Oxford Film Festival continues to embrace and expand upon its role as the region’s film culture lifeline, by introducing the debut of its brand new “OFF to the DRIVE-IN” with Ed Wood’s cult classic “Plan 9 From Outer Space” kicking off the drive-in on June 11 and Loki Mulholland’s timely documentary “The Evers” about the family of slain Civil Rights activist Medgar Evers, shown on June 12-13. Presenting Sponsor Cannon Motors will host the screenings at the Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop).
“The drive-in is personally exciting to me not just to provide a fun entertainment option that is safe but also because we are creating new jobs, we hired 8 people who had no paycheck and that is crucial to me to help Oxford recover,” said OFF Director Melanie Addington.
This week’s Virtual Art House offerings are highlighted by Josephine Decker’s Sundance hit SHIRLEY, starring Elizabeth Moss as a renowned horror writer who, with her husband, toys with a young couple staying at her estate, Abel Ferrara’s drama TOMMASO, which marks another pairing of the bad boy director with the Oscar-nominated Willem Dafoe, and two-time Emmy winner Cheryl Horner McDonough’s documentary PARKLAND RISING, which traces the international movement spawned by the tragic high school shooting massacre to fight for better gun control laws.
FROM BAGHDAD TO THE BAY, PARKLAND RISING
Oxford FF’s 7th Weekly Virtual Film Fest showcases celebrate documentaries once again with Erin Palmquist’s FROM BAGHDAD TO THE BAY, about an Iraqi refugee and translator for the Army and his struggles compounded by coming out as a gay man, and Larissa Lam’s Mississippi documentary FAR EAST DEEP SOUTH, about a Chinese-American man’s journey from California to Mississippi to make a connection to his past, which reveals the South’s connection to the Chinese and the early segregated South, as well. Two shorts programs include a Music Rocks music video package and an encore of the popular American Lens short film program – back by popular demand.
Executive Director Melanie Addington said, “We are very excited to debut our OFF to the DRIVE IN film presentations, as I’m sure many of our locals are, to get out of the house and see some films. (We are) safely following CDC guidelines, but most importantly in this climate and in Mississippi, highlighting the great Mississippi-produced film THE EVERS on the anniversary of Medgar Evers’ death is crucial to further the conversation to improve our lives. A special conversation will be included with the film from the family and director.”
OXFORD FILM FESTIVAL 2020 7th WEEKLY VIRTUAL FILM FEST
Films, events and descriptions
OFF to the DRIVE IN
THE EVERS
Director: Loki Mulholland
Country: USA, Running Time: 91 min
On June 12, 1963, an assassin’s bullet ended the life of Medgar Evers, the Field Secretary of the NAACP in Mississippi. From the Emmy-winning director of “The Uncomfortable Truth” comes the incredible true story of one family’s unbreakable love and tragic sacrifice in the name of freedom for everyone. THE EVERS is a powerful testament of love, faith and family in the quest for a better world.
PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE (1959)
Director: Ed Wood
Country: USA, Running Time: 79 min
Evil aliens attack Earth and set their terrible “Plan 9” into action. As the aliens resurrect the dead of the Earth, the lives of the living are in danger. Colorized restored edition!
Oxford FF Virtual Art House
PARKLAND RISING
Director: Cheryl Horner McDonough
Country: USA, Running Time: 92 min
Directed by two-time EMMY award-winning filmmaker Cheryl Horner McDonough, Parkland Rising is an inspiring look at the students of Parkland who have started an international movement to call attention to the need for better gun safety laws. The film encourages everyone to stand up and get involved. From Executive Producers Katie Couric and will.i.am, the film features Jaclyn Corin, Matt & Ryan Deitsch, Emma Gonzalez, Fred Guttenberg (Father of Jaime Guttenberg), Lauren and David Hogg, Cameron Kasky, Jammal Lemy, Patricia and Manuel Oliver (Parents of Joaquin Oliver), Ronit Reoven (MSD Teacher), Aly Sheehy, and Sam Zeif along with music provided by Bob Dylan, Black Eyed Peas, AJR, Sammy Brue, Michael Franti, and Pearl Jam.
SHIRLEY
Director: Josephine Decker
Country: USA, Running Time: 107 min
Renowned horror writer Shirley Jackson (Elizabeth Moss) is on the precipice of writing her masterpiece when the arrival of newlyweds upends her meticulous routine and heightens tensions in her already tempestuous relationship with her philandering husband. The middle-aged couple, prone to ruthless barbs and copious afternoon cocktails, begins to toy mercilessly with the naïve young couple at their door.
TOMMASO
Director: Abel Ferrara
Country: USA, Running Time:
Abel Ferrara’s first dramatic feature since 2014’s PASOLINI reteams the filmmaker and his frequent lead Willem Dafoe, who delivers a career-best performance as the title character, an older American expat living in Rome with his young wife and their daughter. Disoriented by his past misgivings and subsequent, unexpected blows to his self-esteem, Tommaso wades through this late chapter of his life with an increasingly impaired grasp on reality as he prepares for his next film.
LGBTQ Documentary Feature Presentation
FROM BAGHDAD TO THE BAY
Director: Erin Palmquist
Countries: USA, Running Time: 68 min
FROM BAGHDAD TO THE BAY is a raw and deeply personal look at one man’s harrowing journey to be true to himself amidst extreme adversity. The film follows the epic journey of Ghazwan Alsharif, an Iraqi refugee and former translator for the U.S. military. Wrongfully accused of being a double agent, tortured by the U.S. military and ostracized from family and country, Ghazwan struggles to rebuild his life in the United States while coming out as an openly gay activist.
Mississippi Documentary Presentation
FAR EAST DEEP SOUTH
Director: Larissa Lam
Country: USA, Running Time: 75:25 min
When Charles Chiu, a Chinese-American man from California, travels to Mississippi to visit the grave of his father who abandoned him 75 years ago, he and his family stumble upon surprising revelations that change their lives. Along the way, they meet a diverse group of local residents and historians, who shed light on the racially complex history of the early Chinese in the segregated South. Their emotional journey also leads them to discover how deep their roots run in America.
Fest Forward Panel
Media Installation as a Platform for Storytelling
Media installations, especially when displayed in public spaces, are an effective way of communicating with audiences. This panel will include artists and filmmakers who utilize media installations in order to engage with their viewers, Topics such as methods, practices, and the importance of being able to communicate in this format will be discussed.
SHORT FILM PROGRAMS
Music Rocks Block
TRT: 55:35 min
40 YEARS OF THE DELTA BLUES MUSEUM
Director: Coop Cooper
Country: USA, Running Time: 14:56 min
The Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, Mississippi celebrates 40 years of showcasing blues music and memorabilia as well as teaching a new generation of blues musicians through their highly successful and world-renowned after school program.
BOTIS SEVA: AIR
Director: Divya Pathak
Country: United Kingdom, Running Time: 4:41 min
Botis Seva: Air is a documentary featuring an exclusive, rare solo dance performance by award-winning choreographer Botis Seva. Botis is a rising star in the UK and recently won the prestigious 2019 Olivier Award, Britain’s top theatre honor, for Best New Dance Production.
FOOL FROM MEMPHIS
Director: Tom Maynard
Country: USA, Running Time: 5 min
Music video for song “Fool from Memphis” shot in Memphis and Pontotoc, MS. Memories of growing up in the mid-south.
LET’S HAVE SOME FUN
Director: Roslynn Clark
Country: USA, Running Time: 7:58 min
Mississippians live to dance, party and have a great time. This is no different as the annual reunion and block party draws the partiers for dancing in the streets.
POST 398
Director: David N. Drake
Country: UK & USA, Running Time: 13:17 min
One of the last underground jazz clubs in Harlem struggles to keep going after the death of its founder. World Premiere.
PRICE OF THE BLUES
Director: Coop Cooper
Country: USA, Running Time: 6:30 min
Nashville artist Tullie Brae sings her hit song live at Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
American Lens Shorts – ENCORE
TRT: 60 min
COFFEE SHOP NAMES
Director: Seepak Sethi
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
Three Indian people imagine their personas as their “coffee shop names,” the names they give baristas because their real names are hard to pronounce.
DICK PICS! (A DOCUMENTARY)
Directors: Hannah McSwiggen, Russell Shaeffer
Country: USA, Running Time: 12:18 min
DICK PICS! is a short, stop-motion animated documentary that gathers men from all walks of life and asks them one of the most important questions of the modern era: ”What in God’s name compels you to send pictures of your penis to non-consenting others?”
I’M NOT SPOCK
Director: Clem McIntosh
Country: USA, Running Time: 9 min
Struggling to embrace stardom and his newfound identity as Spock, Leonard Nimoy explores alternative artistic outlets, much to his agent’s chagrin.
NOWHERE ARKANSAS
Director: Robert Linsley
Country: USA, Running Time: 10:51 min
A Confederate veteran, haunted by his past, hunts redemption in the form of a famous eagle that belongs to the Union Army.
REHEARSAL
Director: Courtney Hope Thérond
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
A film crew for an upcoming feature film pushes the boundaries of consent during a courtesy rehearsal for its female lead.
SHADOW IN THE ROOM
Director: Christian Walker
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
A woman is haunted by the memory of an ex-lover.
TICKETS:
Oxford FF Filmmaker Panel: Media Installation as a Platform for Storytelling
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5ebd6de4ab776f0c9ceb0d33
Panel discussion set for June 4 at 4 p.m. central time
TOMMASO
https://oxfordac.eventive.org/schedule/5ed2dd7abf44420029b79cf8
June 5 at 12 p.m. central time
SHIRLEY
https://oxfordac.eventive.org/schedule/5ecf102653f037003e2ee1d8
June 5 at 1 p.m. central time
PARKLAND RISING
https://oxfordac.eventive.org/films/5ed32d5cf7f9e2009140d1ce
June 6 at 1 p.m. central time
FROM BAGHDAD TO THE BAY
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e9227066fa0fa002a0866e8
https://www.facebook.com/events/232718541495962/
Live Q&A set for June 6 at 1 p.m. central time
Music Rocks Block!
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e95f1d2b9875a00a1c4b490
https://www.facebook.com/events/539652543387953/
Live Q&A set for June 7 at 12 p.m. central time
FAR EAST DEEP SOUTH
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e954b4854d2f50029a46dca
https://www.facebook.com/events/2647350148867667/
Live Q&A set for June 10 at 7 p.m. central time
American Lens Shorts
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e949b88aa146700317be49a/5e9f2660e5df940029c8a66d
Live Q&A set for May 21 at 8 p.m.
OFF to the DRIVE IN – PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE
https://oxfordac.eventive.org/schedule/5ed162b32a54c7003dbc595e
June 11 at 8 p.m. at Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop)
Pre-purchases only
OFF to the DRIVE IN – THE EVERS
https://oxfordac.eventive.org/schedule/5ed05ecd89b9060029cb6078
June 12 at 8 p.m. at Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop)
Pre-purchases only
https://oxfordac.eventive.org/schedule/5ed5333ef8344d0059757232
June 13 at 8 p.m. at Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop)
Pre-purchases only
Courtesy of the Oxford Film Festival
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