Perhaps nothing evokes Wisconsin more than dairy farming and the Green Bay Packers. Now, first-time feature filmmakers and brothers Anders and Davin Lindwall have combined these two aspects of Wisconsin life into a new film called “Green and Gold,” which opens in theaters Friday, Jan. 31.
“Green and Gold” tells the story of Buck, played by veteran actor Craig T. Nelson. After a testy confrontation with an obnoxious banker (who is also — shudder — a Chicago Bears fan), Buck bets the farm — literally — on his beloved Packers winning the Super Bowl.
Anders Lindwall, who directed and co-wrote the film’s script, and Davin Lindwall, who served as one of the film’s producers, recently visited WPR’s “The Larry Meiller Show” to talk about the genesis of “Green and Gold.”
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Giving voice to the farming community
When asked about the inspiration behind “Green and Gold,” Anders Lindwall brought up his grandfather, who was a dairy farmer.
“We really wanted to give people a glimpse into not only the beauty of farming but also the hardship of it,” Anders Lindwall said. “In addition, we wanted to show a rural community in the upper Midwest, something that we felt had been underrepresented in cinema.”
To represent that community in the film, the Lindwall brothers were thrilled to be able to attract known actors, such as Nelson and M. Emmet Walsh (in his final role).
“Our casting director kind of chuckled when we pitched Craig T. Nelson,” admitted Davin Lindwall. “But he loved the script, called us, and interviewed us on what our vision for the film was. Then he was an immediate yes. When you land someone like Craig, it really opens a lot of doors.”
Also featured in the film as a radio announcer is Wisconsin-born comedian Charlie Berens.
“Of course he nails the culture of the film’s location so well,” laughed Anders Lindwall. “We have about an 11-minute reel of Charlie riffing, and it was really hard to figure out what bits to use because all of it was so funny.”
Playing a crucial role in the authenticity of the story of a Wisconsin dairy farming family is the fact that the film was shot entirely in northeast Wisconsin, including Door County and near Lambeau Field. Though, the brothers do admit that an enticing offer from a major film studio almost changed all of that.
“We had an offer from a major film studio to buy our script,” Davin Lindwall said. “We called in a consultant who worked in acquisitions at a different studio. He told us to take the deal. But one of the stipulations was that it would be filmed in Alabama. We felt that to do right by the project — and to do right by the people of Wisconsin, where the story takes place — that it had to be shot in Wisconsin for the movie to feel authentic and real and true. Fortunately, all our investors ultimately were on board with our decision to turn down the offer.”
To add an even greater degree of truth to the film, Anders Lindwall offered actors — including Nelson and Madison Lawlor, who plays Buck’s granddaughter, Jenny — what he called a “crash course” in farming that included filming a scene involving an actual calf birth.
“You can do visual effects,” Anders Lindwall said. “But we were set on the authenticity of it. When you’re on the farm, life and death is so present. So to make sure we got it, we had a secondary camera team set up at a farm. It was a lot of waiting in the freezing cold. I think we felt like we were on a National Geographic shoot.”
The Packers on the big screen
Besides Buck’s family, perhaps the most important characters in the film are the 1993 Green Bay Packers, the team Buck risks his farm on emerging as Super Bowl champions in what was Brett Favre’s first full season as quarterback.
To feature actual archival game footage, the filmmakers had to get approval from both the league and the Packers.
“NFL Films honestly loved it,” Davin Lindwall said. “They were excited to go back through their archives and curate a nice collection of footage.”
“The Packers were a bit of a slower burn,” he added. “And rightfully so. They’re such a legacy brand and they’re very protective of what they do and do not support. So, we’re super proud to be partners with them.”
Film music old, new, borrowed and … Browne?
In addition to the Packers, music plays a significant role in the film, due to Buck’s granddaughter Jenny looking to trade life on the farm with life on the road as a musician.
“With the music, we again wanted Wisconsin to be a part of it,” Anders Lindwall said. “So, we worked with Sean Carey who is part of the Wisconsin band Bon Iver.”
Also providing music for the film is composer Corey Martin, his wife Natalie Nicoles (who provides the singing voice for Jenny), and singer-songwriter Jackson Browne, who opened up his songbook for the Lindwall brothers.
“Jackson Browne found our movie through some Door County connections. He spends time up there and we got our film in front of him,” Anders Lindwall said. “He basically just gave us his songs to put in the film. He’s a special guy.”
Early reviews are in
Response from those who have seen “Green and Gold” prior to its wide Jan. 31 release has been overwhelmingly positive. The film has won audience awards at the Austin Film Festival and the Heartland International Film Festival.
“We were super overwhelmed by how well the film has been received so far,” Davin Lindwall said. “It’s been amazing.”
In addition to the film festivals, a red-carpet premiere for the movie was held at Lambeau Field in early January. Attendees included much of the cast, members of the Packers organization and film investors.
The event was followed up by Craig T. Nelson singing the national anthem at Lambeau Field prior to the Packers/Bears game on Jan. 5.
“It was really an out-of-body experience for us,” Anders Lindwall said of the event. “We had to ask ourselves, ‘Did we make this all happen? Did this all happen?’”
When considering their future, Davin Lindwall evoked the film’s scenes of Buck nervously watching his beloved Packers: “We’re kind of holding our breath to see what comes next. This is kind of our first shot at playing pro ball. We’d love to keep going with it.”
