The Jeffersonian: “Take 3” – The Film Industry in Southern Oregon

The Jeffersonian is a magazine-style television program airing on SOPTV that captures the multi-faceted blend of people, places and activities that comprise the unique vibe of life in the Northern Siskiyou Mountains and Rogue River Valley of Oregon and California.  The Jeffersonian’s student-focused collaboration among SOPTV, Southern Oregon University, and the Southern Oregon Digital Media Center.

There is a rich cinematic history in the State of Jefferson (Southern Oregon and Northern California counties – Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson Josephine, Klamath, Del Norte, Siskiyou, Modoc, Humbolt, Trinity, and Shasta) Check out a glimpse of 100 years of filmmaking in the area from Hollywood blockbusters to locally produced independent film.

Southern Oregon Film Festivals

The Ashland Independent Film Festival, Ashland, OR

The Ashland independent film festival is five days of the highest quality independent film in historic Ashland.   The Washington Post called Ashland  “a dream you’ll never want to leave.”  Every Spring, Southern Oregon is buzzing with the excitement of the AIFF.  Over 7000 film lovers gather at the historic art-deco Varsity Theatre in downtown Ashland to watch over 80 films in five days. Filmmakers of the documentaries, features and shorts from around the world come to engage with the audience after each screening and at the festival’s Opening Night Bash and Award Celebration parties with local wine, beer and gourmet food. Special guests have included Helen Hunt, Albert Maysles, Bruce Campbell and more. The film festival is one of the reasons Ashland is included in the popular travel guide A Thousand Places to See Before You Die

The Oregonian newspaper’s Shawn Levy, said the AIFF “offers movie lovers that same sense of being in a magical place…Southern Oregon doesn’t have anything else like it — nor, in fact, do most places on Earth.”

Next Festival is April 9-13, 2015

The Siskiyou Film Festival, Grants Pass, OR

Siskiyou Film Fest is a production of Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center. The festival focuses on the the activism, science and history of the environmental movement and features award winning films about people creating real world solutions to today’s environmental challenges on a local, regional and global scale. Whenever possible featured films produced in or about Oregon or the Klamath-Siskiyou region.  The 2015 Siskiyou FilmFest will be held on January 30 and 31

A Sample of the Movies Made in Southern Oregon

The Great Northfield Minnesota Train Raid (1972) Starring Cliff Robertson, Robert Duvall, Luke Askew .  In this classic western the gangs of Jesse James and Cole Younger join forces for a bungled robbery of the bank in Northfield, MN.  BUT>>>>> it was filmed in the town of Jacksonville, OR  which is a national historic landmark complete with brick streets and original buildings from the 1851 gold rush in Southern Oregon.

Rooster Cogburn (1975) Western starring John Wayne and Katherine Hepburn.   John Wayne’s ranch featured in the film is now the Southern Oregon University Siskiyou Field Institute in Selma, OR.

The River Wild (1994) A suspense thriller starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon filmed in part on the Rogue River.

Calvin Marshall (2009) This film by the local film company Joma Films, is about a college student is determined to become a Major League Baseball star, but finds his true calling instead. Starring Alex Frost, Noah Scott, Abbey Merow |

Redwood Highway (2013) This dramatic film was written by local Gary Lundgren and produced by Joma Films.  Retired and bored Marie decides to journey 80 miles on foot from the Rogue Valley to the coast of Oregon to revisit the ocean of her past for the first time in 45 years.  Starring Shirley Knight, Tom Skerritt, Danforth Comins |

Courage of Two (2014) This is a deeply touching film.  When two six year old boys are in the hospital together fighting for their lives, courage, and friendship are found.  The Courage of Two is in post production now and has a crowd funded kickstarter page going to raise money to finish the editing and do promotions.  Check out the kickstarter campaign at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1500620446/courage-of-two-post-production?ref=home_location

Visit Southern Oregon Film and Television (SOFaT) for a comprehensive list of film and television from Southern Oregon.