Ellis Barn in Springfield Township, Michigan.
Emmy® nominated filmmakers Kelly and Tammy Rundle of Fourth Wall Films have been awarded a grant from the National Barn Alliance (NBA) and Russ & Lu Ann Mawby, for their new documentary feature film The Barn Raisers. An additional grant from the Michigan Barn Preservation Network (MBPN) has been awarded to the project for film production in the state of Michigan.
The Barn Raisers, a companion film to the Rundles’ Emmy® nominated historical documentary Country School: One Room – One Nation, tells the story of barns in the Upper Midwest by examining them through the lens of architecture. The film will explore what barn styles, building methods and materials tell us about the people who built them, the life they lived and the role these “country cathedrals” played in the settling and building of the Nation.
“The Michigan Barn Preservation Network is pleased to support the efforts of Fourth Wall Films in the research, production and distribution of The Barn Raisers," said MBPN board member Stephen Stier. “Our mission is to promote the appreciation and preservation of barns and we believe that wide distribution of the documentary film will assure that thousands of viewers will be moved to appreciate the historical significance of traditional barns and be far more likely to support barn preservation.”
"The National Barn Alliance (NBA) is pleased to support The Barn Raisers, which focuses on heritage barns in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin but speaks to preservation issues common to all of America's historic barns," said Charles Leik former NBA president.
Allen Farm Centennial Barn in Clinton, Michigan.
America's barns were constructed by farmer-craftsmen, professional builders who traveled from job to job and even architects like Frank Lloyd Wright. The Barn Raisers will paint a cinematic portrait of barns and builders, an important way of life that has been largely forgotten, and the film will remind viewers that these vanishing remnants from America’s rural past are still here to be interpreted and experienced.
The Barn Raisers is slated for theatrical and DVD release in 2016, with Midwestern and other local PBS broadcasts to follow.
The Barn Raisers has also been funded in part by grants from Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area (National Park Service), Humanities Iowa, the Wisconsin Humanities Council, the Kansas Humanities Council, the Ohio Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in The Barn Raisers do not necessarily represent those of these organizations.
The National Barn Alliance is a nation-wide, non-profit organization coordinating preservation efforts to save America’s Historic Barns. Its mission is to provide national leadership for the preservation of America’s historic barns and their rural heritage.
The Michigan Barn Preservation Network is an active state-wide 501(c) 3 organization committed to rehabilitation of barns for agricultural, commercial, residential, and public uses.
Fourth Wall Films is an award-winning independent film and video production company formerly located in Los Angeles, and now based in Moline, Illinois. To view a catalog of Fourth Wall Films' award-winning films, click HERE.
For more information about how you can support the documentary The Barn Raisers visit Barnmovie.com.
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