beginning in the 1970's) to eventually become part of a vast, vibrant, and emerging cultural district that is now recognized as a National Historic Site of Canada.
The clay district in my hometown of Medicine Hat has captured my attention for years. I've shot thousands of images here, filmed various projects here, I've even had one of my designs showcased on vintage Hycroft China here. But mainly, I wanted to tell this story because I knew it hadn't really been documented in a significant way before - and frankly, the time to capture some of these oral histories was running out. How were these old factories saved, who was involved, why did they do it, why did it take decades to achieve?
The story was way bigger than I initially realized.
Featuring newly uncovered archival materials and exclusive interviews from many of the key people who were involved over the decades, Clay, Creativity & the Comeback is a fascinating look at reinvention, artistic passion, and the drive to make things happen when the odds are stacked against you.
Stay tuned to Editing Luke for more details and where you can watch the finished project when it's released in the very near future. This original Editing Luke documentary was made possible by outside funding in Vancouver - more on that to be revealed soon too.
I can't wait to share this new project with you!
Updates have been sparse recently as my latest documentary project entered post production at the beginning of July. Hours and hours of interviews, stacks of archival material, and all of the other bits and pieces surrounding a project like this become a bit consuming.
All that said, I'm really excited to see this project coming together. This is going to be an interesting story to share about the historic clay district in my hometown of Medicine Hat, Alberta. It's a story that I was personally interested in, one that I hadn't seen told before, and certainly one that you won't find at the Medalta museum.
You'll have to excuse the lack of new photo sets in the meantime - although there are lots of those still in the works too. This new documentary is set to be completed by the end of August.
With principal photography kicking off just few weeks ago, things have been a blur as this latest Editing Luke project gets up to speed. It was only one month ago that I revealed the documentary had been greenlit, but since then there hasn't been a day without planning, shooting, interviewing, upgrading, and more planning in the mix - as you'd expect. I've been having a lot of fun so far and have already captured some amazing material.
What's the documentary about, you ask? Well, it's still a little early to reveal the narrative, but those of you who follow @editingluke on Instagram will have noticed quite a few clues as I've been filming around the Historic Clay District in Medicine Hat, Alberta. And no, it's not a history lesson on when pottery was booming in the Hat - not exactly anyway.
Production will continue through to the end of June with the project scheduled to be delivered / released later this summer. Obviously I'll have a lot more to share as all of this unfolds - like the picture above which was shot in the old Medalta factory while preparing for the very first interview of the documentary or meeting with this local legend. More to come here.
Constructed in 1937, Hycroft China Ltd. was originally founded as Medicine Hat Potteries Ltd. and quickly emerged as Medalta Potteries main competitor. The rivalry was further emphasized by the fact that the two were located only a few blocks from one another in what was known as Medicine Hat, Alberta's clay district. In fact, many of Hycroft's workers were former Medalta employees enticed by the more modern working conditions and higher pay.
The factory itself featured a state of the art tunnel kiln. Modern conveniences like abundant windows, skylights, loudspeakers throughout the facility, and a water fountain on the factory floor were all installed to make for a more pleasant working environment.
In its first few years of operation, Medicine Hat Potteries began making dishes to compete with those being produced by Medalta. They offered decorative options that soon proved more popular, and by 1939 they had taken over Medalta's distributors in Toronto and Quebec.
In 1955 Medicine Hat Potteries was sold and the company was renamed Hycroft China Limited by the new owners. Struggling to find a niche in the changing industry, in 1960 Hycroft began manufacturing toilets (or sanitary ware as it was called). This success allowed the company to continue releasing a select amount of dishware and souvenirs for several decades, however increasing competition eventually forced their closure in 1989.
The Hycroft plant was donated to the Friends of Medalta in 1992, and in 1995 it was designated a Provincial Historic Site. See more from inside Hycroft here. Today, the old Hycroft Factory is preserved as part of Medicine Hat's historic clay district, which including several other industrial heritage sites, is now a National Historic Site of Canada.
Unlike the museum at Medalta, which is open to the public, exploring the Hycroft Factory is generally reserved for special occasions or behind the scenes events. Because of this, many of the spaces in the factory still feel locked in time - mysterious even. Similar to the nearby brick factory, there's still something very raw about exploring these buildings. The Hycroft China Factory is truly one of Medicine Hat, Alberta's underrated gems.
From epic prairie scenes to the iconic teepee, my hometown Around the Hat series saw hundreds of new additions shot in Medicine Hat, Alberta in 2018. Some of the most notable of these additions featured exclusively on the Editing Luke facebook page. These were the Top 10 most viewed images I shared of Medicine Hat, Alberta this past year.
Image #10. A morning sunrise with a goose on Finlay Bridge.
Image #9. Winter reflections at the Saamis Teepee.
Image #8. An epic prairie sunset.
Image #7. A fresh look at Medalta.
Image #6. A smokey summer sunrise at the Saamis Teepee.
Image #5. Summer blooms on 2nd Street.
Image #4. Classic autumn views over downtown Medicine Hat.
Image #3. A summer storm rolls into the Hat.
Image #2. Hockey sticks line a local street in support of the Humboldt Broncos.
Image #1. A glowing Saamis Teepee under an icy winter fog.
