After a year in production, Horse Archer Productions has released a much anticipated documentary about the old time music and culture of Appalachia called Why Old Time? that is getting attention in some surprising places.

In just three weeks of Internet sales from their Web site, Horse Archer Productions has sold copies in every state of the union, plus sales in Canada, England, Ireland, France, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Australia, Finland, and even Japan.

“When we started this documentary we began asking why so many people in the 21st Century were drawn to music that was old 100 years ago,” said Chris Valluzzo, co-producer and co-director of the full length feature documentary.

As the team traveled through the mountains of Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee, they started to get a sense of the far reaching impact of the music outside the region.

Since much of the filming took place at fiddler’s conventions and organized events, the crew frequently found themselves interviewing people who had traveled anywhere from a few miles to a few thousand miles just to play with friends.

“That is a big part of the whole experience,” said co-producer and co-director Sean Kotz.

“What sets this music and experience apart from the highly commercial experience of most popular music is the fact that there is not really a line between audience and musician because they tend to be one in the same.”

Why Old Time? is Horse Archer Productions’ third feature documentary and they feel their experience with their first film, 2007’s  Hokie Nation, was incredibly valuable in their more recent production.

Horse Archer also released The Henry Reed Legacy on DVD in June. That film documents the life and impact of Giles County old-time fiddler Henry Reed and complements Why Old Time?.