We Are the River: How the Mississippi Shaped Minnesota

The majestic waters of the Mississippi River meander 650 miles through Minnesota’s prairies, valleys and cities, yet its constant presence is all too easily taken for granted. We’ve lost sight of the powerful story the river has to tell – the story of us.

To the Dakota, the river is a sacred relative; to the early Europeans, it was the key to economic power. The Mississippi gave birth to thriving communities along its winding path, and the Falls of St. Anthony were harnessed to make Minneapolis the flour milling capital of the world. But we paid a steep price for this economic progress: the destruction of sacred places, communities and habitat.

With stories told by Indigenous Minnesotans, historians, educators and river stewards, We Are the River explores the conflicts and contradictions that have surrounded the Mississippi for hundreds of years and celebrates signs of hope and triumph in this resilient ribbon of flowing water.

Production team

Peter Myers, Producer
Peter has conceived and produced three documentaries for Twin Cities PBS: the Emmy Award-winning Never Stop Singing, a celebration of Minnesota’s rich choral music legacy; University Avenue: One street, a thousand dreams; and Made in St. Paul: Stories from the Ford Plant. His video work has supported many business, cultural and human service organizations including Ordway Center for the Performing Arts and Breakthrough Twin Cities. Myers was formerly VP of Communications at Twin Cities PBS where he directed corporate communications, on-air promotion and community outreach.

Matt Ehling, Director of Photography
Matt is an Emmy Award-winning cinematographer whose work is seen frequently on PBS and at major festivals. For the past 20 years he has collaborated with Peter Myers on numerous projects including three films for Twin Cities PBS. Two of his own films, Urban Warrior and Security and the Constitution, garnered national recognition while sparking dialogue about issues of personal rights and national security. Matt won the grand prize in the Minnesota Historical Society’s Greatest Generation documentary film contest for his film about his grandfather.

John Kurtis Dehn, Editor
John is a documentary producer, director, editor, and a founding partner of Blue Moon Productions. He produced, edited, and composed music for the documentary Of Dolls and Murder. He has edited numerous other documentary programs that have been shown at festivals internationally and on local PBS stations. For over 30 years he has been producing educational programs about mental health, substance abuse, domestic violence, and more.

Susan Marks, Associate Producer
Susan Marks is a documentary filmmaker, screenwriter, and author. She’s an Upper-Midwest Regional Emmy Award recipient for her documentary filmmaking with Twin Cities PBS. Some of her films include: The Betty Mystique, Of Dolls & Murder, Inside the Speakeasy Dollhouse, and Remember the Magic: A Look Back at the Dayton’s Holiday Shows. Susan is also a McKnight Fellow, two-time Jerome Artist Fellow in Film, and Minnesota State Arts Board grantee for her independent filmmaking.

Leya Hale, Project Consultant
Leya comes from the Sisseton Wahpeton Dakota and Diné Nations. As a producer for Twin Cities PBS, she is known for her documentaries The People’s Protectors, winner of the 2019 Upper Midwest Emmy Award for Outstanding Cultural Documentary; The Electric Indian, about hockey legend Henry Boucha; and Bring Her Home, which highlights the missing and murdered Indigenous women epidemic. Bring Her Home premiered at the 2022 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and was distributed nationally by PBS. In 2020, Leya was awarded the Sundance Institute Merata Mita Fellowship for Indigenous Artists. She also attended the 2020 Berlinale European Film Market as a Native Fellow.