Yeah, Like That: When we posted this creative sci-fi Split Rock by Vasanth Rajkumar (aka LenzGuy Photography), we hoped it would bring others a few chuckles like it did for us. We should have expected the instant linking of this image with this year. "This would not surprise me in the least given the past 8 months," wrote Annette. "Looks about right for 2020," added Christine. The T-Rex attack also evoked, "If any Lake Superior lighthouse keepers ever vanished, I think I have a theory. …" from Steven. Vasanth's day job is mainly as a portrait and real estate photographer (lovely images, no dinos that we could see), but he also has a passion for a bit of fun. The inspiration for this came from a relatively uninspired sky behind Split Rock Lighthouse the day he was shooting. "Dull day with no clouds, so just sat and tried stirring things up," he tells us. Nicely stirred, and it prompted the folks at Split Rock Lighthouse Historic Site to post: "Well, it's officially out of the bag, we have opened our new Jurassic Park Experience at Split Rock! You might ask yourself why ... well, it's 2020!" Yeah, like that.
Philip Gilpin Jr.
Story Support: "It's about to get even more attractive to shoot your next TV/film production in Minnesota!" Philip Gilpin Jr., executive director of Catalyst Story Institute, gave a shout out to makers of episodic style productions. Philip was excited about the St. Louis County commissioners considering a $1 million incentive program to entice film and television productions to the Northland. "This will be a cash rebate program (likely 25%) for all money your production spends here in St. Louis County." The work to get the rebate program was an outgrowth of Catalyst landing in Duluth last year and bringing with it an annual Catalyst Stories – Content Festival. We wrote about the new-to-Duluth institute for our June/July issue in the article "Being the Catalyst: Can Duluth Be the Capital of TV Storytelling?" Philip talked then about the challenge of persuading local governments to approve incentive funding. As we wrote, "The festival draws writers, producers and others connected to the television and streaming industries from around the country. It showcases the episodic storytelling that could feed the ravenous content needs of TV networks and services like Netflix, Hulu and Apple TV. The festival also features workshops and invaluable networking for writers and producers of the series-style of storytelling." In making the announcement of the pending funding, Philip posted online this week about how that first festival helped promote the deal. "Backstory: one of the many long-game storylines that was developing behind-the-scenes throughout 2019 was a friendly understanding among local community leaders that if Catalyst showed it was legit and 1000+ filmmakers & industry execs actually showed up to Duluth (remember, it was our 1st year here and no one knew if it was real), the community would support the future growth of our industry here. Well, everyone showed up and now parts of the community are holding up their end of the deal by putting real cash towards your future productions 😁" The next step will be polling content creators to see if they will be planning 2021 productions in the Big Lake neighborhood. The institute had another announcement Thursday when it unveiled potential international connections through a new collaboration – Storieroad International – with “The Innovation Station: Creative Industry Lab” at the U.S. State Department. "We already get stories from 20 to 25 countries a year," Philip said in the announcement. "This will just expand that." That program will be launched in January. As they say on TV … stay tuned. Meanwhile, the Upper Minnesota Film Office received $150,000 in operating funds from the St. Louis County Board. The office already links film and television productions with northern Minnesota locations and opportunities, but along with this funding says Riki McManus, executive director of the office, “We will be looking to partner and expand the program.” Between the expansion of the film office, the incentive program and Catalyst’s international contacts, she adds, “Now even more eyes of the world will be on Duluth.” As they say on TV … stay tuned.
Taking Stock: The Wisconsin DNR announced that it is on pace to complete its full stocking goals for Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. In the Big Lake, the DNR stocked 75,000 brown trout, 80,000 lake trout and 60,000 splake hybrid trout. "Earlier this spring, the DNR made a variety of short-term management decisions to protect the health and safety of the public and DNR staff," the department said in its announcement. "This included altering certain initiatives in the Lake Michigan and Lake Superior stocking plans such as temporarily discontinuing net pens, DNR/angler ride-along projects and conducting fewer surveys. Despite these temporary alterations, fisheries staff were able to successfully meet the 2020 stocking goals and continue enhancing our partnerships with stakeholders to maintain the high-quality Great Lakes fisheries." Todd Kalish, DNR fisheries deputy bureau director, says, “Our vision for Lake Michigan and Lake Superior is to enhance world-class fishing opportunities through these stocking efforts. We will continue to work closely with stakeholders and partners to improve stocking success and boost the sustainability of these fisheries." We hope all the little fishies do well and grow up to be like this brown trout caught in Wisconsin's Lake Superior waters.
A Multi-Million-Dollar View: The city of Duluth announced Thursday that it will receive $13.5 million for the Lakewalk and seawall improvements thanks to the bonding bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature. The coastal rehabilitation projects were supported by a City Council resolution as a top priority earlier this year. "The project will remove a large stretch of aging seawall infrastructure from behind the DECC to Pier B Resort while enhancing green space behind it," the announcement noted. "The funding will also be used to repair damages along sections of the Lakewalk and shoreline infrastructure." Jim Filby-Williams, the city's director of properties, parks and libraries is quoted in the release: "We have been very happy with the design and the feedback of the Lakewalk Reconstruction Project. Continuing to build to the highest coastal engineering standards ensures that anyone, regardless of ability, can come to the Lakewalk and enjoy the beautiful sights of Lake Superior, and all of the amenities that Duluth has to offer.” Mayor Emily Larson added, “Duluth will receive $13.5 million dollars for coastal rehabilitation along our seawalls and Lakewalk – assets that support our international shipping port, economic development, residents and visitors. That’s on top of $100 million for new affordable housing, $16 million for Public Housing rehabilitation and $125+ million in projects across the region also included in the bill." The Lakewalk has suffered storm damage every year for the past several years. This summer there was a project for rehabilitation already under way.
