Join the Alabama Rivers Alliance and Wild Alabama for the FREE screening of a specially curated selection of Southern Exposure Films.

Thursday, April 11

Wine Social at 6 pm

Films Start at 7 pm

The Ritz Theatre

Created in six weeks during the summer, Southern Exposure films celebrate special people and places in Alabama while exploring complex issues and solutions.

ABOUT THE FILMS

LULLABY FOR SIPSEY

In this micro-short film, enjoy as a captivating poem unfolds, gently celebrating the profound beauty found in the intricate details of the Sipsey Wilderness.

THE LAST LAST HIKE

83-year-old Nimblewill Nomad is about to become the oldest person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. But he didn’t start at Springer Mountain, Georgia – his trek began on Flagg Mountain in Alabama, the true southern terminus of the Appalachian Mountain Range. Throughout his odyssey, he’s meeting hikers along the way and sharing the magic of Flagg Mountain, where he has been the caretaker for the past three years. With more than two decades and 50,000 miles of hiking experience behind him, will this really be his last last hike?

TRASHED

Landfills are an out-of-sight, out-of-mind part of everyday life in America, but in Alabama, they have long been a case for noxious odors, air and water pollution, and a lax regulatory environment that leaves communities vulnerable to environmental and health hazards. In the aftermath of a 2022 landfill fire near Birmingham that raged for months, suffocating multiple counties in smoke and odor, nearby residents demanded answers. They questioned how this was allowed to happen, why this company was not held accountable for years of violations, and what could be done to demand more from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. This film holds ADEM’s feet to the fire, as non-profit organizations like Cahaba Riverkeeper, Gasp and Friends of Pinchgut Creek lead the charge to protect the water and air for nearby residents.

WHEREVER YOU GO, THERE YOU ARE

Director Lily Ahree Siegel goes on a playfully sardonic escapade as she ventures beyond city limits – and air conditioning – into the Sipsey Wilderness in Northwest Alabama. It is her home state, after all; a land she once passed, but never knew. Will meeting others who are in tune with the spell this area cast help reconcile that Wilderness is for her too?

A FISHER’S RIGHT TO KNOW

Fishers throughout East Alabama depend on the mighty Coosa River for food, recreation and a family pastime that goes back generations. But do fishermen and women — and their families — have a right to know which fish are safe to consume? Not currently in Alabama, the River State. Coosa Riverkeeper and other advocates are working to give fishers across the entire state that right.

INTO THE BLACK

Many of the ecosystems in Alabama and throughout the southeast evolved with fire. Human ignited “prescribed fire”, also known as controlled burns, are an essential technique to mimic this natural process to maintain and restore critical habitats. With an ever growing population and extensive efforts to restore large areas of native habitats such as longleaf pine, partnerships are critical to provide the capacity necessary to implement fire on the scale needed to accomplish these objectives.

FROM THE MOUNTAINS TO THE COAST: TURTLES OF ALABAMA

Alabama is a global hotspot for turtle diversity and the perfect playground for turtle scientists. The variety of microhabitats traversing the state create conditions for turtle diversity unmatched anywhere else on the planet. This film explores the “glamorous life of turtles” in Alabama — from the dramatic alligator snapping turtle to the elusive and almost extinct flattened musk turtle — and the special people who spend their time protecting this critical species.

Special thank you to the special people who make Southern Exposure happen!

Dell Brooke | Michele Forman

Vickey Wheeler 

Matthew J Grcic | Jess Lingle | David Shaddix

Scot Duncan | Nelson Brooke | Charles Scribner 

Bob McKenna | Clubhouse on Highland

Alabama State Council on the Arts

& Alabama Rivers Alliance’s 

partner organizations