Mississippi Film Society Announces Stranger Than Fiction Film Festival April 10-13

The nonprofit Mississippi Film Society announced a new film festival that will take place at the Capri Theatre in Jackson from Thursday, April 10 to Sunday, April 13.

The Stranger Than Fiction Film Festival will showcase seven feature-length films and include an Introduction to the Film Industry Workshop, and two afterparties. The selected films have been curated by Film Society Executive Director Ryan Parker.

Weekend passes for the event will go on sale March 6, and tickets for individual screenings will go on sale Tuesday, March 25. Attendees who purchase weekend passes will receive priority entry and seating for each of the screenings. Visit the Mississippi Film Society site for more information: msfilmsociety.org.

“Since founding the Film Society in 2023, it has been a dream of mine to host a festival like this. I am beyond excited to share seven amazing films with the community. These films have premiered at prestigious festivals with sold out screenings across the country, so it’s such a thrill to be able to screen them here, where they wouldn’t have released theatrically. It is my hope that this event will be the foundation for a larger festival that will span more days and locations and feature more films and programming for the community in the years to come,” said Film Society Executive Director Ryan Parker. “There’s something here for viewers off all ages, including a breakfast cereal buffet for our family-friendly screening on Saturday morning and afterparties with live music and movie trivia.”

The Stranger Than Fiction Film Festival will kick off on Thursday, April 10, at 7:00 pm, with the opening night screening of Secret Mall Apartment, sponsored in part by The City With Soul. This screening will be followed by a pre-recorded conversation with director Jeremy Workman and film subject and artist Michael Townsend. This film tells the unbelievable, true story of eight Rhode Islanders, who, in 2003, built a secret apartment inside a busy mall and lived there for four years, filming everything along the way. Far more than a prank, the secret apartment became a deeply meaningful place for all involved.

“I can’t express how much I love this film. It might be one of my favorites of 2025. Come for the secret apartment shenanigans and stay for one of the most uplifting movie-going experiences you’ll have all year,” said Parker.

Read on for an overview of the rest of the Festival screenings and events, all of which will take place at the Capri Theatre and Fondren Yard:

• Friday, April 11, 7:00 pm: Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted screening, sponsored, in part, by OffBeat. This film profiles Jerry "Swamp Dogg" Williams, a musician who has been an influential cult figure in American music despite never achieving mainstream fame. Swamp Dogg lives with his friends and colleagues Larry "Moogstar" Clemons and David "Guitar Shorty" Kearney in a modest home in the San Fernando Valley, which the three men have maintained as an artistic haven. This will be preceded by the short film, Country Punk Black, directed by Christopher C. Fisher, which profiles Mississippi musician Twurt Chamberlain. The night will conclude with an after party during which local artist, DJ Young Venom, live scoring a black-and-white classic film.

• Saturday, April 12, 10 am: The Legend of Ochi screening. In this family-friendly film (rated PG), a young girl learns to never go outside after dark because of reclusive forest creatures known as the ochi. However, when a baby ochi is left behind by its pack, she embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to reunite it with its family. This screening will include a breakfast cereal buffet.

• Saturday, April 12, 1:00 pm: Introduction to the Film Industry Workshop, co-sponsored by the Mississippi Film Office and conducted by Sarah Hennigan, Assistant Professor of Film Production at the University of Mississippi. This workshop will introduce participants to the language of the practice of filmmaking and is intended for anyone interested in learning more about or breaking into the industry.

• Saturday, April 12, at 3:00 pm: 23 Mile screening. Part verité essay film, part political diary, 23 Mile is an experimental nonfiction film following Americans during cataclysmic events in the Midwestern swing state of Michigan throughout 2020–including the plot to kidnap Governor Whitmer—painting a portrait of a populace that defies media stereotypes. A document of complex discourse, the film forces viewers to question their own assumptions about race, class, social status and geographical demographics, drawing a surprisingly hopeful human portrait against the foreboding backdrop of societal instability.The screening willbe followed by a pre-recorded conversation with director Mitch McCabe and a panel discussion of the film convened by the Mississippi Humanities Council.

• Saturday, April 12, 6:00 pm: Kim’s Video screening part off South Arts Southern Circuit Tour off Independent Filmmakers. This film pays tribute to the iconic video store in New York City that inspired a generation of cinephiles before it mysteriously closed its doors and sent its legendary film archive to a small Sicilian village for safekeeping. This screening will be followed by an in-person conversation and Q&A with director Ashley Sabin, and the night will conclude with a movie trivia after party at Fondren Yard.

• Sunday, April 13, 1:30 pm: Eudora screening. Renowned short story writer Eudora Welty is explored through intimate and charming interviews, both with Eudora herself and with family and friends. Seen through the backdrop of Jackson, Mississippi, Eudora is a revealing portrait of adventure, daring, humor and love as we meet a writer we only thought we knew. This film is directed by Anthony Thaxton and produced by Robert St. John. The Eudora screening will be preceded by the documentary short, Jason Bouldin: Corporeal Nature, directed by University of Mississippi filmmaking students Tanner Goodeill and Madeleine Perkins. This screening will be co-hosted by the Two Mississippi Museums, the Mississippi Humanities Council, and the Mississippi Film Office and will be followed by a conversation with director Anthony Thaxton and other subject matter experts.

• Sunday, April 13, 4:00 pm: Cajita screening. Based on a true story, this intimate tale follows Tomás an immigrant laborer who fled his country by shipping himself in a crate years before the story starts. Tomás now lives off the grid, performing odd jobs for an upper-middle-class family, and saving money to eventually buy a home for the family he left behind. A series of events forces Tomás out of his solitary life to engage with people of his community in search of something lost. However, this journey reflects Tomás own social and emotional turmoil: even though he emigrated to the US, he has psychologically never left his crate. This screening will be followed by an in-person conversation and Q&A with writer Rick Negron, Chair and Professor of Film Production at Belhaven University.

The Stranger Than Fiction Film Festival is funded by grants through Visit Mississippi, Volunteer Mississippi, the Mississippi Humanities Council and in partnership with the Mississippi Film Office and The City With Soul.