News

Briefly

Calendar of Events

Commentary

Opinions

Sports

Diversions

Holiday Photo Section

World News

Classifieds


	Login
	Letter Submission
	Search
	Archive
	Publishing Policy
	Mail Subscriptions

St. Cloud State University

College Publisher

Home > Diversions

'Wellstone!' draws crowd

By Chris Heinitz

Published: Thursday, October 28, 2004

Media Credit: Matthew Kaster

Film editor Dan Luke spreads the progressive legacy of Paul and Sheila Wellstone through his work in the "Wellstone!" documentary. To purchase a DVD contact Mike Sharp at (320) 308-6075.

Two years ago, Minnesota lost a friend and fearless ally of the people.

In the spirit of Paul and Sheila Wellstone, the documentary "Wellstone!" was created and premiered on Monday in the Atwood Ballroom.

The son of Jewish immigrant parents, often outspoken and always impassioned, Paul Wellstone didn't fit the mold of the typical U.S. senator.

When he got there, that didn't change.

This wiry, bushy haired firecracker approached life with a contagious enigmatic passion and knack for grassroots organization that took conventional Washington politics by storm.

Former President George Bush asked, "who is this chicken s--t?" as the audacious freshman Senator sharply and unapologetically criticized his decision to invade Iraq.

As a strong believer in peace and war as a last resort, Wellstone would later become the only Democratic Senator to vote against George W. Bush decision to invade Iraq a decade later.

Many considered this career suicide.

Wellstone was very much a man of the people. He made his decisions based on how they would affect Minnesotans-- not his political career.

"I think his most important contributions were as a roll model for people. He got everybody thinking differently," said "Wellstone!" producer Pam Colby. "Politics is not about power and money," Wellstone says in the film "but improving people's lives."

Wellstone's dedication to this philosophy is evident throughout his career.

Fighting against big energy companies, the outsourcing of US jobs and the destruction of the environment, Wellstone cared about the people, rather than the corporations.

The film shows Wellstone as a twenty-five year old Carleton professor who nearly lost his job because of his challenging and fearless attempts to, among other things, stop large energy companies from taking over.

He progresses and grows, but never loses that youthful energy charisma and determination throughout his career.

The film, it seems, more than anything is an attempt to show Paul's courage and wonderfully naive determination. While many of us see wrong in the world and feel bad about it, we never try to change it. Paul would. His uncanny ability to transfer his energy to others made you feel like you really can change the world. The main focus of the filmmakers was to show people his passion in hopes of transferring some of that to them.

"We want people to feel like they have hope and they want to get involved in progressive change," said Colby. "Our goal was to get this finished before the election so that it would be Paul's voice coming back for the 2004 election to remind people of who he was and what he stood for and what was important to him and how he lived his life and how he wanted you to live yours," filmmaker Dan Luke said.

While only being shown in a handful of places, the film has drawn very heartfelt and impassioned responses from audiences.

"You know when you sit in a little dark room for a year and a half and you put this together you just lose all perspective on what's funny, what's sad, what's understandable. And to get it out, to do the best you can and have them react better than you had hoped. It's really gratifying", said Luke.

As the authoritative documentary on the Wellstones, it will serve to preserve their memory and undying devotion to social progress.

Forum:
No comments have been posted for this story.
Post a comment

National College Advertising and Marketing
Privacy Policy Article Syndication