6th Annual Oxford Film Festival

Oxford, MS 2009- Leslie Morton

Football, foxy coeds, and foggy morning hangovers are among some of my fondest memories of college life in the hamlet that is Oxford, MS.  Some time has passed and some wisdom has emerged since those lazy days of yore.  Now Faulkner, folk music, fabulous southern food, and even better southern films occupy a new space in my fondness for this sometimes surreal and never boring town. Oxford has always been a cultural anomaly, an oasis if you will, and the Oxford Film Festival is the annual affirmation of forward thinking hope that I occasionally need living in the heart of the Bible Belt. 

The O.F.F. never tries to be what it is not.  What it is? A small southern film festival centered in an SEC college town.  What it is not?  Anything that was not mentioned in my previous statement!  There are no paparazzi, no red carpets, no limousines in sight, and definitely no large media moguls waiting for the perfect interview.  Don’t get me wrong.  You will see the occasional flashbulb light up the sky, but it’s probably a friend snapping a shot with a local filmmakers’ own digital camera.  I think that the carpet in one of the rooms of the Lyceum on Ole Miss’s campus is definitely of a ruby hue, and some sweet sixteen party was probably completed with the rental of the only limousine in town on this particular weekend.  As for the media moguls?  Your very own Indie Express roving reporters had a firm grasp on that angle.

This year saw events being centered around Oxford’s historic square more than in years past.  The O.F.F. tapped more hospitality and ambiance than ever before by having a filmmakers’ lunch at the nationally renowned City Grocery restaurant.  The converted Powerhouse, with its industrial charm, played host to Friday evening’s party, and the brand new music venue, The Lyric, was the focal point of Saturday night’s awards ceremony.  There seemed to be more local and regional films than ever before.  I counted nine just within the first few pages of the program.  The southern films tackled a wide variety of topics from Mississippi Drug Wars to The Cursed Head of Elvis.  Crystal methamphetamine use, Charleston’s first integrated prom, southern pageant girls- every niche of southern culture found its fifteen minutes of fame this year.

My only complaint about this year’s foray into cinematic bliss is that the festival is gaining momentum and with that patrons.  There were several movies that had a serpentine line that seemed to stretch for days.  Prom Night in Mississippi, a film that explores the integration of Charleston High School’s prom (yes folks, it was just integrated in 2008), required two additional showings just to satisfy the crowds vying for a seat in the theatre.  Next year, the film festival committee is really going to have to entertain the idea of using the entire Malco theatre complex in lieu of half.  This is a great problem, but it is a problem nonetheless.

I am going with a rating system this year for the festival itself and the individual movies that you will be reading about.  Overall, I give the 6th annual Oxford Film Festival four bourbons out of five (it’s a southern thing).