Hey, Hollywood: Take Note from ‘Green and Gold’ Movie

Allison Lynch is the author of this story -

Letters From the Farmhouse: It’s not often you see farmers portrayed accurately on the big screen.

I scanned the movie theater, snacks in hand, as I eagerly waited for the movie to start rolling. Families poured in, donning their Green Bay Packers gear and Carhartt sweatshirts. We were all there for one thing: to see a movie about people like us.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have my doubts. The movie “Green and Gold” was supposed to be about a Wisconsin dairy farmer who bets his farm on the Packers winning the Super Bowl. Did it sound a little “cheesy”? Yes. But I was more interested to see how they portrayed the farmer in this story. When do they ever get the farmer “right” in movies?

A pleasant surprise

Boy, I was blown away. From the start, I felt at home with this movie. The opening scene showed the farmer and his granddaughter pulling a calf together. This surely would have been redlined in a Hollywood script before it left the editor’s desk. Here’s why this movie is so different: It wasn’t made in Hollywood. The Lindwall brothers, who directed the movie, kept it in Wisconsin, despite receiving offers to expand it and shoot it elsewhere. Although the plot is fiction, they wanted it filmed with farm integrity.

The old farmhouse in the movie even looked like the Wisconsin farmhouse I grew up in. There were crocheted blankets scattered across the couches. And there was a warmth not easily replicated in Hollywood.

While the ending was not what I thought it would be heading into the movie, it just felt right. The community came together in ways that small towns rally in times of need. With a farm on the line and the bond between grandfather and granddaughter tested, it was enough to make my mom cry. It just felt so real.

Starting now

As I reflect on “Green and Gold,” I wonder if this could be the turning point our country needs to understand what really happens on the farm. There is nothing more frustrating than people assuming farmers are hicks with low IQ scores. And if you think that isn’t still a shared belief once you get away from the farm, think again.

My husband, Ryan, and I visited his grandmother in southern Indiana following our trip to the National Farm Machinery Show (NFMS) earlier in February. As we watched a Louisville-based news station, I was shocked to hear the same old farmer stereotype brought to life by the reporter.

He was at NFMS visiting with folks at the TYM booth, asking about the people they interact with at the show. Then, there it was — a jab about the “unassuming customer” who visits the booth wearing overalls and boots but proceeds to purchase six tractors.

I was astonished. How could that reporter be standing at the farm show, watching folks pour in with their families, and still assume what the average farmer looks like based on a stereotype? It’s wrong. It’s damaging. And it’s disgusting.

At the same time, it’s not totally his fault. That is how Hollywood has portrayed the American farmer for decades, and I had lost hope it would ever change. But now, I think we could start to see a shift, thanks to a small film determined to bring an accurate picture of the average farmer to life.

EDITOR’S TAKE:

The author of this article shares some very useful insights into the mindset and frustrations of farmers/ranchers being stereotyped by people not connected to their profession. She clearly demonstrates that the stereotypes are unwarranted and inaccurate to say the least. The vast majority of full-time farmers today are college educated and control millions of dollars in assets. They are in charge - the CEO of a major business - making many decisions that require a knowledge of many disciplines. It is common for farmers/ranchers to be very involved in their local, state or national organization, often in leadership roles. A word of advice – don’t automatically assign the “hayseed” stereotype to anyone identifying themselves as a farmer/rancher. There is one rancher in our system who purchased 17 trucks in one year. We have other examples of farmers/ranchers purchasing multiple vehicles in a single year. Please remember to provide them with the dignity and respect they deserve, and it will pay dividends for years to come!