For high school students from a small Eastern Kentucky county, competing in – and winning – a regional theater competition is a big deal. Even a bigger deal: the play they performed, “Shiners,” is one they collaboratively wrote about growing up in rural Appalachia in one of the poorest counties in the nation. The PBS documentary “Shiners: Voices from Owsley County” follows the teens on their odyssey of developing the show, winning at regionals, and making their school’s first ever appearance at a statewide theater competition. It’s a compelling story of finding pride in their rural home, and themselves.
Student Kayden Turner has a favorite moment in the film. “There’s a part in the play after we won at regionals, and we’re all sitting in the crowd, so silent, listening to the feedback that the professionals had for us,” he recalled. “Everybody was so excited, we was ready to rip through those seats and start screaming and dancing. But we had to just muster it all down and wait. I still feel the excitement as I was sitting in that seat waiting to just, you know, hoop and holler.”
Although the “Shiners” title alludes to the illegal distilling history of the area, the students claim it as something more: the way the experience brought out their best and celebrated their culture, giving students the chance to shine. And for many of the students, who are now young adults, the experience shined a new, hopeful light on their futures.
In the words of documentary film director Seth McClellan, “Viewers meet the youth and follow them on the journey of creating a new story for themselves.”
Local People, Local Stories
The genesis of the theater production came from Bob Martin of Clear Creek Creative, who has built trust working in Owsley County off and on for over a decade. The hallmark of his theater teaching is original, collaborative community story plays based on local stories — shows such as “Shiners.” The community first worked with Martin on a series of three intergenerational televised plays called “HomeSongs.” Out of that experience, students clamored for the opportunity to share their perspectives.
The youth collaboration began during the Covid pandemic. The group gathered community lore through a story circle process, then reflected on how those experiences could become building blocks for dramatic elements of the piece. Together, they sketched out moments, scenes, and songs to first create an online radio performance that blossomed into a live play. At both the regional and state competitions, “Shiners” was the only performance of an original story.
Owsley County students Caleb and Callie participate in a theater competition. (Photo courtesy of “Shriners” documentary staff)
Turner explained the process: “It was like therapy to us in a way. We just came in, gave them the whole spiel of what we’ve been through, what we’ve seen, what our neighbors have seen, and somehow, Robert Martin made it art.”
It was Martin who reached out to his friend McClellan, whose projects focus on those in challenged, marginalized communities finding solutions through the principles of nonviolence. “Shiners” is third in his trilogy of powerful youth-centered films; the other two showcase communities of Tibetan refugees (“Others Before Self”) and Indigenous Americans (“Little Wound’s Warriors: Voices from the Badlands”).
Breaking Stereotypes
In Owsley County, outsiders are often the ones telling the stories, and those versions are often incomplete. “Shiners,” on the other hand, is told about, by, and for the community. Residents face poverty, addiction, teen pregnancy, divorce, abandonment, and despair, but that’s not the whole story.
“Unfortunately, when you are from a rural community, there is a stigma that you shouldn’t be proud of where you’re from,” Turner said. “Working with this and meeting so many people who have just the same story as I do, I find I should be nothing but proud as to where I came from, because that’s who I am. We shared the good, the bad, and the ugly in ‘Shiners.’ It’s not perfect, but it’s us.”
Scene from the “Shiners” play with cast members and musicians on stage. (Photo courtesy of “Shriners” documentary staff)
Through the creation of the play and then the documentary, the youth were the storytellers. Martin was committed to helping them tell the most complex and powerful stories while recognizing the dignity and inherent wisdom of the people of that place telling their own story.
Frankie Henry was involved in the original “HomeSongs” productions as well as serving on the “Shiners” play and film teams. “It was the first time people from Owsley County heard that their stories mattered,” Henry said about Martin’s work. “So many young people need something to hold on to, to feel good about and believe in. ‘Shiners’ was that real safe haven for them.”
McClellan’s vision was to tell the story as authentically as possible. That meant pushing back against sensationalism, not choosing the splashiest or most extractive moments to feature in the film. That dovetailed nicely with the accessibility of high-quality, low-cost video cameras. Some of the strongest moments in the film happened when the students ran the cameras and became not just subjects, but part of the process.
They shared experiences of regular teenagers. Moments of imposter syndrome thinking that they don’t belong at the state competition. Moments of humor, when their camaraderie led to jokes and playfulness.
“My hope is by lifting up youth voices we can hear their concerns and complex challenges in fresh ways,” McClellan said. “They help us see potential solutions without demonizing people, which is part of the power.”
Noticing the Light
One refrain in the film from both students and adults is that people from Owsley County can do so much more than people expect. The teens are incredibly sincere about making their work, and the experience of creating and performing, of recording and reflecting, lit their fire to shine. They implore viewers to focus on the light, not the cracks it is shining through.
At the Kentucky Theatre Association Eastern Kentucky Regional event, the team received a standing ovation and proceeded to the state competition. There, the stunning original and traditional music, scored by young people, won the musicians the Best Band award. The troupe also received the Newcomer Award, but spoiler alert: they didn’t advance to nationals.
“They didn’t win, but they kind of won,” Martin said. “It’s about how they grew through the process. They realized they were highly supported and that their story had a place in the larger narrative. There’s power in owning your story and sharing it.”
The play and movie incorporated original and traditional music, scored by student musicians. They won the Best Band award at the state competition. (Photo courtesy of “Shriners” documentary staff)
A Ripple Effect
The “Shiners” film, released in March 2025, and the ripple effects of the cultural experience demonstrate the transformative empowerment of collaborative arts.
“Shiners” is not exclusively a Kentucky story, a rural story, or even a youth story. It’s universal. As the documentary made the rounds of film festivals and events, Turner and fellow student Callie Smallwood toured with it as ambassadors. Smallwood was struck by the diversity of people who shared that they found some of their own truth in it.
Regardless of its broad appeal, the “Shiners” legacy shines brightest close to home. For many students, it shifted what was possible and became a springboard to college. Turner originally said in the film he would enlist in the Army to see the world. Instead, he is currently a student at Eastern Kentucky University for occupational therapy. Smallwood also attends EKU, even though she didn’t think she would go to college. She fell in love with film and is seeking a degree in broadcast media.
“Looking back, I don’t even remember who I was because it gave me such confidence in myself,” Turner said. “I decided to finish high school, even though I was homeless at the time. It’s easy to let the stigma get to you of, like, wow, you’re from the mountains or you’re from a rural community that has one stoplight, you’re not really going to become a whole lot, but this has really just changed all of that for me.”
The documentary became part of the cultural fabric of the community; soon, the Booneville movie theater will reopen and “Shiners” will be the first film shown on the big screen.
“Cultural storytelling, the idea that people can create art about themselves, can empower and change the story of a community,” McClellan said. “The process of making things together is the point of art.”
“Shiners” the documentary is playing for free on the PBS app through July 2026.
The post “Shiners: Voices from Owsley County” Documentary Shows Rural America in a Positive Light appeared first on The Daily Yonder.
