Photos by L.G. Patterson

What: True/False Film Fest
Where: Downtown Columbia
When: March 5-8
Website: truefalse.org

Are movie theaters actually dead? Signs in Columbia point to no.

Amid the spike in popularity of streaming services, lingering aftershocks from the pandemic, slashes to funding and, notably, a destructive office fire in 2023, it seemed like the future of Missouri’s most-celebrated film festival (and that of movie theaters as a whole) was uncertain.

Since its inception in 2004, the True/False Film Fest exists upon the idea of pushing possibilities. You might’ve noticed the slogan “nothing is impossible, impossible just takes longer” inscribed on the red walls at Ragtag Cinema. A documentary film festival drawing global crowds to a small mid Missouri city, while local theaters are feeling the heat from streaming conglomerates, seems like an impossibility.

But judging by the numbers, it’s evident that film culture is thriving in Columbia and True/False is continuing to climb for its 23rd consecutive celebration.

This year, the fest kicks off March 5, dressing downtown in its signature, colorful eccentricity for the weekend. Across seven screens and six venues, 35 feature films, two retrospective features and 25 new shorts will be shown (selected from over 1,400 submissions) tallying to a whopping 115 screenings in total.

Additionally, 10 live music showcases with featured artists and openers will rock downtown venues and bars. Just last year, True/False hit its highest attendance since before the pandemic — 31,099 pairs of eyes admired nationwide documentaries on our hometown screens. Less than half of the crowd was local; Ragtag Film Society reports over 50% of attendees travel for the fest.

This adds up; the Columbia Convention & Visitor’s Bureau estimated in 2018 that True/False rakes in an average $2 million for the city in tourism, food and beverage, and transportation.

How does such a large festival work for Columbia? And why?

Ragtag Film Society’s executive director Andrea Luque Káram says True/ False couldn’t exist anywhere else. Specifically, it’s the combination of small-town charm with a worldwide audience that draws documentary creators’ and film-lovers’ attention to Columbia.

“I think there’s a lot of magic here,” she says. “The community has embraced (True/False) in a way that it’s part of our local identity, but we stay in the global conversation because of the quality of our work. Filmmakers can come here and it feels homey; they come here and get to interact with the audience. It’s less of a sterile environment than other more corporate festivals.”

Luque Káram is currently in the throes of planning her first festival. Despite the learning curve, she says the work has been thrilling, thanks to those within and outside the organization taking on new roles. Namely, she credits Oscar-nominated filmmaker Yance Ford, who has temporarily taken on the title of True/False’s artistic director.

But it’s the community that keeps True/False’s heart beating. “The film industry is on a decline and a lot of people are staying at home instead of going to the movies … the pandemic drove that curve,” Luque Káram says. “We’ve been recovering from that and recovering from the fire, but every single time, the community has shown up and we don’t take that lightly.”

Despite theater attendance on a nationwide decline, Columbians are still showing up and filling seats. On the debate of whether the convenience of athome streaming outweighs the experience of visiting the movie theater, Luque Káram says it’s no contest.

Experiencing a film for the first time in a theater sparks more curiosity and builds more prominent memories. “I mean, that experience is never gonna compare, right?” she says.

With opportunities to meet the directors and writers, and panels following the festival’s programming, the immersive experience at True/ False is a stark contrast to the popular standard of tossing something on a streaming service, second screen in hand.

“It’s not your regular moviegoing experience,” Luque Káram says. It might be a world premiere. It might be a North American premiere. You might have an Oscarnominated filmmaker running the Q&A.”

You can immerse yourself in True/False by either purchasing tickets for individual shows or buying a pass. Tickets for individual shows run $14 for students and are otherwise $20. The passes range in price at truefalse.org, but include access to music showcases, films and afterparties.

As for the future of True/ False, Luque Káram says the crew at RagTag envisions the same festival, only bigger.

“I want (the festival) to lead the way in documentary films and their impact,” she says. “It’s a place of discovery and great ideas, and we’re really embracing that professional stage. We want to maintain our global attraction while still keeping a local identity.”

Despite the future seeming choppy or uncertain for the arts and cinema industry, True/False is here to stay. In fact, by the time the last projector has cooled and the streets of downtown have been swept after the March March parade, they’re already planning for 2027.