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For Sale Mar 30, 2026 at 8:52 PM

Hi /r/movies. We're Suzannah Herbert (director) & Darcy McKinnon (producer) of NATCHEZ, the award-winning documentary that explores the brutal history and modern sanitization of Natchez, Mississippi. Ask us anything!

Hi r/movies! This is director Suzannah Herbert and producer Darcy McKinnon, creators of the documentary NATCHEZ. NATCHEZ won Best Documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2025, and went on to win dozens of awards at major festivals before a theatrical release from Oscilloscope. We've had such an amazing journey sharing the film with sold out crowds across the country. Starting today, the film will be available to rent at home on your favorite digital VOD platforms like Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video. 

We're here to answer your questions.

**Synopsis:** 

After generations of showcasing its antebellum homes and hoop-skirted docents, Natchez, Mississippi, is now reckoning with a romanticized past, an uncertain future and the debt it owes to the descendants of slavery. A cinematic portrait of a tourist town at a crossroads, NATCHEZ follows an array of historic homeowners, activists and tour guides as they tell their versions of the past, and clash over who gets to tell America’s story.

Here's the trailer: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRGfxjgoa9Y](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRGfxjgoa9Y)

And the website with theater listings and VOD links: [natchezfilm.com](http://natchezfilm.com)

Ask us anything! Back tomorrow Tuesday 3/31 at 1 PM ET to answer questions.

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79 Comments

BunyipPouch Mar 30, 2026 +1

This AMA has been verified and approved by the mods. Suzannah and Darcy will be back tomorrow Tuesday 3/31 at 1 PM ET to answer questions. Please feel free to ask away in the meantime :)

stehcurryboi Mar 30, 2026 +7

How did you feel about “Sinners”, the attention it’s received and the way Ryan Coogler delved into similar themes and turned them into a gorgeous action/horror blockbuster? Did you find the movie did its theme justice and do you think movies like that (in particular larger blockbusters or critical nomination darlings that receive a lot of attention) are helpful or hurtful in bringing attention to the type of rich, but tragic history you explore in the documentary? Is there anything in the movie you wish he would have clarified or shined a light on that you do in your documentary? Is there any fictional film that explores that period of southern American history you thought did so wonderfully? As well as any on the flip side, that were just outright wrong factually to the point of being somewhat offensive? Or even one that’s non-fictional?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +6

Suzannah: I LOVED Sinners and think it deserves all the attention it has received. I'm honored you would put Natchez in conversation with it. I feel Sinners brought about incredible dialogue and a unique, fresh way into exploring history, the South, white extraction from Black culture, the beauty and joy of Southern Blackness, and also the racism and violence that still plagues this country then and today. I think the huge numbers in the box office and the critical acclaim shows how how hungry Americans are for films that challenge and entertain and are SINGULAR in vision and approach.

stehcurryboi Mar 31, 2026 +2

Wow, thank you thank you thank you 🙏🏻 for taking the time to thoughtfully respond beautifully in such intricate detail. I, myself, couldn’t have said any of that better if I tried. Amazing answer & I’m eager to check out the recommendations I’m not familiar with! Thanks again & best of luck to the two of you and everyone else involved in the making of your documentary. I’ll be watching in the wings always for any future projects! You got a new, lifelong, and faithful fan right here 🙂

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

aww thank you so much!! means a lot

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

Suzannah: I'm really going to think on the fictional film question and send you a list. I think that having so few come to mind is part of the problem and also reason why Sinners and Natchez are resonating with audiences. As for documentaries, Hale County This Morning This Evening, Two Towns of Jasper, Sud, Time, Vernon FL, Seeds, The Order of Myths, Paradise Lost are films about the South that really speak to me.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +4

This is Darcy - I loved Sinners for a variety of reasons - I got to see it down here in New Orleans with a packed house, and it was such a joyous cinema going experience, that we don't get much anymore. I loved both the genre film nature of it (and the inherent silliness / jumpscares) as well as the visual metaphors and lushness. And I thought the way it connected the experiences of Black people in the South and other cultures was done beautifully (if not exactly subtle-ly). I think many Southerners believe that the only way forward is to ignore the pain of the past - but our traditions of music, art and literature, and their popularity, have shown deep abiding interest in this issue and history. And it benefits specific groups of people to just 'move on' without any comprehensive accountability for our shared traumatic past. As for other great Southern films, I would say like most eras and issues, there are tons of different explorations and no one film, song, book or literature can encompass them all. I love David Gordon Green's *George Washington,* Danny McBride's shows especially *The Righteous Gemstones*, *Eve's Bayou,* *Daughters of the Dust,* *The Florida Project,* *Ruby in Paradise,* the TV Show *Atlanta.* So many! And there are TONS of great documentaries. Highly recommend REEL SOUTH, a PBS strand that focuses on documentaries about the South.

