Dixie College film crew is bringing desert history to life

ST. GEORGE — Rushing water threatened men, women and children in its wake recently as crucial tools and equipment were swept away in a frightening flash flood. A buckboard rolled violently over a red rock waterfall. A flailing rag doll bobbed in the white rush. Children screamed and mothers grabbed for their babies' hands.

In fact, the raging white water scene was repeated four times to make sure Dixie State College Center for Media Innovation film crews captured the right shots. The Southern Utah floods of 1861 and 1862 were memorable occasions — memorable enough to be included in a film series commissioned by the Washington County Water Conservancy District.

"Nowhere else in the world can you re-create a flood and shoot it four times," CMI Executive Director Phil Tuckett said. "The footage is spectacular."

The Dixie State College Center for Media Innovation is a private/public partnership created to give students hands-on professional experience while they learn. The award-winning digital film division of CMI (a nonprofit organization) is creating two 22-minute documentary segments for the government agency to help teach lessons about water conservation, local water history and the absolute necessity of water in the desert, student producer Ian Crowe said.

Students like Crowe work under the direction of Tuckett, who worked for NFL Films for 38 years and has earned 30 Emmy Awards.

Crowe said, "It's exciting to sit down at a table with someone looking to have their vision turned into film. Phil is able to take that vision and expound on it and astound the clients. It's seriously fun to watch."

Approximately 100 community members participated as extras for the flood scene set in the red hills surrounding the Tuacahn amphitheater. The first two days of filming took place at the historic Old Fort Pearce site. Mormon colonists built the fort in 1885-88 during the Black Hawk War, a conflict between Ute and Navajo Indians and settlers. It was originally built to limit use of a precious spring there.

Crowe is working toward a communication degree with an emphasis in digital film to back up his experience in municipal promotions and real estate sales. He is one of many DSC students participating in the creation of this documentary.

Crowe spent hours researching the history of early settlers and the nature of water in the area. "The next challenge was to ask, 'How do you depict that in a way that captures their struggles in a financially feasible manner?'" Crowe said.