THROUGH 1968, WE LEARN ABOUT GOLD

2009 historical documentary
Credits: Producer, Director, Screenwriter, Researcher, Narrator, Actor

A curious look at the historic year 1968 through the lens of economics—namely, the gold standard. By learning the story of the gold standard, I tried to show that recent events can have fascinating connections to the distant past. For this film, I scoured resources at the Library of Congress and Archive.org and sought the advice of several Minneapolis economic leaders, including Dr. Christopher Phelan of the University of Minnesota, who appears in the film. The film is set to an entrancing musical score, which I commissioned from producer and songwriter Lance Conrad of Humans Win! Recording Studio.

Archived at the Minnesota Historical Society

Rosalie Wahl: A Vision For a Better World

2008 historical documentary

• Grand Prize winner at the 2008 MN Historical Society Greatest Generation Film Project: Best Depiction of the Post-War Boom.

Credits: Producer, Screenwriter, Researcher

The film traces the life of Rosalie Wahl from her humble beginnings in a one-room schoolhouse in rural Kansas to her groundbreaking appointment to the Minnesota Supreme Court and explores the evolution of her social consciousness. Rosalie was gracious enough to sit for an interview for the film. The film's photography and research sources came courtesy of the Wahl family and the Minnesota Historical Society.

Archived at the Minnesota Historical Society
See the PBS original air-date presentation, with an interview section featuring Jon, here.

Wells Lewis: Lost Heir to a Minnesota Son

2007 historical documentary

• Winner: Audience choice for its screening group at the 2007 MN Historical Society Greatest Generation Film Project.

Credits: Producer, Director, Screenwriter, Researcher

A biography of the first son of Nobel laureate novelist Sinclair Lewis. The film tells how Wells Lewis was raised among the social elite but eventually found his own place by joining the Greatest Generation on the battlefields of World War II. This piece arose from original research in Sinclair Lewis's family archives at the Minnesota Historical Society.

Archived at the Minnesota Historical Society