

The crops grow, but nobody asks who's tending the farmer.
Is there a mental health crisis in agriculture in Colorado? Farming and ranching has become increasingly difficult over the years. An industry that is typically viewed as romantic, hardworking, and "salt-of-the earth" is actually a job full of tremendous stress outside of anyone's control. Combine that with the enormous generational pressure to continue the family farm, and you have a large group of people that are suffering silently. How do we take care of those that are taking care of us?
Direction
Vanderheide lets landscape do the talking.
Writing
No narration—just voices that earned the right.
Cinematography
Golden hour as elegy, not romance.

Director
Steve Vanderheide
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Colorado's farmer suicide rate runs 40% above national average, yet agricultural mental health funding remains nearly nonexistent.
Vanderheide shot during 2022's worst drought in Colorado history—every cracked field you see is real, unplanned, devastatingly present.