Sludge
Sludge, the latest documentary film from Appalshop, is now available on DVD. Shot over four years, Sludge chronicles the Martin County, Kentucky, coal slurry disaster of October 2000, a coal waste spill nearly 30 times larger than the Exxon Valdez, and the story of "whistleblower" Jack Spadaro. Producer and Director Robert Salyer has been screening the film at various venues throughout the region. Upcoming screenings include the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival in Nevada City, California, and at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.
Whippin’ the Devil
After several years of work, Tony Slone completed his latest documentary, Whippin’ The Devil. The premier screening took place at the 2005 Appalachian Studies Conference to a packed audience. The film tells the story of Wise County, Virginia, native Guy Roberts, who grew up in the pool halls and moonshine joints of Prohibition-era Pound, Virginia. After taking part in a robbery he was forced to flee across America on the lam. The film weaves together Guy’s description of his journey, family and period photographs, and the banjo music of Dock Boggs, including the song “Prodigal Son.” Like the young man in the parable, Guy returned home, faced his punishment, and “lived a good life.”
Filmmaker Tony Slone is now in the early stages of his next project, New Farm. This documentary will examine the problems facing family farmers and their communities in southeast Kentucky and southwest Virginia.
Ralph Blizard and the New Southern Ramblers, Blizard Train
The late Ralph Blizard of Blountville, Tennessee, was recognized as one of Appalachia’s master fiddlers. He combined a fluid bowing style with a high level of energy and inventiveness; it was said that he “never played a tune the same way once.” His 1988 June Appal LP is considered his best work; this 2005 CD release brings it back into circulation, adding a track Ralph recorded at the age of 17.
All Join Hands
Produced as part of Appalshop’s partnership with the Cowan Creek Mountain Music School, this June Appal CD brought together an all-star cast of old-time Kentucky musicians to record over an hour of instrumental music specifically for square dancing. The recording is intended for callers who don’t have a band handy, and for anyone who enjoys listening to hard-driving mountain dance music. The CD was the last recording of the late Art Stamper.
Up the Ridge: A U.S. Prison Story
Beginning around 2000, some southwest Virginia communities turned to prisons as a means of economic development. This film examines the effect of the new prisons on the rural communities where they are located and on the urban communities which are home to the prisoners.
