Press release: New film about our local Mississippi River national park to air on TPT May 1, 8 & 15, screen at Riverview Theater May 24
"Rebirth: The Mississippi's National Park" to air on TPT Sunday, May 1, 8 and 15; Playing at Riverview Theater Tuesday, May 24, 5-7 p.m. (film at 5:30), 3800 42nd Ave. S., Minneapolis.
"Rebirth" features the untold, inspiring tale of the groundbreaking designation of our local, 72-mile stretch of the Mississippi River as a national park. It's a great way to celebrate the 2016 National Park Service Centennial and the importance of reaching across the aisle to protect our national treasures and heritage.
For release: May 3, 2016
Minneapolis, MN
Friends of the Mississippi River and Afton Films are proud to announce the airing of our new documentary "Rebirth: The Mississippi's National Park" on TPT Sunday, May 1, 8 and 15 plus a special screening at the Riverview Theater, Tuesday, May 24, 5-7 p.m. (film at 5:30), 3800 42nd Ave. S., Minneapolis.
Produced for FMR by award-winning local filmmaker John Kaul and Tom Reiter and narrated by Minnesota Public Radio's Steve Seel, this 30-minute documentary tells the untold story of how one man’s vision — combined with smart citizen advocacy and effective political leadership — created the Mississippi River's first and only national park right here in the Twin Cities.
This designation, championed at the federal level by Sen. David Durenberger and Rep. Bruce Vento, sparked the local river renaissance we enjoy today — a river thriving with fish and bald eagles, a river increasingly connected to our communities via parks and trails, a river seen as an asset instead of a convenient dumping ground. As we face new challenges like agricultural pollution, development pressure and invasive species, this story also reminds us of the powerful, long-term impact citizen-based stewardship and advocacy can have on the natural wonders we love.
Audience members at the documentary's packed Guthrie premiere gave it a standing ovation. In addition to the lush, engaging scenery (including Reiter's stunning drone-shot footage), the diversity of people and river stories reflected in the film, and the chance to explore local hidden gems on-screen and plan their own adventures, many viewers also expressed surprise at how much they learned about the river they thought they knew.
• Many viewers said they had a vague understanding of how polluted the river had been, but were shocked by the images of riverfront trash heaps and floating mats of sewage and garbage.
• Many had seen the small signs on local bridges over the river with the National Park Service's arrowhead logo on them, but didn't realize the entire 72-mile river corridor from Dayton to Hastings is all part of one local national park, the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area.
• And very few people knew the story of how a single, self-proclaimed "river rat," Tom Kelley, just kept bringing local movers and shakers onto his boat "The Turtle" until he could convince them, and ultimately Congress to recognize our local stretch of America's River as a national treasure worthy of this status in 1988.
These not-so-distant tales remain immediately, tangibly relevant today. "I believe the designation of the park was a tipping point for the health and vitality of the river in the Twin Cities," says FMR Executive Director Whitney Clark. "After that moment public decisions about the river tended to have a gravitational pull toward, rather than away from improving public access and ecological health."
This inspiring local transformation story is perfect for Earth Week, or perhaps connected to the larger 2016 National Park Service centennial celebration that it's part of. And as FMR and our friends and partners continue to work hard in our communities and at the capitol for clean water, it's also an encouraging reminder that people are indeed capable of reaching each across the aisle to conserve and protect our natural resources and heritage.
TPT schedule
"Rebirth" The Mississippi's National Park" will air on TPT Twin Cities PBS:
Sunday, May 1 at 7 p.m. on TPT MN
Sunday, May 8 at 1 a.m. on TPT MN
Sunday, May 8 at 7 a.m. on TPT MN
Sunday, May 8 at 1 p.m. on TPT MN
Sunday, May 15 at noon on TPT Life
(Over the air, TPT MN is 2-2 and TPT Life is 2-3.)
Riverview Theater screening
"Rebirth" The Mississippi's National Park" will play at the Riverview Theater Tuesday, May 24, 5-7 p.m. (film at 5:30 p.m.), 3800 42nd Ave. S., Minneapolis. Tickets, $5, are available at FMR.org/events. (Free tickets are available for lower-income residents; contact Michele at FMR, 651-222-2193.)
After the film, there will be a brief panel with the filmmakers, FMR Executive Director Whitney Clark and FMR River Corridor Program Director Irene Jones about the making of the film, the state of America's River, and the community members who help protect it through the local River Gorge Stewards volunteer program.
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Media contacts, available for interviews
- Whitney Clark
Executive Director, Friends of the Mississippi River
Executive Producer, "Rebirth: The Mississippi's National Park"
651.222.2193 x13 - office
612.812.7499 - cell
wclark@fmr.org - John Kaul
Afton Films
Co-producer, "Rebirth: The Mississippi's National Park"
(Also a lobbyist known for his candid photography at the MN Capitol)
651.485.9199 - cell
jjkaul@aol.com - Irene Jones
River Corridor Program Director, Friends of the Mississippi River
(Director of the River Gorge Stewards program)
651-222-2193 x11 - day
ijones@fmr.org
About the producers
- Friends of the Mississippi River engages citizens to protect, restore and enhance the Mississippi River and its watershed in the Twin Cities region. Learn more at www.FMR.org. (Viewers and readers can also sign up for the enewsletter Mississippi Messages at FMR.org to stay in touch about upcoming viewing dates and options.)
- Co-producer, screenwriter, editor John Kaul is an artist locked in the body of a lobbyist. His 40-year political career has sharpened his interest in public policy, especially in the environmental realm. Over the years he has learned that the best way to influence the legislature is through public engagement. He believes film is the perfect medium for dramatizing the critical issues of our times and inspiring citizen action.
- Co-producer, director of photography, videographer and lead researcher Tom Reiter is an attorney, minister, travel photographer, and nascent filmmaker who runs, skis, collects cookbooks and organizes reunions for WWll battleship veterans. Tom and his wife Sharon Miyamoto, married 30+ years, have three grown children and live in Afton, Minnesota.
Additional items
Movie streaming
- A 30-second preview is available on TPT's documentary page
- A small-screen version of the film is available for media at http://ow.ly/4mXzDF
- High-quality streaming is embargoed until the TPT airings have completed May 15, but DVDs are available upon request to FMR Communications Manager sue rich, srich@fmr.org, 651.222.2193 x14
- See below for stills
Movie stills, premiere images
Click thumbnail for higher resolution version
Names of people involved with the film and photographers to credit are indicated in file name/URL.
