Natchez ready to shine on silver screen

Published 12:05 am Sunday, July 20, 2014

Natchez goes to New York City tomorrow night, or at least glimpses of the city will.

Monday at the world famous Apollo Theater, Natchez may not be on the marquee, but it will be all over the silver screen.

Mississippi native and Churchill resident Tate Taylor brings the story of the Godfather of Soul to the big screen in the debut of “Get On Up,” which was principally filmed in the Natchez area, with portions filmed in Jackson.

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Dozens of local residents appeared as extras in the film.

The high number of local faces expected to appear in the film, along with a myriad of scenes filmed with recognizable Natchez locales as the backdrop are certain to mean the film will be a big hit locally.

“Get On Up” was the first large-scale production to come to Natchez is many, many years.

Hopefully, the film will be a hit and Natchez will reap the rewards of being known as the place where the film was created.

The film crew’s impact on the local economy was felt during filming by many, many businesses, and we expect additional impact may come after the movie is released in August.

Perhaps the best thing that could come out of the film, however, would be that Natchez might become known for being an excellent place for large-scale film production.

It’s an excellent, environmentally clean business, one our area could certainly use more of in the coming days, weeks and months.