Robbie Leppzer

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Robbie Leppzer
Born1957 or 1958 (age 65–66)
EducationHampshire College
Occupations
  • Filmmaker
  • videographer
Years active1978–present

Robbie Leppzer (born 1957/1958)[1] is an American filmmaker and videographer known for directing documentary films about grassroots activism.[2] He is the owner of the production company Turning Tide Productions.[3] Works directed or co-directed by Leppzer include Seabrook 1977 (1978), Harvest of Peace (1985), Columbus Didn't Discover Us (1992), An Act of Conscience (1997), The Peace Patriots (2005), and Power Struggle (2016).

Early life[edit]

Leppzer was born in Wendell, Massachusetts,[4] and grew up in Winchester.[1][5] In high school, he produced a radio show titled Roots of the Earth, which explored the Wounded Knee Occupation, and which earned a first prize award in a National Public Radio (NPR) young people's festival.[1]

Career[edit]

In the 1970s, Leppzer moved from Winchester to Leverett in the Pioneer Valley, and attended Hampshire College in Amherst for two years.[4] Leppzer's first feature-length video documentary film, Seabrook 1977 (1978), which he co-directed with Phyllis Joffe, chronicles demonstrators protesting the construction of the Seabrook Station Nuclear Power Plant in Seabrook, New Hampshire.[6] In the early 1980s, Leppzer produced a 13-part radio series titled Rural Lives, which was broadcast on WFCR.[7]

In 1984, Leppzer premiered Choose Life, a short film that documents an anti-nuclear protest in New York City on June 12, 1982; the protest was attended by around one million participants.[8][9] That same year, Leppzer began production on Harvest of Peace (1985), a documentary about a group of Americans participating in the cotton harvest in a village in northern Nicaragua.[5][10] Produced on a budget of $20,000, filming for Harvest of Peace took place for two weeks in Nicaragua, followed by 14 months of post-production in Leverett.[5][10] The documentary premiered at the Telluride Film Festival in September 1985,[11] and received a theatrical release in November 1985.[5] With the release of Harvest of Peace, Leppzer established his own production company, Turning Tide Productions.[5]

In 1992, Leppzer premiered Columbus Didn't Discover Us, a short documentary filmed at the First Continental Conference on 500 Years of Indian Resistance in Quito, Ecuador, in 1990.[12][13] In 1994, the Leppzer-directed short documentary film Futbolito (also known as Viva Futbolito!) was released, which follows footbag enthusiasts in Nicaragua and Guatemala.[14][15]

In 1997, the Leppzer-directed documentary An Act of Conscience premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.[16] The film documents events surrounding war tax resisters Randy Kehler and Betsy Corner, whose home was seized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and sold by the US government to another couple, prompting Kehler, Corner, and hundreds of supporters to occupy the property in protest.[17] In 2001, Leppzer directed Voices for Peace, a documentary about the post–September 11 anti-war movement.[4] In 2005, he premiered The Peace Patriots, which centers around opposition to the Iraq War.[3]

In 2010, Leppzer began filming on Power Struggle, a documentary about activists opposed to the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant in Vernon, Vermont.[18] The film, which features peace activist Frances Crowe, was released in 2016.[18][19]

Personal life[edit]

Leppzer has been a member of a pro-feminist men's group based in the Pioneer Valley since the 1970s.[20]

Partial filmography[edit]

Year Title Notes Ref(s)
1978 Seabrook 1977 Documentary film; co-directed with Phyllis Joffe [6][21]
1984 Choose Life Short documentary film [22]
1985 Harvest of Peace Short documentary film [23]
1992 Columbus Didn't Discover Us Short documentary film [24]
1994 Futbolito Also known as Viva Futbolito!; short documentary film [14][15]
1997 An Act of Conscience Documentary film [17]
2001 Voices for Peace Short documentary film [4]
2005 The Peace Patriots Documentary film [3]
2016 Power Struggle Documentary film [18][19]

Accolades[edit]

Year Award Category Nominated work Result Ref(s)
1986 San Antonio Film Festival Best Non-Fiction Filmmaker Harvest of Peace Won [25]
1987 New England Film & Video Festival Curator's Choice Harvest of Peace Won [10][23][26]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Mellen 2005, p. C2.
  2. ^ "Director discussion at film 'The Peace Patriots'". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. September 27, 2004. p. 16.
  3. ^ a b c Mellen 2005, p. C1.
  4. ^ a b c d Sundell, Marianne (January 22, 2003). "Wendell Filmmaker to Show Film in Orange on Thursday". Athol Daily News. Athol, Massachusetts. p. 8. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b c d e Arnholz, Sarah (June 20, 1986). "Working as a film maker in Franklin County". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. p. 7. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b Davis, Richie (June 24, 2017). "Seabrook remembered by those who were there". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. p. B1. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  7. ^ Hartmann, Holly (April 12, 1984). "School video project is a hit". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. p. 11. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Directors at screening at Pleasant St. Theater". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. July 31, 1984. p. 9. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Haddad, Anne (June 13, 1986). "Filmmaker aims his camera at racism, misinformation". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. p. 14. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b c "New England Festival awards | 2 Valley filmmakers cited". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. June 5, 1987. p. 14. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Rambeau, Catherine (September 11, 1985). "Telluride: A film festival that acclaims the unexpected". Detroit Free Press. Detroit, Michigan. p. 10C. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Davis, Richie (May 4, 1992). "The Columbus legacy: Showcase for teachers aims to balance view". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. p. 1. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Orme, Terry (October 4, 1992). "Filmmakers take dim view of Columbus' 'discovery'". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. p. E3. Retrieved February 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ a b "Futbolito". Alexander Street. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Davis 1991, p. 10.
  16. ^ "Local 'war-tax' protest film documentary to be screened". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. September 25, 1997. p. 8A&E. Retrieved February 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ a b Watson, Bruce (May 8, 1997). "'An Act of Conscience'". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ a b c O'Connor, Kevin (October 30, 2016). "New film reveals 'Power Struggle' to close Vermont Yankee". VTDigger. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  19. ^ a b Pfarrer, Steve (October 20, 2016). "David vs. Goliath". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. p. C1. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ Davis, Richie (September 29, 2018). "'In love and struggle'". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. p. C1. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  21. ^ "Seabrook 1977". Turning Tide Productions. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  22. ^ "Choose Life". Turning Tide Productions. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  23. ^ a b "Harvest of Peace". Turning Tide Productions. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  24. ^ "Columbus Didn't Discover Us". Turning Tide Productions. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  25. ^ Sullivan, Leah A. (December 5, 1988). "Coming, Going and Staying | Footbag Peace Initiative". The Valley Advocate. Hatfield, Massachusetts. p. 32. Retrieved February 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ Davis 1991, p. 1.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Davis, Richie (April 9, 1991). "Local video goes national". The Recorder. Greenfield, Massachusetts. pp. 1, 10.
  • Mellen, Kathleen (September 21, 2005). "Documentary filmmaker focuses on area 'Peace Patriots'". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Northampton, Massachusetts. p. C1–C2.

External links[edit]

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