Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience will host a screening Tuesday, Sept. 10., of the critically-acclaimed documentary “Rising Hope,” which examines hope in the face of generational poverty through community activism in the Mississippi Delta.
The feature-length film delves into the struggles and aspirations of Shaw residents, including a youth minister, a college student, local nonprofit leaders and others in the Delta who are determined to overcome the devastating effects of poverty and unemployment to collectively accomplish economic and racial justice.
The MAX’s screening will begin at 6 p.m. in the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Multipurpose Gallery. The event is free, with bites and beverages available. Members of the filmmaking team will be present to answer questions following the showing.
MAX President and CEO Penny Kemp said the arts institution is a “natural platform for spreading the word about this impressive film. The blend of powerful Mississippi images and personal accounts, as we revisit difficult issues of poverty and race, is well suited for our educational mission.”
To register to attend, visit msarts.org/events/rising-hope-documentary-screening.
“Rising Hope” attributes sweeping Delta poverty to industrial relocation, chronic underfunding of public schools and state policies historically oppressive to Black residents. Testimonials from those interviewed highlight the entwined nature of suffering and hope, such as “Everybody I talk to, they want a job. It’s a lie that people don’t want to work.” Or in another testimony, a resident says, “It doesn’t matter where you come from, something beautiful and awesome can happen in your life.”
The film was named Best Documentary Feature at the LightReel Film Festival in Washington and top Mississippi Made Feature at the Oxford Film Festival in North Mississippi. The Oxford festival called “Rising Hope” an “elegant tapestry of human experience, giving new context to so much of the baggage associated with the Deep South. With beautiful cinematography, it is a moving exploration of what can be from the people who believe it will be.”
Directed and produced by Theo Avgerinos, a Santa Fe-based independent filmmaker, the documentary was years in the making, drawing expertise from other producers with ties to Los Angeles and New York.
A Greek-American, Avgerinos is originally from New York and Connecticut and has spent much of his career in Los Angeles. Known for films such as “Fifty Pills” and “Americons,” he visited the Mississippi Delta many years ago during a mission trip, then returned in the filmmaker role in 2017, finding the mix of grit and optimism among area residents inspiring.
“I aimed to explore how and why hope plays such a crucial role in the meaningful community work being done in one of the country’s most economically devastated regions, and to tell the stories of those individuals striving to make a difference,” Avgerinos said.
“Rising Hope” is presented in partnership with the Mississippi Film Society, a new organization dedicated to entertaining, educating and inspiring Mississippians through community film screenings, lectures, workshops and festivals. Its founder and executive director, Ryan Parker, said he is excited to partner with The MAX in this event and is “looking forward to future opportunities to collaborate on early preview screenings of upcoming big studio releases, as well as documentaries and independent films that might not get a theatrical release in Mississippi.”