I AM MY DOMAIN
Sean Kirby
Stowe Story Labs is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Your donation is tax deductible. Please consider supporting this artist and his work.
LOGLINE
Drama, Based on a True Story, Feature Film
In 1964, Vermont dairy farmer Romaine Tenney tragically struggles to maintain his traditional existence as the construction of an interstate highway tears through the land he loves.
SYNOPSIS
When subsistence dairy farmer Romaine Tenney’s property is listed to be seized for the construction of Interstate 91, he is distraught and challenges the “fair” compensation amount to delay his departure. The court sets a date for a hearing but surprisingly allows the construction to start on the property.
As construction advances, Romaine resists, drawing the ire of a rash construction supervisor who retaliates. A jury slightly increases the "fair" compensation, but establishes a final eviction date and permits construction to advance.
With blasting debris covering the homestead, Romaine works with stronger vigor, confusing family and friends who offer options for re-location, which Romaine humbly declines.
Days before eviction, Romaine sets his animals free, sets the barns on fire, and closes the door to his beloved home. Joyriders later discover an inferno. The fire department determines that the fire is too hot to fight and they are forced to watch it all burn, powerless.
WRITER / DIRECTOR ARTISTIC STATEMENT
After 25 years in the role of cinematographer, I decided to pursue my lifelong dream of writing and directing feature films, tackling themes close to my heart.
When I discovered the story of Romaine Tenney, a Vermont subsistence dairy farmer whose land was seized through eminent domain, I read through tears, as I had not been so deeply moved in a very long time. Romaine’s resolve, his dedication to the care of his land and his deep commitment to values based living are in stark contrast to the rapid development and push towards modernization that exemplified 1960’s America.
Immediately, I made a promise to myself, and to the legacy of Romaine, to take his story to the screen.
The themes in I Am My Domain align with my concerns about the dark side of the American dream. Our blind societal embrace of technological advancement, our insatiable hunger for growth and our conformity to a ‘never enough’ mentality are modern ideologies that have brought us to a critical juncture where we are concerned about our very survival as a species due to the effects of climate change. Our consumptive culture has shadowed our ability to embrace the concept of creating fully sustainable lives, basic skills are deemed unimportant and we live disconnected from the earth and its bounties.
Romaine likely did not think about climate change or the future impact of global modernization, but he saw clearly what was most important: the bond between humans and the land that sustains them, and a personal resolve and responsibility to resist, even when all hope is lost.
As our world faces the uncertain effects of the climate crisis, resource scarcity and political division, the story of a stubborn, principled man who refused to accept the notion of truck farming feels a timely counterpoint to the narrative that uninhibited economic growth is the only path forward.
I Am My Domain invites the viewer to explore and compare their personal acts of complicity and resistance with those of a simple dairy farmer in rural Vermont.
PITCH DECK
Sean Kirby, Writer and Director.
Sean Kirby is widely recognized for his work behind the camera on acclaimed independent films and documentaries. His cinematography credits include Police Beat, which premiered at Sundance before entering the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art; Zoo, which premiered at Sundance, screened in Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes, and was later named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “Top 25 Independent Films of the Decade;” as well as Five Came Back (produced by Steven Spielberg, Scott Rudin and John Battsek), Lovely, Still, and Suburban Fury. He was previously recognized as one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film” and lives on an off-grid farm in southern Vermont.
Smriti Keshari, Executive Producer.
Smriti Keshari is an Indian-American director, writer, and producer whose work examines American infrastructure and systems of power.
Her films include Food Chains (Netflix), about the labor behind the American agricultural system, and the bomb (Netflix), a groundbreaking immersive film-and-live-performance about nuclear weapons that premiered as the Closing Night Event of Tribeca 2016, played as a Berlinale Special, and was presented at the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremonies in Oslo. It was praised by Entertainment Weekly, IndieWire, and the Hollywood Reporter.
She is also the Executive Producer of Sport Explains the World, a 15-part global sports documentary series which premiered at Tribeca, created with John Skipper (former President of ESPN) and Gary Hoenig (founding editor of ESPN the Magazine).
Keshari's works have received support from notable organizations like the MacArthur Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, Ford Foundation, and more. She has spoken about art and social change at the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremonies, United Nations, BBC, SXSW, and Bloomberg Philanthropy.
Keshari was honored as a TED Prize finalist and recognized as a 2016 Foreign Policy Global Creative Thinker.
She divides her time between Barcelona and Vermont.
Andrew McKee, Producer.
Andrew McKee transitioned into filmmaking following a fourteen-year career in New York. His other projects include Show Me the Line, a documentary which made its world premiere at Bentonville Film Festival this year, and the narrative feature-length film Swine, which is currently in development. As part of the Production Fellowship, McKee will develop the project while participating in Stowe Story Labs’ Producers Lab, furthering the organization’s mission of pairing emerging producers with emerging filmmakers to help bring independent features to the screen.
Stowe Story Labs alumni can initiate an application for fiscal agency here.
