EMMY NOMINATION
Special Screenings: Museum of Modern Art, Kennedy Center, PBS, Festival of American Film, Smithsonian Institute, Chicago Historical Society, Southern Circuit, High Museum, American Historical Association
IMDb Link
"Perhaps the 'Biggest' independent film of the year, encompassing the turbulent history of the TVA. Quite accurately called 'a journal of the American political soul'."
-- William Sloan, Museum of Modern Art
"A solid documentary in every way!"
--Variety
"Excellent research, writing, shooting and editing have given us images that linger, words that echo, issues that won't go away."
-- William Leuchtenburg, President, Society for American Historians
The Tennessee Valley Authority--the TVA--was a project like no other, and after more than a half-century, continues to shape life in the South.
The Electric Valley is the first independent film to tell the story of the TVA and is a tale of one of the most interesting, controversial federal agencies ever created. In 1933, the TVA was given the broadest possible mission: to tame the forces of nature, create cheap energy, and produce a lasting prosperity in the Depression-wracked Tennessee Valley, a region the size of Great Britain. For better or worse, it touched peoples' lives in innumerable ways.
The Electric Valley is both political parable and human drama; it is a narrative journey through fifty years of American history with this controversial institution as its focus. The film explores both the issues and the people who give these issues their power and poignance. Indeed, The Electric Valley puts a human face on one of the most remarkable institutions of our time.
At its best, the TVA has embodied America's belief in its ability to solve severe problems through democratic processes without stumbling into authoritarian solutions. At its worst, TVA has been the very embodiment of hubris. In the present era of economic-environmental-energy crisis, the TVA story is more interesting and valuable than ever.
Click to watch the trailer. This film is available to rent or buy.
