POCATELLO – Every seat at a local theater is reserved for the first showing of a new documentary the producer says exposes corruption between the city government and land developers.
An upcoming docuseries on an alleged criminal conspiracy will premiere at the Pocatello Reel Theatre on Friday at 6 p.m. It’s called “The Great Pocatello Land Grab.”
The film’s producer told EastIdahoNews.com he rented the theatre for the night and is offering the public free admission because he wants to “get the word out” to the community.
“(The people have) got to know who their (city’s representatives) are, and they need to know what’s going on and what’s happening to good people in the town. They need to see this,” Producer David Duquette said.
Duquette is also the president and founder of Western Justice, the advocacy group producing the series. It’s a nonprofit that advocates for ranchers on a variety of issues, including land and water rights.
“What the NRA is to guns, we are to the western lifestyle,” Duquette said.
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The docuseries follows a land dispute between the Rupp and Hart families versus two development companies and the city of Pocatello, which Duquette said started around 2016.
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The years-long dispute resulted in a lawsuit filed in 2021 on behalf of the Rupp Family Trust, naming Portneuf Development LLC, Millennial Development Partners LLC, the city and Mayor Brian Blad as defendants.
While the case was dismissed in district court, the plaintiffs filed an appeal that will go to the Idaho Supreme Court.
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To give people an idea of what to expect, Duquette described the film as “the real-life version of ‘Yellowstone.’”
“If you take out all the pretty people (and) the killing … it’s got all the elements that ‘Yellowstone’ had, with developers coming from out of town and either buying or getting influence and help from locals and local politicians,” Duquette said.
City spokeswoman Marlise Irby-Facer is unable to comment on the film, due to ongoing legal proceedings.
Saundra Lewis, co-owner of the Reel Theatre, said they aren’t taking a stance on what’s presented in the documentary.
“We don’t agree or disagree with it. I’m just hosting it. I’m just an outlet to show his film like I would any other film,” Lewis said.
In an interview last week, Duquette said he wasn’t worried about empty seats Friday night.
“There’s a lot of people in Pocatello talking about it and wanting to be there, so I don’t think there’s going to be a problem with filling (the theatre). It’s gonna be more of a problem of how many people don’t get to see it,” Duquette said.
While people can no longer reserve seats to Friday’s premiere, they can still attend the subsequent showings on Saturday and Sunday. It will play both days at 12:45 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., as well as Monday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
Ticket prices for these showings have not yet been determined.
There is not an official release date for the documentary. Western Justice is still looking for a platform to pick it up, saying they’re looking at “several different platforms.”
WATCH THE TRAILER IN THE VIDEO ABOVE.