The story of the pivotal Bushy Run battle where British and colonial soldiers defeated native warriors, enabling them to end the siege of Fort Pitt during Pontiac’s War in August 1763, will hit the big screen locally Sunday, Sept. 15.
“It’s a good tool to introduce new people to the Battle of Bushy Run,” said Matt Adams, museum facilitator for the Bushy Run Battlefield Heritage Society, about the 2024 movie “Love, Courage and the Battle of Bushy Run.”
Members of the Bushy Run heritage society saw the movie previewed at the battlefield museum during a program last fall, and it was well-received, Adams said.
The movie will be shown at 5 p.m.at the The Lamp Theatre at 222 Main St. in downtown Irwin. It will serve as a fundraiser for the Bushy Run Battlefield Heritage Society, which administers the museum at the state park along Route 993 in Penn Township. Tickets are $5 and all proceeds will be go toward the Bushy Run Battlefield Heritage Society.
The fundraiser comes at a time when the Bushy Run Battlefield lost its biggest fundraiser of the year — the annual battle reenactment on the first weekend of August — because of the damage to numerous trees in the park from the tornado that ripped through Penn Township on June 26.
The park reopened Sept.7 for the first time since the storm forced the park to close.
While the movie depicts the battle by troops marching from Fort Ligonier to lift the siege at Fort Pitt, those who watch the movie won’t see the Bushy Run battlefield or any local scenery.
The movie was filmed in Georgia, in large part because of that state’s generous financial support for movie production, said Solomon LeFlore, executive producer of the film.
The film focuses on battle, with British and Colonial troops led by Swiss-born Col. Henry Bouquet, because the financial support for the production came from the late World War II veteran Amos “Hess” Bomberger. His father, Christian Bomberger, wrote “The Battle of Bushy Run: The Most Decisive Victory in All History Gained By the White Man over the American Indian” in 1928.
The scriptwriter, Charlie Richards, contacted Amos Bomberger about the project. Bomberger was impressed enough to donate an estimated $10.5 million for the production, according to a May 2024 story in The Telegraph, a London newspaper.
The film, 1 hour and 52 minutes long, gained popularity in England last year, LeFlore said. The reason, LeFlore guessed, was in part because it depicts a British victory. A film about the American Revolution or the War of 1812 likely would not go over as well, LeFlore said.
Having landed a film distributor in England, LeFlore said they are seeking a U.S. distributor and one globally. He and his business partner, co-executive producer Susan Gee, who has experience with historical dramas, are screening the film this week at the Toronto International Film Festival, in hopes of landing a deal with a distributor.
With Comcast Corp. based in Philadelphia, Gee said they would like to reach a deal with Comcast NBC Universal Corp.
Joe Napsha is a TribLive reporter covering Irwin, North Huntingdon and the Norwin School District. He also writes about business issues. He grew up on Neville Island and has worked at the Trib since the early 1980s. He can be reached at jnapsha@triblive.com.