It takes a village to make a movie, but when that village is Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin and not Hollywood, California, the results are at times bizarre, dangerous, comical, and very American. With the help of his mother, his 82-year old uncle, and a local cast of hilarious and lovable characters, filmmaker Mark Borchardt fights his way through internal and external roadblocks to achieve his goal--to make his movie, his way. Mark's vision for his dream film is unlike most in independent filmmaking today. His inspiration comes from films as disparate as Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Seventh Seal, as well as his experiences growing up amidst the gray skies, rusty cars, and ranch houses of Milwaukee's Northwest side. "American Movie" is the story of filmmaker Mark Borchardt, his mission, and his dream. Spanning over two years of intense struggle with his film, his family, financial decline, and spiritual crisis, "American Movie" is a portrayal of ambition, obsession, excess, and one man's quest for the American Dream.