majinspy Mar 31, 2026 +3

Good day! I'm a Natchezian and was lucky enough to get to that 1st screening in Natchez. My wife mentioned she was frustrated at the lack of young people (or...even many middle-aged people) in the movie. I told her anybody under 60 would likely refuse to be on it. They would have the sufficient combination of cultural awareness and the desire to not be pilloried and/or fired that would result in them saying nothing. Did you find that to be an issue when making your film? Secondly, do you have (or wish to share) your own personal opinions about how history should be interpreted here? I struggle myself. On one hand, I absolutely abhor our painful history. On the other, I'd rather not EVERY beautiful building we have be "Dachau 001 which is down the road from Dachau 002." Lastly, how do you feel about reviews that seem to be fairly harsh towards certain dress-wearing people in the film? E.g. [https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/14/documentary-natchez-mississippi-plantation-tours](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/14/documentary-natchez-mississippi-plantation-tours) Did you see foresee that type of reaction? Do you feel that she, for lack of a better term, "had it coming" like Garner absolutely did? Do you think she expected or cared about such a reaction? I have a similar, but less strong, feeling towards the woman in the garden club meeting who is unaware her ideas are...considered less than compelling and is later mocked in a humorous scene. I've said stupid things in my life - luckily, no one yet caught me saying them in a nationally celebrated and award-winning documentary. Frankly, while I did really like the movie, if I had to give advice to any fellow white southerner when encountering someone who said, "I'm with a documentary team and we're here to help," I'd tell them to run for the hills. :P

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +4

This is Darcy - Thank you so much for coming to our screening. The issue about the age of our main participants is a great thing to notice. We did film with Jarita Frazier-King and Joe Smith, who are younger folks working on uplifting Black histories in Natchez - they're doing great work, but we had a real challenge making the film 86 minutes (our required deliverable!) and we wanted to paint portraits of characters who were taking on the same slice of history, as the film is as much about *how we talk about history, and how we do history,* as about Natchez itself. To your second question, I appreciate the nuance. I don't think that any one in Natchez, or myself, is asking folks to make every single private home into a slavery museum. I think what most people want is an honesty about the economic, political and human realities that led to such an accumulation of wealth in Natchez - the homes are the physical manifestation of that wealth. So it's the difference between using the word "servant" and "slave" in tours - highlighting the stories of some of the people who were enslaved on those sites, and acknowledging the complications inherent in the chattel slavery system. And in the film, we do showcase some of the people who are doing that work. I would point you also to homes like Holly Hedges, where the owners are doing some deep scholarship into the people who were enslaved by the family that owned HH, and including that in the tour. I don't think it always has to be a binary.

majinspy Mar 31, 2026 +3

My first place here was the garage apartment at Holly Hedges - how's that for a coincidence! I had heard some people bought it and I reached out on their website. However, I don't think my historical contribution of "a retired funeral director from New York bought it to live alone save his ancient bulldog, Beauford," is particularly compelling. Ah well, I'm sure I've taken too much of your time. Thank you for the thoughtful response, as well as the thoughtful film. I look forward to it being on streaming (which simply has to happen) where it can garner the wider audience that it deserves.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

Suzannah: I'm sure they would love to give you a tour of HH and welcome any engagement! Thanks for your thoughtful questions an interest. The film is now available to stream!! on apple, amazon, google, youtube :)

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

[https://www.natchezfilm.com/#watch](https://www.natchezfilm.com/#watch)

OhCrapItsAndrew Mar 31, 2026 +3

The film was shot throughout the fall of 2022 through the summer of 2024. Months later, a certain president was re-elected who, let's just say, does not care much for the initiatives and attempts at racial consciousness that we see in the film. I’m curious how things have evolved since then (it seems ripe for a follow-up!)

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +3

Thanks - this is Darcy - as of now, the Forks in the Road site is still operating and in the process of acquiring additional land to expand the footprint of the site. The NPS rangers were furloughed during the shutdown last year, but are continuing to do their work at FOTR, Melrose and the other NPS sites.

