DOCUMENTARY FILMS IN PRODUCTION

House Painter Media collaborates with a various companies and producers- sometimes as lead producer and other times as production and post-production support. All of these films are made possible through the generous support of our sponsors. If any of our in-production films resonate with you, we’d love to add you to the ranks of our supporters.

Walkable USA (In Production)

For centuries, cities around the globe developed in basically the same manner. Commerce, housing and socialization all existed within a short walk. The rise of the automobile in in the 20th Century, however, led to a dramatic and fundamental shift in how we designed and planned communities- especially in the United States. Interstates, bedroom communities, and shopping centers became the norm, and today many Americans can no longer easily walk to a corner store, workplace, or the a local watering hole. Most Americans realistically function in society only by car. This change in how we live has come with great consequences. Studies have shown that our dependence on driving has cost us our money, our health, and our natural environment. It has made our neighborhoods less equitable, and even undermined our sense of community. How did we get to this point and what can be done? The hour-long documentary film Walkable USA will tackle these questions through a hybrid approach of human-interest story, history lesson, and walkable design primer.

Producers: Tom Desch & Pat Wisniewski

THE HOUSE OF TOMORROW: AN EARLY LEADER IN SUSTAINABLE DESIGN (In Production)

The House of Tomorrow: An Early Leader in Sustainable Design will trace the story of architect George Fred Keck’s design of the House of Tomorrow in 1933 for the Chicago Century of Progress Exposition, and how unexpected results from that design led Keck to design and build solar-heated homes throughout the 1940s and 1950s- innovative designs that may offer a path forward to help reduce residential energy consumption in years to come.

Producers:  Tom Desch and Jim Laukes

THE FIELD(In Production)

For more than 30 years, a political battle has been waged for the fate of two communities. An ambitious airport plan centered near the small town of Peotone, Illinois pits rural residents fighting to save their homes against suburban politicians desperate to jumpstart their region’s failing economy.  Ineffective government, economic forces, and political corruption have stalled the airport development for decades, leaving these two communities in limbo.

Producers: Tom Desch & Brian Kallies

An American HOME

Famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright redefined architecture with his design of the
B. Harley Bradley House in Kankakee, Illinois. This commission helped launch Wright’s Prairie School period where he experimented with open floor plans, long ribbons of art-glass windows, horizontal elevations, and other elements that forever changed how homes were designed. An American Home: Frank Lloyd Wright’s B. Harley Bradley House spotlights the story of this architectural treasure and explores its uncanny connection to the rise, fall, and resurgence of its designer and the community in which it resides.

Producers: Tom Desch & Pat Wisniewski
Director: Tom Desch

PAST PRODUCTIONS

PRODUCED FOR MICHIANA PUBLIC MEDIA

FILMS BY OUR PARTNER FOR GOODNESS SAKE PRODUCTIONS

Shifting Sands

Produced by For Goodness Sake Productions, Shifting Sands: On the Path to Sustainability tells the story of how one region, where rare plants grow in the shadows of smokestacks, sparked a movement for a national park; a movement which eventually led to game-changing environmental policies with worldwide impact and unique partnerships on the path to a more sustainable world.

Producers: Pat Wisniewski, Lee Botts, Rana Segal, Tom Desch
Director: Pat Wisniewski