Manlife poster by Randy Walker
MANLIFE
At 90-years-old, Merle Hayden has a lot to do. As the last crusader for the utopian movement Lawsonomy, he works tirelessly to spread the gospel and preserve the legacy of his Commander, Alfred Lawson.
Lawson invented the United States’ first passenger airliner, but his company went bankrupt during the Great Depression. Dismayed by the policies at work, Lawson created the Direct Credits Society, an economic-reform movement against what Lawson called “the one percent,” which advocated for “justice for everybody that harms nobody.”
Thousands joined. Yet once the Depression ended, many members left Lawson and returned to gainful employment, but not Merle. Merle stuck with Lawson through the creation of the University of Lawsonomy and its closure at the hands of the IRS. Nearly 60 years after Lawson’s death, Merle continues distributing Lawson’s writings hoping to find new followers.
Merle’s high school sweetheart, Betty Kasch, feels differently. As a teenager, Betty rejected Lawsonomy, and so Merle rejected her—left her to join the organization full time. She checked for letters every day but did not hear from him for over 60 years. Although Betty and Merle picked up where they left off romantically, Merle’s commitment to Lawsonomy continues overshadowing the life she would like them to share. She believes it is getting to be too much for him; in truth, it is too much for her.
Originally a story of a leader and his most devoted follower, Manlife blends Merle and Betty’s story with a vast collection of Lawsonian artifacts to tell their tale alongside Lawson’s. Together, they examine the history of a fringe utopian movement, the memory of which Merle believes will cease to exist when he does lest he find another student to carry on the crusade.
2017 | 93 minutes
Director: Ryan Sarnowski
Producers: Susan Santha Kerns, Terry Caddell
Editor: Jessamy Meyer
Camera: Ryan Sarnowski, Terry Caddell, Jimmy Michaels
Soundtrack: Greg Peterson
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PRESS
“A documentary that, like an optical illusion, is perpetually turning itself inside out, and like the best illusion, demands both our attention to its details and our focus on all it leaves behind.”
“Personal favorites included Ryan Sarnowski’s Manlife, a fascinating documentary about an elderly man’s efforts to keep the cult-like Lawsonian movement alive. ”
“It would have been easy for Manlife to portray Hayden – who passed away this summer – as an extremist or a kook, but that never happens.”
“If you haven’t heard of Lawsonomy... that’s because the government doesn’t want you to know.”
“Manlife is a wonderfully universal tale...It shows one man who, at 90, just doesn’t quit.”
“We are not surprised that Manlife, which sold out, won the Audience Award.”
THE FILMMAKERS
DIRECTOR - RYAN SARNOWSKI
Ryan Sarnowski directed the feature Passing the Baton and produced over 100 documentary shorts, including the “Cream City Soundcheck” music series, while Co-Director of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s doc|UWM. He left UWM to start Threshing Media and complete Manlife. Ryan holds an MFA from UWM and a BFA from Florida State University.
PRODUCER - TERRY CADDELL
Terry Caddell is a freelance filmmaker. He began working with Ryan Sarnowski and Susan Kerns through doc|UWM while obtaining his BFA at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
PRODUCER - SUSAN SANTHA KERNS
Susan Kerns is an Assistant Professor at Columbia College Chicago and Co-Director of the Chicago Feminist Film Festival and she has produced or directed numerous award-winning shorts. She previously was Education Director at the Milwaukee Film Festival, and she holds a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
VOICE OF ALFRED LAWSON - MARK METCALF
Mark Metcalf is known for playing iconic characters Doug Neidermeyer in Animal House, The Master on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, and The Maestro on Seinfeld. His background also includes numerous starring roles in other films, television shows, plays, and Twisted Sister music videos.
EDITOR - JESSAMY MEYER
Jessamy Meyer edited the award-winning feature documentary My Way Home, was Assistant Editor on the documentary Psychopath.
COMPOSER - GREG PETERSON
Greg Peterson has toured the world with many very different bands—Batillus, The Scene is Now, Saint Thomas, to name a few—whose music ranges from heavy metal to “postmodern jug band” music. Though he has self-released over thirty albums, this is his first soundtrack.