MurdockMcQueen Mar 31, 2026 +3

Did you have connections to Mississippi before making this film? Are you interested in telling more southern stories through film?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +3

I'm from Memphis, which is very close to MS so I've spend a lot of time there. We have many friends in the Delta and they all told me to go to Natchez when I explained the idea behind the film. I am interested in telling more southern stories through film. I think there is a lack of southern representation in film that is made by southerners who produce work that speaks to people in a way that feels raw and authentic. I love the South and when you love something you want it to be better.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +3

This is Darcy - I'm a lifelong southerner, and based in New Orleans - all the projects I produce are rooted in the American South

Witty-Athlete9524 Mar 30, 2026 +13

The 'modern sanitization' of history is such a fascinating and difficult topic. During filming, did you find that most residents were aware they were romanticizing a specific version of the past, or was there a genuine sense of 'this is just our tradition' that made it hard to break through? Thanks for doing this!

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Suzannah: I took dozens and dozens of tours and I think it runs the spectrum. Some people were very well aware that they were sticking to a narrow version of history that supported their world view. Some were doing it the way their mothers and grandmothers taught them, while others were actively working through how to talk about slavery in their antebellum homes. I think for a lot of people there is a cognitive dissonance at work that allows people to relish in the beauty and romanticism while not having to think of the harm it can cause people coming from different lived experiences and history.

happyhobgoblin Mar 30, 2026 +3

Did any of the people/residents you interacted with automatically assume you shared their opinion or bias based on your appearance alone?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +3

Yes I think many people saw themselves in me and assumed that I shared many of their beliefs. There's a cone of whiteness that has been protected and maintained for centuries. It's so hard to break down bc it's engrained in every social interaction, institution, and law. We are constantly swimming in it.

PaulLeac Mar 30, 2026 +3

Loved the documentary! How did you manage to catch so many candid moments? Do you have a process of helping the subjects forget the camera?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

Suzannah: Thanks! We spent a lot of time in Natchez without the camera. It was important for me to get to know our main participants before shoving a camera in their face. And even when we did start filming, we would put the camera down to just hang and get to know people without the camera in between us. When we were filming, we were mostly there just capturing what was unfolding. We would do sit down interviews with people to get context, but the vast majority of our time was spent witnessing and capturing the tours and ways in which history is lived today.

_diaboromon Mar 30, 2026 +2

Have you read The Deepest South of All by Richard Grant? What do you think he adds or misses that your film covers well.

majinspy Mar 31, 2026 +3

I'm from Natchez and was lucky enough to meet Grant at a party hosted by his key confidant in the book. Her reputations was, frankly, quite damaged here and that's sad. She's a wonderful and supremely talented woman. Grant is great though I am sad he basically said, "Yeah I'm leaving my adopted home - the schools here suck and I've gotten two books out of it. Off to the southwest!" Oof. In any case, the book was a heck of a read being down here and it very much captured the essence of my adopted town.

_diaboromon Mar 31, 2026 +1

That is sad to hear but not that surprising.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +3

Yes, we read the book. I think Grant really focuses on the story of Ibrahima the enslaved prince, weaving it through with some conversations and cultural commentary (Capote-style) to paint a portrait of the town. We were more specifically interested in the ways in which the townspeople and the people who make a living off of tourism in Natchez perceive their own role and public performance of history.

Mindless_Turnover976 Mar 30, 2026 +8

Did you experience any pushback while making this documentary, considering its depicting a more problematic side of a tourist town?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Suzannah: It felt like everyone in town wanted to share their tours with us. We had to say no to people because there just wasn't enough time in the day to film with everyone. People knew we were filming with all types of tours and perspectives on history.

Mindless_Turnover976 Mar 31, 2026 +2

Interesting. Thank you

Same-Manufacturer773 Mar 31, 2026 +2

I am looking forward to watching! We just drove south through Georgia. We saw lots of plantation places. Do y’all think this type of “culture” will disappear with the end years of baby boomers?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

Suzannah: Thanks for your interest in watching! The tourism around the fantasy is waning as the baby boomers are aging, but the culture around the lost cause mythologies runs deep in not just Natchez, not just the South, but in our country. It is now Pilgrimage in Natchez and I saw this week dozens of little girls dressed in hoop skirts dancing outside of an antebellum museum home. At the same time there are people working hard to tell a more comprehensive history of place, some even in antebellum homes (like we show in the film Melrose and Elms Court). Holly Hedges now seems to be leading the way in really embracing and centering the stories of the enslaved in their home.

Same-Manufacturer773 Mar 31, 2026 +1

Thank you so much for shining a light on these topics! Lost cause mythologies indeed.

BunyipPouch Mar 30, 2026 +2

Hi Suzannah and Darcy. Thanks for joining us :) What was the experience like premiering at Tribeca? Any cool moments/highlights from that?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

Suzannah: Aw it was such a special experience because some of our main participants came up from Natchez! We had Rev, Debbie, and Tracy there on both opening nights and for the Q&As. It was electric in the room and I've heard from many people it was an unforgettable experience and honor to hear from three of stars right after experiencing the film! I've never forget the energy in the room and the silence listening to Rev speak so beautifully afterwards.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Darcy: Tribeca is big and busy as a festival - the most exciting part was our participants getting to attend the premiere in the Big Apple - it was Rev's (one of our main participant) first time in NYC, so he and his wife went to the Apollo, got a chopped cheese, went to Chinatown. From our experience, that plus the red carpet with all our Mississippians were peak. Also, a couple of our participants wanted to wait until the premiere to watch the movie for the first time - that was stressful! Overall we had a really great experience with sold-out screenings.

vibe_tribe_99 Mar 31, 2026 +2

Apologies if this has already been asked, but what led you to being interested in a documentary about Natchez? How did Natchez end up on your radar? I loved the movie and can’t wait to watch it again. Also shoutout from Memphis.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

Suzannah: I am from Memphis but had never been to Natchez until 2019. I first became interested in how we remember our past in this country when I was invited to a wedding on a plantation. When I went on a road trip from Memphis through MS down to Louisiana all my friends in the Delta told me I must go to Natchez. You can read more here.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

[https://www.documentary.org/online-feature/exploration-whiteness-and-flattering-illusions-history-suzannah-herbert-her-tribeca](https://www.documentary.org/online-feature/exploration-whiteness-and-flattering-illusions-history-suzannah-herbert-her-tribeca)

vibe_tribe_99 Mar 31, 2026 +1

Awesome. Thanks for taking the time to respond. Oddly enough I watched Robert Altman’s Nashville the same weekend I watched Natchez. Weird coincidence.

BentleyTock Mar 31, 2026 +2

Are y’all screening any film festivals in Mississippi or in Memphis?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

[https://www.mshumanities.org/program/screenings/](https://www.mshumanities.org/program/screenings/)

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

check out all our upcoming screenings in Mississippi in partnerships with communities and the MSHC. TY!

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +2

We screened at the Bay St. Louis Film Festival in MS, and played at the Malco and Crosstown in Memphis last month. We are wrapping up our theatrical tour with a group of screenings in partnership with Mississippi Humanities mid-April, and then the film will be available for rent starting today!

Mofiremofire Mar 30, 2026 +3

How many plantation owners did you speak with about filming vs how many allowed you to film? What surprised you about them?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Suz: There are no plantations in Natchez :) Natchez was were the plantation owners/enslavers would show off their wealth, socialize, do business, and usually have their families. Enslaved people were certainty forced to built and maintain the houses and lifestyles in Natchez. The plantations were nearby along the MS river in Louisiana and MS. Anyway, everyone I talked to (except one home) was open to being filmed while on tour. I was surprised daily in ways that challenged my preconceived ideas about place and people and in ways that were beautiful, human, and disturbing. It ran the gamut. Aside from what is in the film, some examples that come to mind are when I filmed a white woman in her 80s who is working hard to tell the story of the enslaved in an antebellum home and she does it in a matter a fact, often entertaining way. I also filmed with a person whose house feels like a shrine to the Third Reich and Confederacy. There just wasn't time to include everyone!

Fragrant-Leg-9369 Mar 30, 2026 +3

what's going to be next for you, any projects do you have in mind?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Suzannah and I are in development on a new project, but it's early stages. Both of us make films in and about the South, so I have a couple more in production - a film about a jazz singer in New Orleans, a film about a photojournalist in Alabama exploring her family's challenges, and a film about educational policy in Florida, to name a few!

goldencat65 Mar 30, 2026 +3

When is the upcoming screening in Jackson? I tried to buy tickets from the site but nothing pulled up.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

It's a FREE screening so no need to get tickets. It's happening on Sunday 4/12 @ 2pm at Two Mississippi Museums. link below thanks for coming!

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

[https://www.mdah.ms.gov/event/sunday-screening-natchez](https://www.mdah.ms.gov/event/sunday-screening-natchez)

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Hi it's Darcy - we will be at the Two Mississippi Museums on April 12 - here's more info on the Mississippi Humanities Screening series : [https://www.mshumanities.org/program/screenings/](https://www.mshumanities.org/program/screenings/)

Somedaysyoujustsmoke Mar 30, 2026 +3

No questions, jjst dropping by to saw I saw the film in Chicago a few weeks ago and it was incredible. Being from south Mississippi, it was excellent to see this perspective!

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Thanks so much!

DavidPinkFilms Mar 31, 2026 +2

Why do you think Southern tradition is romanticized as being generous and open? (Southern Hospitality)

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

I mean because Southerners are, as a rule, incredibly friendly, chatty and sociable. Folks are really nice in Natchez, and it's easy to make friends and find community. It's part of what makes the cognitive dissonance, and the unspoken resentments, so interesting.

Crazy_Jackfruit2705 Mar 30, 2026 +2

What's your favorite documentary

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Suzannah: I can't pick one! Some that influenced Natchez though: The Act of Killing, Hale County This Morning This Evening, Two Towns of Jasper, Sud, Vernon FL, The Order of Myths, The Cruise, Les Blank documentaries! The Act of Killing may be my favorite documentary :)

Crazy_Jackfruit2705 Mar 31, 2026 +1

ill check it out thanks!

EditBayFive Mar 31, 2026 +2

I used to go to SMITE camp (Summer Missionary Institute of Training and Evangelism) in Natchez, MS. What a nightmare of a town.

BellaFrequency Mar 31, 2026 +1

Like “Smite thee to hell,” and that was the acronym they chose? Could have changed out Training for Leadership and at least given us a SMILE.

EditBayFive Mar 31, 2026 +2

They were bitter, awful people. I doubt they've ever smiled before. I didn't make it the whole week. Got sent home for being "a problem".

BellaFrequency Mar 31, 2026 +1

You were probably the only actual godly person there.

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

what a strange name for a missionary program!

EditBayFive Mar 31, 2026 +1

Strange doesn't even begin to describe these guys. (Look up Independent Fundamental Baptist - it's a mess.)

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

fascinating - I have family members in (and some are now out of) the quiverfull movement, so I'm always interested in hearing about splinter groups of american christianity

misstique37 Mar 30, 2026 +2

When will you all be screening the doc in Central Mississippi/JXN area?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

[https://www.mshumanities.org/program/screenings/](https://www.mshumanities.org/program/screenings/)

Ill_Power_7370 Mar 31, 2026 +2

Did you make this film as documentarians or as “activist filmmakers” with a preconceived point of view to “document”?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

We don't identify as 'activist filmmakers' - we are both from the South, and familiar with house tours, antebellum history and Southern hospitality from our own lived experience. We were interested in the how and why of a small Southern town which chooses to rely on a very narrow slice of its own history to sell tickets to tours - and how the town, its residents and tourists feel about that.

OkObjective7494 Mar 30, 2026 +1

this sounds really interesting, especially with the way it tackles such a complex topic. what was the biggest challenge you faced while making this doc?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

We filmed for 50 days in a row! That was intense, and required a lot of financing, energy and intention to cover the entirety of one pilgrimage season.

thebestslots Mar 31, 2026 +1

i've been thinking about the concept of 'house edge' in a different contexxt - documemtary filmmaking. what's the rtp on a film's budget, i wonder? do filmmakers aim for a certain 'volatility' in their storytelling to keep audiences engaged?

NatchezAMA Mar 31, 2026 +1

Can you clarify? "house edge" and RTP?

DLEAL20 Apr 1, 2026 +2

I feel like the owners of Holly Hedges are making efforts to tell the complete story of life in these antebellum homes. However, Tammy’s statement during the tour of the enslaved peoples quarters stating something along the lines of “there was affection between the owners and the enslaved but the enslaved weren’t free,” shocked me. Considering that we know the enslaved females were raped frequently I don’t think we should make statements about affection

DLEAL20 Apr 1, 2026 +1

Please let me know if you were bothered by her statement

TemporarySun1929 Mar 30, 2026 +2

sounds like an intense and necessary exploration of history. what was the biggest challenge you faced while making the documentary?

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Hi /r/movies. We're Suzannah Herbert (director) & Darcy McKinnon (producer) of NATCHEZ, the award-winning documentary that explores the brutal history and modern sanitization of Natchez, Mississippi. Ask us anything!

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