Jacob Daniels: So, we are here at Mediaverse Studios and this is in Marengo, Iowa west of Iowa City.

♪♪ Jacob Daniels: Mediaverse Studios is a film collaborative.

What we're trying to do here is encourage all of the filmmakers in the Midwest to make their dreams come true.

So, we're sitting right now in six acres.

With any luck, we'll be able to turn this into an entire film compound.

We would like this place to just become a hub for all filmmakers in the Midwest, to be honest, something that can be inspiring and can be just immensely useful.

Everybody settled and action.

Brittany Benedict: Filmmaking in Iowa, if you're really out there alone, you don't know where to start, it definitely is a grind.

You just have to get a camera and you have to make things.

I didn't go to film school.

I didn't know that people were doing it here.

It definitely took meeting people who also have the same passion, specifically my partner Michael Huntington, to get me into it.

Michael Huntington: I started filmmaking probably when I was like ten, I really got into it.

My dad showed me movies and I fell in love with storytelling.

We had a handheld camera that I found in a closet and we just started making short films with that.

But when I started, I knew nothing.

And action.

Brittany Benedict: There are people doing all levels of it in Iowa.

It's huge, there's a ton of people here that love filmmaking and are passionate about it no matter what level they're at, if they're being paid professional or just grinding independently.

You're missing the point.

She's taking -- Jacob Daniels: So, I got into filmmaking during COVID.

I think that a lot of people found a creative outlet while they were stuck at home and mine just happened to be filmmaking.

So, I made a couple of short films with my partner at home and we had a great time doing it.

I found that I really love this craft.

And I got onto the Iowa Film Facebook page and just happened to break into a pocket of local filmmakers that happened to be Michael and Brittany.

Brittany Benedict: Three years ago, we were doing our third annual Christmas film.

♪♪ Brittany Benedict: And that's where we met Jake Daniels.

Michael Huntington: Our sound person dropped out for a short film that we were going to do and I was like, I know this guy.

I'll hit him up to do sound.

And he just kept coming back and we would do projects after projects.

And we were outside one night and I was talking about the filmmaking idea of, man I wish I had a studio.

And Jake was like, well, my parents have a place.

And I'm like, what?

And then he showed me photos and it was this massive facility and I was like, dude, this is crazy.

Jacob Daniels: So, I grew up in Ladora, probably like 10 minutes west of here.

And I went to Iowa Valley High School here at Marengo.

And this building is actually owned by my father.

He ran Iowa Valley Vet Clinic out of here and then it was Honey Creek Marketplace for a couple of years.

And then when COVID hit they had to shut down.

The use of this space is just very convenient and we're very grateful to my family for allowing us to rent it from them.

♪♪ Michael Huntington: I'll never forget that moment going through those gates, there was things there that you could see a future in.

♪♪ Jacob Daniels: Film Alley is a set of stalls that can turn into film sets.

You can control all of the lighting, you can control the set design and tailor it to whatever the film needs.

Kevin Shepherd: That's the biggest thing.

When people want to write stories that involve a hospital room, the changes of getting into a hospital room is minimal.

In a place like this, we can build one, as we've done.

And it has already been utilized in a short film.

So, just the ability to create what you want in your film as opposed to being limited to what you can obtain.

Jacob Daniels: Adjacent to that we have our podcast setup.

We have a dedicated editing room.

We have our own equipment and we are able to rent it out.

A movie theater and a wardrobe and prop department, all of that stuff.

And it has been a lot of work but it has been very successful so far.

Brittany Benedict: Coincidentally, we were filming in Marengo far before we even knew this building existed.

And I think what really drew us in is that it is a small community and we have found it to be great to film in.

Now that they know we're here, there is kind of more of an awareness and an acceptance of us filming out there.

And it has been a really great experience.

Jacob Daniels: We have a crew right now of 13 people.

We have auto mechanics, we have construction workers, we have graphic designers.

We're all filmmakers and so we all have ideas.

Michael Huntington: There's like 13 of us who all have the same passion, but the ultimate goal is for the community to get in here and use this space.

Jacob Daniels: One of my favorite memories here was we did the July 3rd parade here in Marengo and then we all pulled our float back in here after the sun went down.

They started shooting off fireworks and we all just kind of sat on the parade float and watched the fireworks.

And without filmmaking we would never even know each other.

That's what this is, this is building family.

It's more than just film.

It's more than just art and creativity.

It's family.

♪♪