Behind the Scenes of a Colonial Williamsburg Production

Did you know Colonial Williamsburg has a full-time production staff? We’re one of the only museums in the country that does! I recently had the chance to spend some time on the set of one of our newest educational programs.

How did a young woman escape slavery and evade the most powerful man in the nation? Learn about the dangers Oney Judge faced when she left her life as the enslaved servant of George and Martha Washington. Oney’s quest was threatened by her former owners, the law, and poverty. How was she able to live as a free woman?

You’ll learn this November as “The Freedom Quest of Oney Judge” premieres on our HERO Live Broadcast and Streaming Events platform, and can be watched online via livestreaming or through your local television broadcaster. The HERO Live Broadcast and Streaming Events used to be known as our Electronic Field Trips—a one-hour program featuring questions from students, polls, and other information on a specific moment in history. Teachers from across the country take advantage of these programs as part of their curriculum. Click here for more information on how to subscribe.

It takes about eight days of filming for 24 minutes of edited footage that is used during those programs. And there’s a lot that goes into the filming. When I was in film school, I learned just how much work it is to create any sort of production, whether it’s a feature-length movie or just a short film. You have to get actors, props, sets, equipment, etc. and it’s not just picking up a camera and shooting.

Thankfully, we have a lot at our fingertips here at The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Sets and props can be found all over the Historic Area, and we have our own Costume Design Center to help with costuming. In this case, we used carriages from our stables and transformed part of the Governor’s Palace into Mount Vernon for a scene between Oney and her mother.

I was able to hang out on set all day as they shot this scene and it’s quite emotional. Oney is leaving Mount Vernon with Martha Washington and has to say goodbye to her mother. Mary Carter, who plays Oney, has been with the Foundation for about seven years. She told me she was fascinated by Oney’s story and hopes students learn that even as a young person, they can make their own choices.

I also talked with the program’s director, Jorin Hood. This was Jorin’s directorial debut—he’s usually the guy manning the camera. He explained there is so much research that goes behind a production like this. You need to make sure you have all your facts right and then it comes down to all of the details behind each shot. Every gear of the clock must move at the right time in order for it to run smoothly.