Confederitis

Directed by Jillian McManemin

The film (runtime 70 mins) collages documentary footage of small town USA (Kentucky and West Tennessee), with a narrative structure, karaoke, poetry and slapstick puppetry. The plot loosely follows Tyler and Nola Jane, a brother and sister struggling to conform to their small town environment. Their world begins to unravel when confronted by twin-like strangers, Phocian and Faith, who have lackadaisical aspirations of forming a queer love cult and distorting Confederate symbology. Phocian and Faith traverse the landscape like childish clowns. They speak in riddle and ultimately cause the other characters to join their antics. Confederitis explores disturbing aspects of Southern culture and the impotence of escapism in our current political climate. Confederitis melds film genre and was shot on multiple formats and film stocks such as: Super 8mm, 16mm, Hi-8, Betamax, VHS, HD, cellphone, and more.