ST. PAUL, Minn. (July 17, 2014) — The film “If You Build It”
will be shown at a free public screening on Wednesday, July 30 at 8:30
p.m. in Bede Ballroom, Sargent Student Center , University of Minnesota
Crookston (UMC). Tickets are not required.
The
independent documentary chronicles two designers as they lead rural
North Carolina teens through a year-long, full-scale design and build
project that does much more than just teach basic construction skills:
it demonstrates how design thinking, an innovative yet practical
approach to problem solving, can re-invent not just these teens’
down-on-its-luck town but their own sense of what's possible.
Slate called “If You Build It” “A heartening story about the power of design!” Variety reviewed it as “Well crafted and unexpectedly moving.” Salon
said it was “Provocative, inspiring ...” Director Michael Creadon is
best-known for the quirky “Wordplay,” a film that told the story of a
crossword puzzle championship interspersed with clips of well-known
Americans, such as former President Bill Clinton and filmmaker Ken
Burns, who regularly solve crosswords.
The University of Minnesota Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships (RSDP)
are sponsoring the screening as part of a rural design conference,
which will use design thinking to explore a number of challenges and
opportunities facing rural communities. The conference, titled Thriving
by Design II, is sponsored by RSDP (part of UMN Extension); UMN Center
for Rural Design; University of Minnesota Crookston; EDA Center at the
University of Minnesota Crookston; and Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Minnesota Center for Prevention. More information on the conference is
available at http://z.umn.edu/rdcii.
