Stronger Than Fiction 2021
These nineteen films penetrate the darkness in this year’s festival, coming from the inquisitive and creative minds of graduate and undergraduate students in the Documentary Journalism Program at the Jonathan B. Murray Center for Documentary Journalism at the Missouri School of Journalism. They are the culmination of two years of work fulfilling the requirements for their degrees.
These directors pitched their ideas to a panel of professionals, worked for months in production on the films and spent weeks or months editing in post-production to get it all together, just to have them ready in time for graduation.
This year’s festival occurs outdoors and online to give as much access as possible to this work. The in-person, outdoor festival is taking place May 10 and 11, starting at 8:00 pm at the amphitheater in Stephens Lake Park in Columbia. Admission is free. The online festival runs for one week here on MethodMFilms.com, from May 10 to May 16.
This is the fifth annual Stronger Than Fiction Film Festival and, once again, the students had to work the limitations of a global pandemic into their film-making plans. As you will see, they worked hard not to let COVID-19 steal any of their films’ quality.
Special thanks this year goes to Jenny Raskin of Impact Partners for helping the students craft their ideas and make their films a reality.
These films tackle the documentary approach in many different ways. They represent the visions of twenty talented people poised to begin some impressive careers. Enjoy catching them as they begin their professional climbs.
-Robert Greene, Filmmaker-in-Chief
-Stacey Woelfel, Director
Festival Jury
Chris Boeckmann is a programmer and writer who focuses on nonfiction filmmaking. Previously, he was director of programming at the True/False Film Fest and the Ragtag Cinema. His bylines include Film Comment and Filmmaker Magazine.
Lauren Domino is a writer and producer. She is a 2017 Sundance Institute creative producing fellow. Her work as a producer includes Alone, The Earth is Humming, Black Folk Don’t, Like, America and Academy Award-nominated, Time (Amazon Studios). Lauren has produced branded content and live events for The New Yorker, Elle Magazine, The Oscars, Microsoft, and Essence Festival. Lauren co-hosted the podcast The Secret Lives of Black Women, which has been highlighted by The New York Times and Forbes.
Eric Hynes is a New York-based film critic and reporter, as well as Curator of Film at Museum of the Moving Image. He has written for the New York Times, Film Comment, Rolling Stone, IndieWire, Slate, the Village Voice, and Time Out New York. Since 2004 he has been a staff writer for the online film journal Reverse Shot, where he’s also the host and co-producer of the Reverse Shot Talkies video series.
Films
1414
dir. Victoria Heinsohn
From tattoo guns to sending out job applications, there are no in-between steps to adulthood. In a college town, just down the pothole-ridden street called Rosemary Lane, eight friends live together during their last months of college. Holding on tight to wondering memories and good times together, the roommates each face anxieties of their own. With the support of each other, the realities of becoming an adult might not be so tough.
American Alien
dir. Jay Encina
American Alien is an observational film chronicling the journey of the filmmaker to become an American citizen. Fearing that he will be targeted by the aggressive deportation campaign of the Trump administration and be separated from his loved ones, the filmmaker attempts to go through the process of naturalization, hitting one roadblock after another. With the added obstacle of a worldwide pandemic, can he reach his goal in time and gain a sense of security for himself and the people he loves?
The American Frontier
dir. Edward Frumkin
The American Frontier looks at Hollywood’s depiction of the Old West. With archival footage and scholarly interviews, The film examines the influence of Westerns and how it impacts society through its portrayals of Indigenous people, gun culture, and the idolization of cowboys.
Break a Leg
dir. Matt Schmittdiel
Break a Leg follows the journey of a Missouri actor and filmmaker who has always dreamt of the red carpets of Hollywood and the bright lights of Broadway, as he auditions for the most prestigious acting programs in the world. This film transports you into the room with him as you watch him audition in real time. The only problem is, due to COVID-19, the auditions this year are completely virtual—and actors only get two minutes to perform? Will months of rehearsal, years of planning, and lifetime of dreams be fulfilled in 120 seconds…over the internet?
Castaway Hearts
dir. Isaac Robinson
After the death of their father, two brothers set out to play his songs live, songs he wrote nearly 40 years earlier but never revealed to anyone.
Dear Heart of Glass Kids
dir. Evann Twitchell
Dear Heart of Glass Kids is a film that unites four emerging creatives from across the country to document a journey, testing the limits of socially-distanced collaboration, with a shared goal of making artistic work in a time of social disunity. This process-oriented short film allows the viewer a unique perspective on how young artists are capitalizing on transparency and vulnerability to build friendships and navigate a future we must all create.
