Ohio-Pittsburgh Local Conservatory

The Ohio-Pittsburgh Local has been busy with exciting events and opportunities for its members. About a year ago, we kicked off our conservatory programs with mixers in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Pittsburgh. Each mixer had a great turnout and was full of prizes, food and fun. We also hosted low-budget filmmaking seminars in Columbus and Pittsburgh, where local performers and filmmakers learned the ins and outs of our low-budget theatrical agreements.

After our annual meeting, we started off the summer season with a picnic in Pittsburgh and held mixers in Cleveland and Cincinnati with a special guest, SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director David White. We capped off the summer with our annual Labor Day parade and picnic in Pittsburgh.

This fall, our local SAG-AFTRA office, along with the Pittsburgh Newspaper Guild, presented the 13th annual Off the Record! musical satire. Fellow SAG-AFTRA performers and broadcasters put on a wonderful show benefiting the Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and our local’s scholarship fund.

In December, our local also screened the documentary Showing Up – A Conversation about the Audition. The screening was held at Pittsburgh’s Arcade Theater and was followed by a beneficial Q&A session with one of the filmmakers, James Morrison, who was in Pittsburgh filming the A&E TV series Those Who Kill.

More recently, on the morning of Jan. 18, we teamed up with Pittsburgh’s Chapter of Women in Film and Media for a casting showcase involving more than 40 actors from all over the region performing scenes in front of representatives from Nancy Mosser Casting, Donna Belajac Casting, Docherty Talent Agency and The Talent Group.

Ohio-Pittsburgh members enjoy the festivities at the local’s SAG Awards party.

That evening, our Ohio-Pittsburgh Local members and supporters gathered at Atria’s in Pittsburgh for our first annual SAG Awards Viewing Party — and we had a blast! It was a great night celebrating being a SAG-AFTRA member and working with our union members. The night was made complete with SAG-AFTRA raffle prizes and a SAG Awards competition to see who could guess the most correct award winners for the grand prize. Atria’s was a great venue, and we enjoyed some great company with wonderful food, drinks, cake and party favors. Thanks to everyone who made it out on that snowy night, and we look forward to next year!

The Ohio-Pittsburgh Local plans to continue collaboration with other industry organizations in the community to benefit our members. If you have any ideas or would like to help coordinate a program in your area, please get in touch with Local Contract Administrator Chelsea Danley. And stay tuned to hear about other exciting opportunities available throughout the year to come.

This item was originally featured in the June 2014 local newsletter.