How did Newport survive COVID-19? New film documenting the experience debuts

NEWPORT – Seated inside Jane Pickens Theater on Thursday evening, Newporters from all walks of life chittered and cheered in recognition when their neighbors and city illuminated the big screen. It was the premiere of "Newport: In This Together," a film by native Sue Sipprelle documenting the city’s challenges and triumphs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I have said that the making of this film gave me hope because when I saw how the community pulled together, imperfectly of course, because we’re human, but pulled together instead of apart, I just felt great.” Sipprelle said. “In this time when we reemphasize how the country is so divided and people live in silos, that’s not what I documented in Newport.”

Sweeping shots of the iconic mansions and sandy beaches juxtaposed the unusually quiet streets and businesses during the course of March through December 2020. Sipprelle spoke to over 100 locals to make the film, including city officials, such as then-Mayor Jeanne Marie Napolitano and then-City Manager Joseph Nicholson, and an array of workers from various industries, including the hospitality and construction industries.

The documentary showcased how the city disrupted several aspects of life in the city, from the cancelation of the annual Saint Patrick's Day parade to restaurants pivoting to take-out-only service. Community service leaders like Heather Hole Strout, the executive director of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center and Carmela Geer, the executive director of the Edward King House Senior Center, described in the film how their organizations became hubs for people who needed food and vaccines over the course of a few months. Mothers and school leaders discussed the challenges of childcare and distance learning while students lamented the loss of socialization and school year milestones. It even touched on the Black Lives Matter protests, one of which took place in Newport, prompted after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020.

Rather than use her documentaries to prove a conviction she already has, Sipprelle said her documentaries start with a question and then are shaped around answering it. For this film, she wanted to answer the question, ‘How does a small city like Newport handle a crisis such as a global pandemic?’

The answer she took from the years-long documentary filmmaking process: The city took on the pandemic in innovative and flexible ways.

“They just found ways to adapt and adjust and make things work,” Sipprelle said. “Going through such a hardship, I’m echoing the interviewees, they found strength and resilience in themselves that they didn’t know they had.”

The film is 80 minutes long and will be distributed by American Public Television to PBS stations across the country on May 1.

“I hope that my film holds a mirror up to people and they kind of recognize those qualities that we all admire in the Greatest Generation, you know, the ability to persevere and overcome hardship and triumph,” Sipprelle said.

This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: 'Newport: In This Together' documents city's COVID-19 experience