"Salt of the Earth" was produced by Hollywood professionals blacklisted in the McCarthy era, including Sol Kaplan, a 1938 graduate of Curtis Institute, who composed and conducted the background music.
Based upon actual events, it tells the story of a strike by predominently Mexican-American miners. When the employer brought in strike-breakers and secured an injunction to prevent the miners from picketing, the miners' wives took over the picket line and successfully held out against the strike-breakers. The drama focuses upon the community's struggle with gender expectations, as well as the struggle to force management to negotiate with the union.
The film was financed by the union representing the workers in the actual strike, and most of the parts are played by local people portraying themselves. When it was originally released in 1954, the film was banned from most theaters in the United States, but it received acclaim in Europe, winning the International Grand Prize of the Academie du Cinema de Paris, 1955. It is now recognized as a classic. In 1992 the Library of Congress chose it for preservation in the highly selective United States Film Registry.
"Salt of the Earth", which runs 94 minutes, will be followed by a 15 minute documentary about the "Hollywood Ten", motion picture professionals who were convicted of contempt of Congress and served prison sentences for refusing to cooperate with the House UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC). The film's director, Herbert J. Biberman, a Philadelphia native, was one of the Hollywood Ten.
Proceeds support the Camp Linden Summer Children's Program. Camp Linden, located in rural Chester County , is owned and operated by the Philadelphia Ethical Society. Its mission is to introduce inner-city children to the wonders of nature.