This film was made possible through partnership with the Panda Charitable Foundation and the University of Missouri Honors College
Down the Hatch
dir. Justin Goetz
Down the Hatch chronicles the story of Joe Connelly, an amateur professional eater looking to make a name for himself. Like any athlete, Connelly has had his share of great triumph and demoralizing failure. The film explores the prestigious world of competitive eating and what it takes for a seemingly normal kid to take the sport by storm.
Ea La Mar’s
dir. Jada Page
Dust particles and hair residue cover the concrete floor of Ea La Mar’s Cosmetology and Barber College. The smell of straighteners burning at 400 degrees lingers in the air, forming a mélange of odors with the scents Gates Barbeque across the street. Days here are never the same and Shirley and Nicole wouldn't have it any other way. Using observational footage, this film reveals the intimate relationship of a mother and daughter determined to maintain their family-owned business and leaves with the question of who will carry on the business next.
Winner: Best Director - Jada Page
El Chocó Road
dir. Savannah Ritzen
After the Haitian earthquake in 2010, Chuck Ritzen’s compassion and newfound purpose carried him and his wife off to the Caribbean to create a free medical and dental clinic. But their story ended too soon. Four years after their tragic deaths, the filmmaker travels to the Dominican Republic to investigate the legacy of her uncle. As she embarks on her journey, she learns to answer the question: Can heroes be flawed?
Erin, Verified
dir. Madi Baughman
In most aspects of her life, Erin Jones is a normal person. She’s 27 years old, she works a retail job and she lives in Chicago with her three roommates. That, and she also has more than two million followers on the popular video-sharing app TikTok. Erin, Verified is an open, honest look at the effect pseudo-fame and parasocial relationships have on people in the age of social media. What do you consider fame?
Gifts from Our Father
dir. Armaja LaRue-Hill
A decade after meeting her father on Facebook, a woman travels through the American south to meet her three paternal siblings for the first time. As she braces herself for the trip, she faces obstacles from her maternal upbringing creating chaos in her identity. As she tries to develop a relationship with her siblings, she must tackle her past and sense of self so she can truly give herself to her brothers and sister.
Winner: Best Film
The Ginger Witch
dir. Xuan Qi
One August afternoon, Renée, a leftist activist in mid-Missouri, tried to log into her personal Facebook account only to discover it has been permanently purged. After being wrongly identified as a member of Antifa, she had vanished from the Internet without warning. More than ten years of her memories and activism preserved on Facebook were wiped away as if she never existed. After losing her main platform, an activist tries to continue her mutual aid and community defense work.
Ink-Stained
dir. Hunter Pendleton
An intimate and humorous portrait, Ink-Stained follows collegiate journalist Galen Bacherier as he faces his ever-approaching and increasingly uncertain future. Grappling with the challenges of reporting in the midst of an increasingly polarized society, Galen must reckon with the harsh reality that comes with his chosen profession.
Like Mother, Like Daughter
dir. Grace Conley
Mother-daughter bonding is taken to the next level as a daughter examines her mother's past in an attempt to figure out her own future. A senior in college takes a deep dive into her mom's career as an investigative reporter. Becky Oliver is known for her unorthodox reporting tactics, from doing unscheduled interviews to sending her own kids undercover. Her successful career inspired her daughter to follow in her footsteps.
Little Soldier
dir. Victoria Zeyen
Little Soldier is an observational portrait of a 14 year old breaking barriers as she navigates those always difficult teenaged years. The film explores a unique time of life as this adolescent girl cuts her own path to a goal only she can make real.
Winner: Special Jury Prize for Observational Filmmaking
Obsession
dir. Zoe Shedd
Obsession joins two investigative journalists on their turbulent journey creating a true crime podcast. While examining a 40-year-old murder case, the filmmaker explores the meaning behind our society’s obsession with true crime.
Sin Miedo
dir. Marian Bouchot
The construction industry in Texas has countless Latinx workers, and Fredy is one of them. He has spent the last eight years trying to make the American dream his reality, but will he ever feel like an American? Every day, white bosses take advantage of immigrants like him because of their legal status and work ethic. But Fredy didn’t leave behind his birth country of Honduras to continue living in fear.
Winner: Special Jury Prize for Excellence in Portraiture
Winner: Audience Choice Award
So Much Stuff
dir. Sylvia Mueller
After years of not questioning what she owns, a young woman moves apartments and struggles to find balance in her world full of so much stuff.
dir. Grant Miller
An actor navigates mankind’s place in the world as he undertakes the role of a survivor in the post-apocalypse. Mired in existential uncertainty at the precipice of a crumbling socioeconomic landscape, his distinctions between fact and fiction become meaningless. As he takes on the role of a lonely nomad wandering the detritus of society, he begins to understand the fragility of life and the meaning of a civilization to which we have become gradually more indifferent.