Storm Lake
A newspaper. A family. A community.
Dark clouds hang over the cornfields of Storm Lake, Iowa, which has seen its fair share of change in the 40 years since Big Agriculture came to town. Farmers blow their life savings on new equipment they hope will keep their livelihoods intact. Migrant workers flock here—welcome and not—for their slice of the American Dream. The people of Storm Lake confront a changing community as global forces threaten their precarious existence. Enter: 63-year-old Pulitzer-prize winner Art Cullen and his family-run newspaper, The Storm Lake Times. Day-in and day-out, the Cullens deliver local news and biting editorials on a shoestring budget for their 3,000 readers. Come hell or pandemic, they’ll fight to preserve this town they call home. There’s simply too much at stake.
Director
Jerry Risius and Beth Levison
Producer
Beth Levison
Runtime
85 minutes
Rights Represented
Educational Rights
Captions Available
English
Press
“Storm Lake is a must watch to see what it takes to survive in this era and why newspapers are still important even in this internet age.”
- InsidePulse
“Fascinating! A portrait of American resilience and unity.”
- David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
“As a former owner and editor of a small paper in Pennsylvania, Storm Lake brought back many memories for me and made some great points about where the industry is now..the film showed my students how passion for keeping a community informed will never grow old.”
- George Giokas, Stony Brook University
“Storm Lake, the film, just knocked me out of my summer doldrums.”
- Des Moines Register
“Gorgeous establishing shots, great music, and fantastic narration, all of which blend together, allowing Beth Levison and Jerry Risius to tell the true tale of Storm Lake, Iowa.”
- Film Threat
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