Wednesday, October 15, the Oxford Film Festival will kick off the five-day event by screening a special selection of films during a free-to-the-public community night. Those films will include Rory Ledbetter’s Oxford Film Festival community comedy, FIREMAX, about a superhero that fights to save Oxford from a series of villains, Lacey Ellinwood’s BIG HOUSE BOOKS: PROTECTING THE RIGHT TO READ, about an organization that sends free books to Mississippi-based prisons, and Louis Bourgeois’s North Mississippi Hills Heritage Alliance Grant winning film, WE WILL NOT GO AWAY, about a father and son dealing with the challenges of being homeless in Oxford. Both BIG HOUSE BOOKS and WE WILL NOT GO AWAY have benefitted from grants courtesy of the Magnifying Glass, which is a partnership with Artless Media and Oxford Film Festival, as well as several other festivals in the south to highlight micro stories about social justice. Also screening will be Greg Earnest’s short documentary, which is currently untitled, that explores the music of the current generation of hill country blues artists, including some of R.L. Burnside's children, shot in part thanks to a grant courtesy of Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area. The free screening night will take place at the Powerhouse Community Arts Center (413 South 14th Street).

In addition, there will be a special presentation of The Louisiana Film Prize winning films from 2016. The Louisiana Film Prize is a short narrative film contest with one rule: Filmmakers must shoot their film in the Northwest Louisiana. Of the films created, twenty films are selected each year to participate in a contest and festival where they will compete for votes from the audience and a panel of industry judges in order to win $50,000 cash - the largest cash prize for a short film in the world. That winning film, in addition to others that received smaller cash prizes for their filmmakers to make another short film project, will comprise a special “encore” screening on Sunday, February 18 with many of the filmmakers in-person to talk about their films.

Upcoming announcements will include the Opening and Closing Night Gala selection, full schedule, filmmaker panels, and more. Festival passes and tickets can be purchased at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2017-oxford-film-festival-tickets-28731287053.

2017 OXFORD FILM FESTIVAL SPECIAL SCREENINGS AND PRESENTATIONS

CHASING AMY (1997)

Director: Kevin Smith

Country: USA, Running Time: 113min

Kevin Smith’s hit indie comedy stars Joey Lauren Adams, Ben Affleck, and Jason Lee. Holden (Affleck) and Banky (Lee) are comic book artists. Everything's going good for them until they meet Alyssa (Adams), also a comic book artist. Holden falls for her, but his hopes are crushed when he finds out she's gay.

KUDZU ZOMBIES – WORLD PREMIERE

Director: Mark Newton

Country: USA, Running Time: 90min

After a mysterious chemical transforms the citizens of Charleston into zombies, a mismatched group must fight for survival against the cannibalistic hordes.

SMALL TOWN GAY BAR (2006)

Director: Malcolm Ingram

Country: USA, Running Time: 76min

The story of community in the Deep South that is forced to deal with the struggles of ignorance, hypocrisy and oppression.

Community Films and Indie Grants Winners

BIG HOUSE BOOKS: PROTECTING THE RIGHT TO READ

Director: Lacey Ellinwood

Country: USA, Running Time: 00:05:00

Documentary looks at Big House Books, a non-profit volunteer organization that sends free books by request to prisoners in Mississippi correctional facilities to promote literacy and be a vehicle of change for prison reform in Mississippi.

FIREMAX

Director: Rory Ledbetter

Country: USA, Running Time: 15min

A fire-breathing superhero discovers there's more going on in Oxford, Mississippi than meets the eye and teams up with an uncanny group of heroes to fight an entente of super villains.

WE WILL NOT GO AWAY

Director: Louis Bourgeois

Country: USA, Running Time: 5min

Film documents a father and son as they face the everyday challenges of being homeless in the prosperous college football town of Oxford, Mississippi.

**UNTITLED

Director: Greg Earnest

Country: USA

Short documentary that explores the music of the current generation of hill country blues artists, including some of R.L. Burnside's children.

2016 Louisiana Film Prize Encore Short Film Program

TRT: 76min

THE MAN FROM MARS

Director: Jonnie Stapleton

Country: USA, Running TIme: 15min

A cynical podcast host hellbent on making fools of small town celebrities has just met his match: A charming woman who has her entire community believing she’s the second coming of Jesus Christ.

MEMOIR

Director: Alexander Jeffrey

Country: USA, Running Time: 16min

Memories can either fuel our existence or eat away at us like a disease. In the not-too-distant future, Dr. Theodore Maine is on the cusp of losing his job at Janus Labs where he is developing research for Alzheimer’s treatment. That is, until a mysterious visitor named Obee changes his life forever.

NATIVE

Directors: Travis Champagne, Stephen Kinigopoulos

Country: USA, Running Time: 15min

While on a ceremonial walkabout a young boy must defend his tribe against a mysterious force.

THE STAND

Director: Eva Contis

Country: USA, Running Time: 15min

Islamic extremists ambush a bus in Africa. When the Christian and Muslim passengers refuse to separate, the terrorists are faced with a dilemma.

YA ALIBI (My Heart)

Director: Christine Chen

Country: USA, Running Time: 15min

A Syrian refugee adapts to life in an unfamiliar country after her husband’s immigration visa is unexpectedly rejected.



