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Review: Lost Nation

— by BEV QUESTAD —

Prepare to be enlightened.

New York State wanted to be bigger, African-Americans were amongst the earliest settlers in Vermont, and the proponent for recognizing Vermont as America’s 14th colony was given a tempting counter offer from the British.

The story begins in 1756 after Lucy (Kenyan-born Eva Ndachi) has married Abijah Prince (magnificently channeled by Matt Orduna), a successful and free Black man. By 1764, the Princes had settled near Guilford (in what is now Vermont), where Prince had bought land, built a home, and cleared some forest land for devopment.

During the same time period, Ethan Allen (Kevin Ryan) and his Green Mountain Boys were ranging the northeast, battling against the British while intent on forming a separate colony on land already claimed by both New Hampshire and New York.

Jay Craven, a renowned Vermont filmmaker, has intertwined these two courageous stories into his presentation of Vermont’s bid to be the 14th colony in “Lost Nation.” His perspective on the early history of Vermont is an artistic coup that sets a bar. But even more distinctive is the way he produced the film.

In an exclusive interview with IJM, Craven explained that “Lost Nation” was made like his other films, as a Kingdom County Productions Semester Cinema Course with “30 professionals who mentor and collaborate with 45 students from 12 colleges.” The students are supervised in substantial roles such as “second assistant director, sound boom operator, wardrobe supervisor, assistant editors, props master, etc.” Select students also collaborated in directing a major scene in the film. In addition, “12 students rotated shadowing me [Craven] where we discussed scene dynamics and choices.”

I asked Craven about the propelling score by Mazz Swift. He responded that Swift was a Julliard-educated composer and instrumentalist who is also the lead violinist in the Yo Yo Ma/ Rhiannon Giddens-led Silk Road Ensemble. He added that Swift’s music “was produced by my long-time composers, Judy Hyman and Jeff Claus, formerly of the Ithaca-based Horse Flies.” Swift’s suspenseful, innovative, staccato clapping sounds foreshadowed the movement of the film. Craven admits, “I wanted the music to be a strong voice and partner in defining and expressing the narrative.”

It is the way that Craven multi-tasks to produce his films that elevates him as one of the most outstanding filmmakers in America. It is also one of the most challenging ways to create a commercially viable feature film.

In a July interview with Kevin Ellis, he was asked, “What was the highlight of making this film?” Craven answers frankly, “Having the production over.” Explaining, he revealed there were more than 43 speaking parts, 52 locations, all kinds of weather, students coming out of Covid, and things like housing and meals on-site to consider – and financing.

Beset with limited time and budget, Craven was shackled from beginning to end. Oh, what he could do with a Scorsese budget and John Ford time! Plus, he honors student decisions and input. For example, most of the time Kevin Ryan’s character (Ethan Allen) is allowed a realistic, grounded, searing portraya,l while in other scenes it feels like a Wes Anderson experiment. Two different directors and multiple inputs?

Besides producing and directing “Lost Nation,” Craven also wrote the script, with input from Elena Greenlea, based on a research project involving 15 students in 15 weeks that resulted in 162 sources of research on topics related to Ethan Allen and his revolutionary Green Mountain Boys, and Lucy Terry Prince, who is the author of the first known poetry by an African-American. Both lived in Vermont during the same time period and both had an association with Guilford, a small evolving village in the verdant tree-covered hills of southeastern Vermont.

The history is sometimes hard to follow, and checking in with a Google search is helpful, but the idea to combine the Prince and Allen stories gives a rich spectrum of northeastern history prior to the establishment of the United State in 1776. The incredible challenge of creating a movie in a college course from multiple institutions with limited funds and time marks Jay Craven as a brave, inclusive filmmaker par excellence.



Credits

Directed by Jay Craven
Writer: Jay Craven (script writer) and Elena Greenlee (additional input)
Producers: Jay Craven and Elena Greenlee
Executive Producer: India Blake
Starring Kevin Ryan, Eva Ndachi, Rob Campbell, Matt Orduna, Rusty DeWees, Ariel Zevon and others.
Music: Maxx Swift
Cinematography: Ines Gowland
Editing: Patrick Kennedy
Casting: Adrienne Stern
Production Company: Kingdom County Productions
Release: June 1, 2024
How to see film: https://kingdomcounty.org/lostnation

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