History on Main: A new welcoming little kiosk celebrating Washburn, Wisconsin's vast history has become the town's news visitor stop. At the charming place on main street across from the grocery store, folks can sit for a spell or read the informational panels celebrates the life and heritage of the community. This location will also announce upcoming events. The structure is designed in Craftsman style that reflects numerous bungalows in the city. The cute kiosk is a collaborative effort by several local organizations.
Can Boats Be 'Cute'?: We know the U.S. Coast Guard work is amazing, life saving and often heroic. But can a couple of USCG response boats be cute? We'll let you decide in this photo by David Schauer from mid-September when the tug William C. Gaynor arrived at the Superior entry with two response boats in tow. "They left the boats at the dock just north of Elevator M (ballast water testing area) and then the Gaynor went to the Heritage Marine dock," David posted. "I'm not sure on the final destination for the USCG boats."
Going with the Grain: U.S. grain shipments brought a bump to the maritime activity in September, but not enough to make up for a COVID-hampered year, according to a release this week by The Chamber of Marine Commerce. "With harvests underway, U.S. grain shipments through the St. Lawrence Seaway saw a bump in September, a positive note during an otherwise difficult 2020 shipping season. U.S. grain shipments (from April 1 to September 30) have reached 1.1 million metric tons, an increase of more than 4 percent over the same time period a year ago." The release quotes Bruce Burrows, president and CEO of the Chamber. “U.S. grain shipments are increasing with the new mid-west soybean harvest being shipped to Europe and North Africa. We expect that will continue through the remainder of the shipping season.” According to the chamber, almost 23.3 million tons of cargo has moved through the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system this year, down 8% from 2019. The pandemic restrictions and a late start to shipping due to high water levels are the main factors it noted. The chamber also summarized the season of the Port of Duluth-Superior, which has seen an uptick in grain shipments recently, but remains some 30% behind last season’s pace for tonnage overall. General-cargo tonnage at Duluth-Superior, mainly wind-energy cargoes, was up 29% over last season and 65% over the five-season average. Outbound grain was outpacing the 2019 rate by 10 percent. Some 452,000 tons of limestone also helped fuel the September uptick. “September 2020 was the third-consecutive month of tonnage totals above 2.8 million," the release quotes Deb DeLuca, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority, "and while that is well below the usual monthly totals, it’s still a hopeful sign of improvement from the pandemic-induced lows of late spring."
Andy's Uploading Again: Our circle-touring friend Andy Kaknevicius is back with his fifth episode of his Lake Superior Circle Tour. "Top of Superior" visits the farthest northern points on the Big Lake all the way west to Thunder Bay. Andy found "magnificent, breathtaking views over Schreiber and looking eastward towards the Provincial Nature Reserve, included are Kama and Nipigon bays. We make a short visit to Nipigon, Ouimet Canyon, the Terry Fox memorial, Kakabeka Falls, Sleeping Giant and a detailed look at life in the early 1800s inside Fort William. A battle reenactment between the Americans and British in 1816 does not disappoint." The 24-minute video reminds us of the good old days (was that less than a year ago) when we could traverse the border and hang out close to folks. Sigh.
OverTheWaves
Something New: We've come up with a new logo and title for "Over the Waves," the occasional audio reports that Bick Smith has been doing on our behalf. In one of the newest editions, "Close Calls," he talks with Scott Bjorklund from the Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center about threading the needle of the Duluth Ship Canal. Bick's day job is with CyBick Productions in the Twin Cities. We asked Bick to tell us a little about himself and his work:
LSM: When did you start coming to the Big Lake, and how did you become fascinated by the stories up here?
Bick: For nearly 10 years, I worked as the morning radio anchor for the Minnesota News Network, reporting on news and events from all over the state. I had become very familiar with Minnesota through writing, but was never able to explore it in-person. I hadn't visited Lake Superior in several years until 2019 when I was scouting locations ahead of the Catalyst Content Festival. I recall stopping in at the Lake Superior Magazine offices and asking for directions and “insider” views of the Lake. I visited a few times over the next few months and discovered views and people who rekindled my desire to explore the region.
LSM: Can you tell us about your production business?
Bick: Using TV and radio news experience as a foundation for storytelling, CyBick Productions started in 2007. My wife, Cynthia, and I have been involved in dozens and dozens of projects over the years, working with large clients like Xerox, Canadian Pacific and Kraus-Anderson. We have worked on corporate video, website promotion, documentaries and much more. We’ve also been involved in numerous short films and episodic shows, both behind and in front of the camera. The current project is the comedy-drama series
LSM: What about your project "Gangsterland" that brought you to the Catalyst Festival in Duluth last year?
Bick: The documentary-style film “Gangsterland” was conceived and shot over a period between 2009 and 2011. We were both working as tour guides and historians in Saint Paul. We ended up meeting some retired city police officers and got a tour of the former police station which was set to be torn down. We interviewed these folks on-camera, then realized we had enough story to create an historically accurate account of the 1930s gangster era in Minnesota’s capital city. On a tiny budget which consisted of mostly gas money and called-in favors, we “hired” Minnesota actors and crew to shoot the feature and two mini-documentaries. “Gangsterland” debuted in May 2011, screened at a Saint Paul theater, went on sale on DVD and had a short run on Twin Cities Public Television.
Photo & graphic credits: LenzGuy Photography; Catalyst Story Institute; Wisconsin DNR; City of Duluth; Washburn Heritage Association; David Schauer; The Chamber of Marine Commerce; Andy Kaknevicius; Amy Larsen