The People Behind the Page: Andrew Kleidon-Linstrom

The Peninsula Pulse employs 24 full- and part-time staff members who live in or have strong ties to Door County. This crew brings you the news in print, on video, online and in podcasts every week. In each edition of the Pulse, we’ll introduce you to one of the people behind the page. This week, meet podcast master Andrew Kleidon-Linstrom.

When Andrew isn’t playing Super Smash Bros., he films, edits and produces video content for Peninsula Filmworks, the Pulse and other organizations such as Destination Door County. His favorite part of the job is telling the stories that make the peninsula unique, done best through the Door County Pulse Podcast, which he co-hosts twice a week. Read more about Andrew in an extended Q&A below.

Celeste Benzschawel (CB): Where did you grow up?

Andrew Kleidon-Linstrom (AK-L): I grew up about 40 minutes north of the Twin Cities in a pretty small town. Even though our school was pretty underfunded, I had a really great group of art and theater teachers in high school who fought hard to give us professional experiences we wouldn’t have had otherwise.

CB: Where did you go to school, and what did you study?

AK-L: I went to Augsburg College – now Augsburg University – in Minneapolis. I became really passionate about theater in high school and wanted to go to a school where I could get really practical theater experience, but with a class size small enough that I could still get on stage every semester. I ended up focusing my last two years on theatrical projection and audio/video work.

CB: What brought you to the Pulse, and what is your role here?

AK-L: After graduating, I married my best friend, whom I met the first day of classes at Augsburg, and we moved here because this was her home-away-from-home. I had dabbled in filmmaking in high school and college, and when I saw Peninsula Filmworks was looking for an intern, I started gathering materials to apply. I missed the deadline for the internship, but the next day, they opened a full-time position, and I jumped on it. Now I produce, film and edit video content for the Pulse and other organizations in Door County, including Destination Door County.

CB: What’s your favorite part about working here?

AK-L: I love telling the stories that make this place unique. One of the best ways I’ve been able to do this is through the Door County Pulse Podcast, which I host twice a week alongside Myles Dannhausen Jr. and the rest of the crew here. Door County is a small community of passionate people who get fired up about the goings-on in the county, and being able to add context to the discourse is something I take a lot of pride in. 

CB: What’s the last thing you were really excited about?

AK-L: I think I might be the best Super Smash Bros. player in Door County (if you think otherwise, hit me up), and that game has had a really great year of post-launch support, with another promising year ahead of it. It’s nice to see the things you really enjoy getting the treatment they deserve.