Doc/Fest - Sheffield

Under the feet of small landowners in Haynesville, USA, natural gas
has been discovered worth 1.75 trillion dollars. It’s the largest
natural gas field in the United States and maybe the world. So what
does this mean to the rural population who call this land home? The
story of “Haynesville” focuses on three lives desperate to understand
their place in the middle of this historic find. Kassi Fitzgerald, a
single mom and full-time nurse, fights for her community’s
environmental rights and tries desperately to retain their bargaining
rights at the negotiation table. Pastor Reegis Richard, an African
American preacher who “speaks to God”, struggles to better his
impoverished congregation by building a school with his proceeds from
the Haynesville discovery. And Mike Smith, a salt-of-the-earth, gun
loving, outdoorsman wrestles with the idea of giving up his pristine
land in exchange for becoming an overnight millionaire. The story of
the Haynesville gives a hard look at the volatile mix of seemingly
endless amounts of money chasing vast energy resources, and the
affects on the people caught in the fever pitch excitement of this
momentous energy boom.

“HAYNESVILLE was a revelation to me, full of great characters and narrative twists, that lingered with me long after I watched.” - Thom Powers, founder and artistic director of Stranger than Fiction Documentary Series