Kristian Day's "Capone's Whiskey: The Story of Templeton Rye" will be shown this Sunday, July 29, at 2 p.m. at the Wieting Theatre in Toledo.
Proceeds from the special showing will benefit the Wieting restoration project.
An after screening party will be held at Bumblebees, 112 N. Broadway with the filmmaker.
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Day's documentary film chronicles the history of the infamous whiskey cookers of Carroll County, Iowa from their outlaw days of Prohibition to when the liquor became legal in 2006.
During the Prohibition Era, west central Iowa farmers cooked whiskey in their barns and machine sheds to supplement their income in the harsh times. The finished product was of such a high quality that it quickly made its way to speakeasies in Chicago, Kansas City, and Omaha through Italian gangster Al Capone. For almost 80 years the product was considered illegal until it was introduced in 2006 as a legal brand of top shelf liquor.
"This film uncovers a part of Iowa's history that has been kept in the dark for almost a hundred years," says Day. "I wanted to tell a story of survival and community spirit without taking away the mystique that it has carried with it for so long."
Day, 26, a native of Rock Island, Ill., went to high school in Cedar Rapids and attended the University of Colorado at Denver in the music industry studies program. In 2008, Day began directing and producing his own movies. His short films have played all over the world including Austria, Greece and Italy. His films have also been screened at various festivals in cities across the United States including Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago.
This movie is the third movie in Day's MADE IN IOWA documentary series, which has previously included Brent Houzenga: Hybrid Pioneer (available on DVD) and Templeton Rye: Iowa's Good Stuff (30 minute short), which aired along side the Ken Burns' series Prohibition on Iowa Public Television this past October and is currently available on Amazon's Video On Demand. The ongoing series tells the stories of the innovative people, places and ideas that have influenced Iowa's culture.
Modern American Cinema, LLC is an independent film production & distribution company based in Des Moines, Iowa.