“Watching characters that seemingly worked only in my head come to life with actors, even some kind of famous actors that I’d known before, is really exciting,” author and co-executive producer Steve Sherman said.
Shooting has wrapped and “Death of a Brewer,” an Iowa City-based film based on the book “Beer Money” by Mr. Sherman, is in post-production, tackling visual effects, sound design, coloration and score.
Death Of A Brewer stars Crispin Glover as J.J. Englert, Mena Suvari as Vernice Armstrong, and Iowa native Jefferson White as Joe Lund, though no release date has been set.
“That’ll probably be predicated on how the festival runs go, and based on, hopefully, some certain opportunities that come through those circuits,” director Mokotsi Rukundo said, adding that they’re considering several possibilities.
Film co-executive producer and John’s Grocery owner Doug Alberhasky said the film’s teaser received a positive response when shown at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver in October.
Filming took place in Galena and Quincy, Illinois, and Iowa City. Hawkeye residents will recognize landmarks throughout the film. Its budget hasn’t been released, but co-executive producer Sara Volz said most funds were raised locally.
“I am truly thrilled and excited to say that we’ve secured a little over $1.7 million in investments and donations for this project, and the majority of that support has come from Iowa (and) the Midwest, with most of the investors around the Iowa City or surrounding areas,” she said, adding that only 6% of funding stemmed from outside the Midwest.
While there are benefits to filming in Iowa, some constraints exist — renting equipment can be expensive due to the small market, Mr. Rukundo said. Some crew needed to be flown in from Los Angeles, a city that caters to actors’ needs for specific accommodations or foods not readily found in the Midwest.
Despite that, the pros outweigh the cons, Mr. Rukundo said.
“I definitely want to make Iowa proud,” he said. “I hope it’s received as not only a film that said something that was meaningful, but also was one where people remember that it was…a story that took place in Iowa City.”
This update is a part of the CBJ’s Newsmakers edition. This year-end wrap-up from the staff of the Corridor Business Journal is a compilation of the year’s most noteworthy articles and projects, as told through stories that appeared in the bi-weekly issues of the CBJ.
Read the accompanying story, published in March of 2025:
