The friendship and collaboration between Tom Curra and Greg Matkosky began in Pennsylvania, where Tom formed United Studios in the mid-1990s and invited Greg to return home after living and working in Los Angeles for 14 years to collaborate on uniquely visual documentaries that chronicled and celebrated the Commonwealth’s nationally resonant social and cultural history.
In 2004, their collaboration moved to PBS WVIA Public Media, where Tom was hired first as Executive in Charge of Production, and then as CEO, and asked Greg to be Creative Director for Documentary Films. In a 15-year period, they made more than 20 docs, including six feature-length and one giant-screen, that secured both national carriage and international distribution and which received two Emmy Award nominations and won one Emmy and a Cine Golden Eagle award. Their films inspired the creation of an original symphony that musically rendered the historical stories their films cinematically portrayed. Many of their docs have been repurposed into K-12 Pennsylvania history curriculum, and they have been invited to speak at colleges, universities and historical societies about the “making of” their unparalleled body of work.
Emmy-nominated dramatic reenactments visualize immigrant miners working in early 20th century anthracite coal mines. Featuring Oscar nominated actor Jason Miller.
First-person storytelling about old-time miners dying of black-lung disease.
Best Social doc, New York International Independent Film; Video Festival, Narrated by Oscar Award winning actress Susan Sarandon.
Story about PA Governor William Scranton’s effort to challenge Barry Goldwater’s 1964 presidential campaign rooted in denying passage of the Civil Rights act.
Feature-length presentation of the history and heritage of the Susquehanna River, the main tributary of the Chesapeake Bay.
Feature-length recounting of the Atlantic migration of millions of eastern Europeans to the US in the early 20th century.
Adapted from the stage play about Medal of Honor recipient Gino Merli’s incredible WWII experience.
Follow a youth camp’s environmental adventures on a canoe trip on the Chesapeake Bay’s largest tributary.
Biopic charting the career of US Federal judge Max Rosenn and his remarkable judicial vision.
Shot on location in Italy, the story of a millennium-old cultural tradition celebrated in only two towns in the world, one in Italy and another in the US.
A biography about Monsignor Andrew McGowan’s life of faith and his efforts to embrace the modern world’s challenges. The film chronicles how he and his brother Bill took on AT&T to found MCI.
The story of the immigration of Italians to the US in the early 1900s.
Emmy Award-winning dramatized doc about how jazz evolved from its improvisational roots into the Big-Band sound. Narrated by musician Leon Redbone.
The story of the founding of the Pennsylvania Ballet by George Balanchine’s protégé, Barbara Weisberger and how it galvanized the evolution of ballet in the US.
Story about a summer camp for kids with life-threatening physical challenges.
Shot on location in Indonesia. How a little chocolate store founded by Gertrude Hawk grew into a $125 million-dollar international candy manufacturer.
The history and heritage of the sport, industry and challenges of thoroughbred horse racing in Pennsylvania. Featuring Hall of Fame Jockey Tony Black.
Recalls the real-life adventures of iconic American illustrator, Frank Schoonove who gleaned sketches, diaries, and photographs that introduced the world to the North American Frontier.
Authorized biopic of the creation and evolution of one of America’s great cultural rites-of-passage. Narrated by the iconic Vince Scully.
Feature-length presentation of the story of agriculture in Pennsylvania.
How 5 generations of one family grew a beloved amusement park from a potato farm they started in 1767.
Giant-screen presentation of the social and cultural history of the largest estuary in North America. Featuring Emmy award winning host Jeff Corwin.