Birmingham filmmaker to be featured by Southern Foodways Alliance

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The city of Birmingham has a long history of successful Greek restaurant owners.

Birmingham filmmaker Jessica Chriesman has brought that culinary and cultural history to life in her new short documentary, “Philoxenia.”

Her film will premiere during the virtual 2021 Spring Symposium hosted by the Southern Foodways Alliance from March 13-14, according to a news release from the filmmaker.

The film features local favorites Ted’s Restaurant, Demetri’s BBQ, Johnny’s Restaurant, The Bright Star, The Fish Market and Gus’s Hot Dogs.

“Birmingham’s Greek immigrants have shaped the hospitality industry in our city and I’m proud to share this legacy through the Southern Foodways Alliance’s platform,” Chriesman said.

The film explores the synergy between the Greek notion of philoxenia (meaning, “friend of the stranger”) and Southern hospitality, she said.

Jon-Sesrie Goff, a multidisciplinary artist and award-winning documentarian, is guest curator of the symposium. 

The other featured filmmakers include Bahamian native Tamika Galanis; Paul "Paavo" Hanninen of New Orleans; Roni Henderson-Day of Columbia, South Carolina; Madeleine Hunt Ehrlich of New York City; Devon “Vonnie” Smith from North Carolina; and Colleen Thurston of Tulsa, Oklahoma. 

A Homewood native, Chriesman graduated from UAB in 2015 and has show her films at numerous festivals, including the Green Mountain Film Festival in Montpelier, Vermont; the ARTlightenment Art and Film Festival in Nashville, Tennessee; and George Lindsey UNA Film Festival in Florence.

In 2019, she was a finalist in Tribeca Film Institute's IF/Then Pitch Competition where she and a producing partner, Kayla Gladney, pitched a proposed film called “Bridge to Better,” the story of the Birmingham’s legendary African-American entrepreneur A.G. Gaston.

Traditionally hosted in Birmingham, this year’s Southern Foodways Alliance Symposium will be delivered to smart TVs and laptops via the Eventive platform, with opportunities to connect with presenters in Live Q&A sessions. 

Visit southernfoodways.org for tickets, priced at $75 each, and a full schedule.

For more information about Chriesman, go to jessicachriesman.com or to Instagram or Twitter @jctellsstories