Pubdate: Sun, 19 Feb 2012 Source: Denver Post (CO) Copyright: 2012 The Denver Post Corp Contact: http://www.denverpost.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122 Author: Joanne Ostrow, Denver Post Television Critic NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SPOTLIGHTS FORT COLLINS IN SERIES ON POT WARS Colorado's medical marijuana business is booming, as is the national media coverage on the issue, depicting Colorado as the cutting edge in what could be a national move to legalize pot. The story is catnip to TV producers: controversial, emotional, young- skewing and photogenic: the buds, the smoke, the giant greenhouses! All you need are a few eccentric characters who will let you film them inhaling; a vocal opponent, and a gaggle of hardy brothers whose giant growing operation boasts "Bubba Kush" as their top seller. National Geographic Channel found them. Add to the already abundant crop of films about Colorado's pot industry a National Geographic series - exploring growers, retailers, patients, cops, opponents and the political firestorm in one picturesque town. "American Weed," premiering Wednesday at 8 p.m. on NGC, zeroes in on a Fort Collins family confronting the forces who aim to restrict the legality of medical marijuana dispensaries. Shot last fall in the buildup to Fort Collins' vote on Question 300, the 10 hour-long episodes of "American Weed" cement the state's reputation as "Cannabis Country USA." The documentary finds plenty of drama, along with greenhouses in the woods outside of Denver, and six camera-ready brothers - Joel, Jesse, Jonathan, Jordan, Jared and Josh Stanley - who grow and distribute weed. There's lots to learn ... about pure cannabis pollen, about how to transplant a cutting, about a diabetes patient seeking pain relief, about the crusader waving signs on street corners to shut down dispensaries. And about Question 300, which ultimately banned medical marijuana dispensaries in Fort Collins. NatGeo carefully avoids taking sides. The various interests are noted, and the series poses a leading, or at least loaded, question: "Is the pendulum swinging back to curb the 10-year proliferation of medical marijuana in Colorado?" The opening hour chronicles the brothers at work and play at the grove. After putting their life savings into the idea, they're not exactly efficient business operators. Ticking down the weeks to the vote, a regular customer and an opponent hand out leaflets to mostly apathetic students on the Colorado State University campus. Obviously, the series will be less suspenseful for local viewers familiar with the Question 300 outcome than for the broader audience. The first hour also tracks Sgt. Jim Gerhardt of the North Metro Task Force making a bust after middle-schoolers found a patch of marijuana growing next to a suburban house. The kids reportedly helped themselves. The cancer patient growing the plants is hauled away in cuffs. In retrospect, Joel Stanley, 32, who lives in Colorado Springs, said the opponents of medical marijuana in Fort Collins were better organized. "Not a lot of people actually show up to vote on these things," he said by phone last week. "We could have done a better job of creating awareness." But the family business thrives elsewhere. The Stanleys still have one medical marijuana store in Denver and three in Colorado Springs. There's a misconception "that people in this industry are making a lot of money," Stanley said. "You have to invest a lot of money" to be legal. The Fort Collins battle may be over, but the war rages on, and Colorado remains a bright destination for camera crews seeking an angle. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom