Tag Archives: Rob Apse

DON’T MISS THIS SUPER ARTICLE IN THE GLOUCESTER TIMES ABOUT “THE LAST LIGHTKEEPERS,” FEATURING LOCAL HISTORIAN PAUL ST. GERMAIN

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Lighthouse docufilm features local historians

  • By Michael Cronin Staff Writer

ROCKPORT — Paul St. Germain of Rockport and Eric Jay Dolin of Marblehead made their film debuts this month in “The Last Lightkeepers,” a documentary by Rob Apse.

Apse’s film profiles a handful of the nearly 200 remaining lighthouse keepers across New England.

“In 2000, the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act was passed which created a mechanism to dispose these structures to cities and non-profits first and as a last resort they are put up to bid for private ownership,” Apse wrote in an email. “And so, ‘The Last Lightkeepers’ covers the historic past of these structures and the important events surrounding them and parallels those stories and events with all the people behind the preservation efforts that is happening today.”

St. Germain stepped down as president of the Thacher Island Association, a nonprofit group dedicated to raising funds for the restoration and on-going maintenance of the island, last summer after 22 years. Over the past decade, he oversaw a massive, $3.2 million effort to open Straitsmouth Island off Rockport to the public for the first time in 180 years. Massachusetts Audubon assisted the association in the near decade-long effort to rehabilitate the island’s historic landmarks for public use, such as the $150,000 project to repair the iconic lighthouse in 2013. Straitsmouth Island finally reopened in 2019.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

https://youtu.be/YAOaH6t_x1k

 

FINAL TWO DAYS TO VIEW BEAUTY ON THE WING AND PLEASE VOTE!

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Dear Friends,

Beauty on the Wing is playing through tomorrow, Saturday, and I will be part of a Q and A at 3:00pm on February 20th, Saturday afternoon. If you would, please share the link with friends and please vote for Beauty on the Wing after watching the film. Thank you! Here is the link if you would like to sign up to participate in the Q and A. All the films in the festival are geoblocked to Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

All this school vacation week, the virtual Providence Children’s Film Festival has been airing an outstanding collection of wonderfully educational and interesting films for families and kids of all ages. Tickets are only $12.50 per film for the entire family. Or you can do as I did and purchase a pass, which allows for viewing all films all week long.

Some of the outstanding documentaries I have had the chance to view this week are First We Eat, Microplastic Madness, and The Last Lightkeepers. I think everyone would enjoy all the films in the festival but especially, we on Cape Ann will love The Last Lightkeepers.

Do you know why Thacher Island has not one, but two lighthouses? At about ten minutes into the documentary, local lighthouse historian and president of the Thacher Island Association Paul St. Germain reveals why. Thacher Island’s Twin Lights are featured prominently in the film as are a number of familiar New England lights.

The Last Lightkeepers is filmed beautifully, telling different aspects of the history of lighthouses as well as current status. A quote from one of the interviewees, author Eric Jay Dolan (Brilliant Beacons), especially resonated, “Lighthouses are there to benefit everyone regardless of where they come from, their race, nationality, their creed, their beliefs. Lighthouses are a manifestation of a government’s desire to make navigation for Everyone safer. In today’s turbulent political times, I especially like to think about lighthouses being a beacon for the world, a welcoming embrace for those that are choosing to come to our country…”

This week only, find The Last Lightkeepers, Beauty on the Wing, and more fabulous films at the virtual Providence Children’s Film Festival

I hope you’ll have a chance to enjoy this beautiful gentle snowfall today.

Take care and stay well

xoKim

EVERYONE ON CAPE ANN (AND ALL LOVERS OF LIGHTHOUSES!) WILL WANT TO WATCH THE OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY “THE LAST LIGHTKEEPERS”

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Do you know why Thacher Island has not one, but two lighthouses? At about ten minutes into the documentary, local lighthouse historian and president of the Thacher Island Association Paul St. Germain reveals why. Thacher Island’s Twin Lights are featured prominently in the film as are a number of familiar New England lights.

The Last Lightkeepers is filmed beautifully, telling different aspects of the history of lighthouses as well as current status. A quote from author Eric Jay Dolan (Brilliant Beacons) especially resonated, “Lighthouses are there to benefit everyone regardless of where they come from, their race, nationality, their creed, their beliefs. Lighthouses are a manifestation of a government’s desire to make navigation for Everyone safer. In today’s turbulent political times, I especially like to think about lighthouses being a beacon for the world, a welcoming embrace for those that are choosing to come to our country…”

All this school vacation week, the virtual Providence Children’s Film Festival is airing an outstanding collection of wonderfully educational and interesting films for families and kids of all ages. Tickets are only $12.50 per film for the entire family. Or you can do as I did and buy a pass, which allows for viewing all films all week long. Beauty on the Wing is playing through Saturday and I will be part of a Q and A at 3:00 on Saturday afternoon. Please vote for BotWing after watching the film. Thank you!

This week only, find The Last Lightkeepers, Beauty on the Wing, and more fabulous films at the virtual Providence Children’s Film Festival

After watching The Last Lightkeepers, I am more inspired than ever that we form a nonprofit organization to restore Gloucester’s crumbling lighthouses. There is a great deal of expertise from which we can draw upon.

THERE IS NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT! Please write and let me know if you have every thought about how to go abut restoring our lighthouses and if you have an interest in Gloucester’s beautiful, but severely decaying, beacons. What do you think about the name Friends of Gloucester Lighthouses?Director, Filmmaker & Editor Rob Apse

CURRENTLY WATCHING “THE LAST LIGHTHOUSE KEEPERS” AT THE VIRTUAL PROVIDENCE CHILDREN’S FILM FESTIVAL!

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All this school vacation week, the Providence Children’s Film Festival is airing an outstanding collection of wonderfully educational and interesting films for families and kids of all ages. Tickets are only $12.50 per film for the entire family. Or you can do as I did and buy a pass, which allows for viewing all films all week long. Beauty on the Wing is playing through Saturday and I will be part of a Q and A at 3:00 on Saturday afternoon. Please vote for BotWing after watching the film. Thank you!

At this moment I am currently watching The Last Lighthouse Keepers. This is a film I have been especially super excited to see largely because I think here in Gloucester we should form a Friends of Gloucester Lighthouses Association. Our lighthouses are in increasingly deplorable condition. I would like very much for we in Gloucester to follow in the footsteps of Rockort’s Paul St. Germain and the Thacher Island Association in restoring our lighthouses and the surrounding grounds.

The Last Lighthouse Keepers – This stunning documentary explores lighthouses across New England (including in Rhode Island) and the sadly decaying condition of many of them. Many abandoned lighthouses haven’t been tended to in decades or since they were replaced by updated tools of navigation. Director Rob Apse captures the beauty of these American sentinels that once defined a nation’s coastline. The Last Lightkeepers highlights stories of individuals currently fighting to preserve these structures while capturing their folklore before the lights go dim forever.

This week only, find this and more fabulous films at the Providence Children’s Film Festival