Manitoba news: New film chronicles Mennonite history [Video]

A made in Manitoba movie is shedding light on the historical origins of the province’s Mennonite population.

Director Dale Hildebrand’s newest film, “Where The Cottonwoods Grow,” focuses on the 1874 journey Mennonites made from what is now Ukraine to Manitoba.

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“I’ve done a lot of documentaries and films and feature films that really focus on the idea of culture and appreciation of different cultures,” Hildebrand said, noting one of his recent documentaries was on Italian immigrants.

“My wife, who is Italian, suggested I do something on the Mennonites, and my sister connected me with the fact that we’re coming up on the 150th anniversary of the initial 1874 migration, so it just seemed to snowball from there.”

Hildebrand, who also served as producer, writer and cinematographer of the film, said he set out to make a documentary in the style of Ken Burns. He filmed at the Mennonite Heritage Village …