“Hello Friend….”
Hello Friend - The opening scene from Freedonia.
This is Freedonia.
A teenage girl fires a warning shot at a trespasser who turns out to be a Federal Land surveyor and launches her small Texas town into a standoff against Washington D.C. over water rights.
When her community discovers that the water in the local creek is being allocated to fill a lake in Oklahoma, they ask why they can’t have a lake, and take matters into their own hands - damning up the water and digging a lake of their own.
The government’s reaction is heavy-handed, sending a paramilitary force to break the damn, but the locals take up arms and a long-term standoff begins.
All of this while Whitney and her single dad work out their differences. She plans to get as far away from her little town as soon as she turns eighteen, but Hud has a secret - he is not really her father, and when she comes of age she will inherit the cotton farm and he will be out.
They must reconcile while in the middle of the media circus surrounding the standoff, and the Governor of Texas proposing a public vote for Texas independence. Houston business interests get involved and decisions are made that will shape the United States forever….
Federal Holding - scene #80 from Freedonia. After taking that warning shot a federal judge orders the arrest of Whitney and she is taken into custody. In this scene her dad visits her in jail and confirms that even though he is not her biological father that he will always be here dad.
A truly independent feature film project…
Freedonia was written by Benjamin Wilbanks who is in no rush to make this movie. While sooner might be better his thinking is to wait and watch for the right opportunity to get this film made.
The original idea for the self-release of this feature is to market it exclusively in Texas, for a Texas audience. 100% Hollywood-free.
When produced, Freedonia will utilize many of the crew from True Liberty and shot on location all across Texas.