When the citizens of Canton, North Carolina, found out in March 2023 that the paper mill that was the heartbeat of the town for more than a century was closing before the end of May, they were left scrambling to figure out what was next. They weren’t the only ones who started to scramble. Documentarian Jeremy Seifert and his filmmaking friends jumped into action, wanting to capture the transition coming to the town in real time.
That meant there wasn’t time to wait for grants or funding deals. They just started filming. And continued to film for more than three months without pay.
The result of that leap of faith is Seifert’s new documentary, Papertown.
The film manages to capture those hectic months in a decidedly unrushed manner, with gorgeous shots that were possible in part due to the lack of paying work for the crew at the time.
In this podcast, Seifert talks a bit about his long documentary career, why the story of Papertown reverberates well beyond the town it highlights, and how Dave Matthews came on board as an executive producer: