Tag: Oxford Film Festival

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The Show Must Get Started

We began principal photography this weekend on this year’s community film for the Oxford Film Festival. Or rather, I suppose we started second unit shooting…or maybe we’ll call it pre-shoot pickups. Either way, actors were acting and cameras were rolling. The main shooting will be done the first week in January but this got us off to a great start. The story revolves around a community theatre’s production of a murder mystery. During the performance, an actor is actually killed on stage. Due to a visiting State Arts Commissioner in attendance, the cast and crew have no choice but to continue with the play. The film is called “The Show Must Go On” and will be the opening night film for the Oxford Film Festival in February. For more info on the film and festival click here. Special thanks to everyone who worked so long and hard on Saturday including our very own student worker, Matt Minshew who’s serving as Assistant Director on the shoot. More soon.

– Matthew

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MDP shines at the OFF.

I hope you will indulge my expressing the pride I feel for the folks I am lucky enough to work with every day. Their talent was showcased at the Oxford Film festival. Nice job Micah Ginn and Matthew Graves–“The Hanging of Big Todd Wade,” Matthew Graves–“Oh Christmas Triage,” and Joe York– “Mississippi Innocence,” which played to 4 full houses.

Thanks also to Karen Tuttle for keeping us all on track and for assuming videographer duties during the festival.  –Andy

 

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Mississippi Innocence

MISSISSIPPI INNOCENCE tells the story of Levon Brooks and Kennedy Brewer, two men who combined spent over thirty years behind bars for crimes they didn’t commit.

Here is the trailer that we’ve created for the Oxford Film Festival pre-screening of Joe York’s moving film, Mississippi Innocence.  Produced with Tucker Carrington and the Mississippi Innocence Project at the UM School of Law, Mississippi Innocence tells the story of Levon Brooks and Kennedy Brewer, two men who combined spent over thirty years behind bars for crimes they didn’t commit.  The film will screen February 11th at 5:30 and 7:00 at the Malco Theatre in Oxford.  Please come out to support this project two years in the making.

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Intruder in the Dust turns 60.

micahatintruder21This week marks the 60th anniversary of the world premiere of Intruder in the Dust and the Media and Documentary Projects Center was well represented in the effort to commemorate the milestone.   The event, a fundraiser for the Oxford Film Festival, was held at the recently restored Lyric Theater in the same room where the film first screened in 1949.  MDP producer Joe York had a premiere of his own as his documentary, When We Were Extras was shown prior to the screening of Intruder in the Dust.  Joe interviewed quite a few of the locals who took part in the original production.  Look for his film here on the blog in the coming weeks.  MPD producer Micah Ginn served as the master of ceremonies for the event.  Micah kept the crowd, shall we say, entertained…….

After the movies screened Joe York interviewed Claude Jarman, Jr.  Enjoy this excerpt from that interview (please forgive the shaky iPhone).

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MDP at the Summer OFF

marywarnerThe Media and Documentary Projects Center was well represented last night by two films showing at the Oxford Film Festival summer series.  The first was a documentary by Mary Warner and Joe York that resulted from Mary’s Southern Studies MA Thesis on Thacker Mountain Radio.  Mary Produced Thacker for several years and we were lucky enough to work with her that whole time.  Mary has graduated and moved on to Atlanta where we wish her well.

thackerfilm

The Second film was a screening of Joe York’s moving documentary, Saving Willie Mae’s Scotch House.  Both of these films represent the collaborative nature of our department and are great examples of the type of films I expect to be producing for years to come. — Andy