The Pierre-to-Hollywood pipeline isn’t really a thing, but Andrew Kightlinger might change that as the Pierre native’s feature film, “Lost on a Mountain in Maine,” opens nationwide Nov. 1.
It also will be on screens in Aberdeen, Watertown and Webster.
“South Dakota is in this film’s DNA,” said Kightlinger, who is excited for his third film — and largest production to date — to open. “Donn’s story carries echoes of values I learned in South Dakota. Now to share it with so many means a lot.”
The film is based on a remarkable event: in 1939, 12-year-old Donn Fendler became separated from his family during a storm on Mount Katahdin in Maine. Fendler’s grit led to his survival, as he stumbled into a hunting camp some 35 miles away – nine days later.
“When we shared the film in Maine, where some of Donn’s surviving relatives were in the audience of 700, it felt like a stamp of approval,” said Kightlinger, 38, who graduated high school in Pierre and went to Augustana University. “The story shows a young person does something exceptional.”