Mayor Rogero honored Nolichucky Pictures today with a special Constitution Day proclamation.
Nolichucky Pictures is a cinematic media company based in Knoxville that presented the story about early East Tennessee History with its award-winning documentary "The Mysterious Lost State of Franklin."
BACK ROW: Phillip Smith - East TN Historical Society, Chris Albrecht - Nolichucky Pictures, Buck Kahler - Nolichucky Pictures. FRONT ROW: Kelle Jolly -Costume Designer, Mayor Madeline Rogero, Debra Dylan - Nolichucky Pictures, and Ashleigh Oatts - Marble Springs.
The State of Franklin was the product of America's first secession, in what would become Upper East Tennessee. This post-American Revolution rebellion laid the foundation for the U.S. Constitution, Article IV, Section III, regarding the formation of new states from territories claimed by existing states.
The Franklin documentary provides important civic lessons about how government works. This film also chronicles the birth of the State of Tennessee and its first governor John Sevier, who was also governor of the ill-fated State of Franklin
The film continues to be aired on East Tennessee PBS and PBS stations nationwide. Due to its popularity, PBS.org has been streaming the film for free during September, the month when the adoption of the U.S. Constitution is celebrated.
The film also won a Leadership in History Award of Merit from the prestigious American Association for State and Local History (AASLH). The East Tennessee Historical Society honored the film for its research and writing. The film was also an Official Selection at the Southern Appalachian International Film Festival and it won the 2011 Best Documentary at the Secret City Film Festival.
The film was made with a $2,500 grant from Humanities Tennessee. Nolichucky Pictures and a cast of more than 120 volunteers donated their expertise to complete this project. Knoxville Tourism and Sports Corporation (now called Visit Knoxville) was the underwriter for bringing the film to national PBS.
Tennessee professors Jon Finger (University of Tennessee) and Michael Toomey (Lincoln Memorial University) also provided scholarship for this film. Nolichucky Pictures made all of the interview transcripts available for free to the general public.
Scenic locations in the film include Blount Mansion, the East Tennessee History Center, Fort Loudoun, Marble Springs, Seven Island Wildlife Refuge, Victor Ashe Park, Sycamore Shoals, the Great Smoky Mountains, and Greenville, Tenn., the former capital of the State of Franklin.