Feature Film
Free Historical Feature Film: Lessons from an American Primary
Heath Eiden is an award winning filmmaker whose work is archived in the Minnesota Historical Society.
Heath Eiden directed, shot and produced “Dean and Me: Lessons from an American Primary” following the events of 911 as America was rushed into war by those who would benefit from it the most.
He focused on media figures and shows viewers what happens to a presidential candidate, in this case former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, when one dares to call out the lies being told by war profiteers and the establishment.
The film questions the corporate mainstream media function in American society and asks, “is this any way to elect a President?”
Using the resources around him, the director hits the road to find out the answers.
Eiden creates his own “media empire (and his own press credentials),” and hits the road across America as “DeanTV’s” lone correspondent.
He uses Dean’s epic 2004 meteoric rise and fall as a grassroots-powered presidential candidate to show how Americans are corralled into false choices in their elections.
As he knocks cameras across the country with big time media circus players, Eiden films everyone from grassroots volunteers to the big names in politics.
The film serves as evidence of what happens to any outside-the-establishment challenges to the entrenched power within the two-party political system.
The lesson is timeless and was recently honored with a podcast describing how the film was made by Eiden 20 years later and the lessons he learned over time.
Did you learn a lesson?
DNC Chairman Governor Howard Dean , Martin Sheen, Al Franken, Senator Hillary Clinton/ D-NY, Senator John Edwards/D-NC, and wife Mary Edwards, Rep. Dick Gephardt/D-MS, Senator Tom Harkin/D-IA, Senator Edward Kennedy/D-MA, Senator John Kerry/D-MA, Senator Joe Lieberman/I-CT, and Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-OH, Tucker Carlson and Chris Matthews /MSNBC, Paul Begala, James Carville and Candy Crowley/CNN, Karl Cameron, Sean Hannity and Brit Hume / FOX, George Stephanopoulos/ ABC, Jonathon Alter and Howard Fineman/ Newsweek, David Gergen/US News, Katrina vanden Heuvel/The Nation, Craig Crawford/Roll Call, Tom Oliphant/ The Boston Globe, Joe Trippi/Dean Campaign Manager, Terry McAuliffe, Alexandra Pelosi/filmmaker, Biff Henderson/David Letterman Show, General Wesley Clark, Reverend Al Sharpton, Huma Abedin/Hillary Clinton Aide
Credits
- Director…Heath Eiden
- Producers…Iris Cahn, Heath Eiden, Deanna Kamiel
- Editor…Iris Cahn
- Cinematographer…Heath Eiden
- Executive Producers…Sandra Ames-Eiden, Heath Eiden
- Additional Camera: Eddie Martinez
- Assistant Editor: Ilya Chaiken
- Post Production Engineer: Rafael Parracoles
- Web Designer: Shawn Gross
- “Shiloh” written by Eddie Wilchins performed by Dead Eddie
Participants
- Al Sharpton
- Alexandra Pelosi
- Anna Brosovic
- Atticus Eiden
- Biff Henderson
- Bill Mondale
- Brit Hume
- Candy Crowley
- Carl Cameron
- Chris Matthews
- Craig Crawford
- Darius Mitchell
- David Gergen
- Dennis Kucinich
- Dick Gephardt
- Eames Eiden
- Elizabeth Edwards
- George Stephanopoulos
- Hillary Clinton
- Howard Fineman
- Peter Freyne
- Sam Hemingway
- Sean Hannity
- Ted Kennedy
- Ted Mondale
- Tom Harkin
- Tom Oliphant
- Tucker Carlson
- Wesley Clark
Thanks to:
- Adam Barthel
- Alan Kucharski
- Caroline DiCarlo
- Carroll N. Jones Jr.
- Charles Smith
- Chris Demars
- Ian Corbin
- Kristen Vermilyea
- Larry Patterson
- Leonard Eiden
- Michael Oat
- Ray Seaman
- Walter Ludwig
Special Thanks to:
- Al Hilde Jr.
- Brett R. Johnson
- Dan Wardell
- Dick Bancroft
- E. Daniel Eckberg
- Judy C. Stern
- Linda Kadue
- Richard Kadue
- Sayre Wardell
- Steven Debrovner
- Ted Mondale
- Ted Yates Jr.
- The people of Morristown, Stowe, and all of Vermont