What Lies Upstream Documentary
Courtesy of Cullen Hoback and Digital Immigrants LLC
One of the most incredible expos'es of government corruption & corporate control of politicians & government agencies.
"In this scandalous political thriller, an investigation into a chemical spill spirals into an indictment of the entire system meant to protect drinking water, revealing cover-ups at the highest levels of government."
"In the unsettling exposé What Lies Upstream, investigative filmmaker Cullen Hoback travels to West Virginia to study the unprecedented loss of clean water for over 300,000 Americans in the 2014 Elk River chemical spill. There he uncovers a shocking failure of regulation from both state and federal agencies and a damaged political system where chemical companies often write the laws that govern them. While he’s deep into his research in West Virginia, a similar water crisis strikes Flint, Michigan, revealing that the entire system that Americans assume is protecting their drinking water is fundamentally broken.
In January 2014, West Virginians noticed that their tap water had a peculiar smell. It was soon discovered that a mysterious chemical, MCHM, has leaked into the Elk River near Charleston from a damaged tank at a nearby Freedom Industries chemical plant, poisoning the drinking water supply for nine counties —nearly half of the state’s citizens. Hoback — whose interest was piqued by family ties to the state and a desire to understand why the contamination happened — embarks on an investigation that sends him down a rabbit hole of an unimaginable scale."
Film Credits
Written and Directed by
Cullen Hoback
Executive Producers
Nitin Khanna
Karan Khanna
Producers
John Ramos
Cullen Hoback
Co-Producer
Alina Solodnikova
Associate Producers
James Darlin
D. Edward Williams
Cinematographer
Vincent Sweeney
Editor
Cullen Hoback
Original Score
John Morgan Askew
Original Song "Past Midnight"
Brent Knopf
Holland Andrews
Sound Design
Dan Gamache
Consulting Editors
Greg Finton, A.C.E.
Geoffrey Richman A.C.E.
Colorist
Brian Hutchings
Effects
Alex Silver
Additional Editing
Katherine Fairfax Wright
Alina Solodikova
Production Coordinators
Erin Davis
Elizabeth Glass
Eric Rhodes
Jess Good
Additional Photography
Ben Berry
Teal Greyhavens
Benjamin Hethcoat
Cullen Hoback
Justin Litton
Eric Rhodes
Alina Solodnikova
Mark Totten
Music Editorial
John Morgan Askew
Recorded and Mixed at
Scenic Burrows, Portland OR
Additional Musicians
Kyleen King, Viola
Derek Trost, Vibraphone
Ben Nugent, Drums
Raymond Richards, Petal Steel
Sound Editor
Dan Gamache
Audio Facility
King Soundworks
Field Audio
Justin Litton
Alina Solodnikova
Aerial Footage "Magic"
Donnie Yeoman
Flint Aerial Footage
Carl Turek
Key Art
Hazar Bayindir
Publicity
Dish Communications, Inc.
Sales
Preferred Content
Legal
Donaldson & Callif, LLP
Accounting
Altman, Greenfield, & Selvaggi
Featuring (In Order of Appearance)
Cullen Hoback
Earl Ray Tomblin
Gary Southern
Pete Thaw
Joe Manchin
Laura Jordan
Jeff McIntyre
Randy Huffman
Dr. Rahul Gupta
Maya Nye
Mike Dorsey
Pam Nixon
Erin Brockovich
Chris Walters
Elizabeth Walters
Dr. Andrew Whelton
Kevin Thompson
John Unger
Rebecca Randolph
Mike Hall
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha
Dr. Marc Edwards
Rick Snyder
Dr. David Lewis
Walter Ivey
Additional Material by
"The Daily Show With Jon Stewart", Comedy Central
ABC, ABC News
Al Jazeera America, America This Morning
CBS, CBS 2 News Chicago
CNBC
CNN
C-SPAN
Charlotte Gazette Mail
Charleston Tribune
Decision Makers
Eastman Chemical Company
Elsevier
FOX News Fox 4 News Chicago
Freedom Industries Inc.
Good Morning America
Google
Heartland Institute
Jim Hoback
Randy Huffman
KARE NBC 11 Minnesota
KXAN NBC Texas
KOIN 6 News Portland
MSNBC
Manchin For West Virginia
National Resources Defense Council
NBC 4 News Ohio
The New York Times
Palm Beach Post
Reuters
ScienceDirect
Scientific American
Twitter
US Environmental Protection Agency
Washington Post
WCHS-TV
WEAZ Charleston
West Virginia Department Of Environmental Protection
West Virginia Manufacturers Association
West Virginia State Journal
Wikipedia
WINK NEWS
WTAE Action News 4
Music
"PAST MIDNIGHT"
Written by Brent Knopf And Holland Andrews
Performed by Brent Knopf And Holland Andrews
Published by Hot Water Freezes Faster, LLC
Administered by Rough Trade Publishing and Bast Press
By arrangement with Bank Robber Music
Special Thanks
Peter Baxter
Bob Bowcock
Charlotte Cook
Sarah Harris
Jim and Darla Hoback
Janet Keating
Clementine Lager
Lela Loren
AJ McKinnon
Suzanne Ramos
A.J. Schnack
Jerome Schwartz
Funding Provided by
Jaswinder Grover
Jay Walia
This film was produced by Digital Immigrants LLC, which is solely responsible for its content.
©MMXVII Digital Immigrants LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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