Short film “The Burial” shot in Lansing area last year will have its premiere screening back where it started June 20


“The Burial” filmed in Lansing will return for its premiere June 20 ... The short film “The Burial” was filmed at several locations in the Lansing area last fall, including this and other scenes at the Safehouse Saloon on Main Street in Lansing. Film director Jack Meggers, son of Lansing resident Larry Meggers, will return to Lansing Thursday, June 20 to premiere the film at a “red carpet” event taking place at TJ Hunter’s Banquet Hall, also located on Main Street in Lansing. Photo by Paul Wach.

A dream for Iowa native filmmaker Jack Meggers will come to full reality at the very location where its creation began - Lansing, IA.

A Mason City native and 2017-2018 Iowa Arts Council Artist Fellow, Meggers will be hosting the premiere screening of his short film, “The Burial”, at TJ Hunter’s Banquet Hall in Lansing Thursday, June 20. The 7 p.m. screening will also be hosted by Allamakee County Economic Development and Tourism and will begin with a “red carpet” event, with the screening to begin at 7:30 p.m. and a Q&A session at approximately 8 p.m.

Meggers said there will be a red carpet and a banner set up for movie premiere-style photo opportunities. Popcorn and candy will be available, and the screening of the film is free of any admission charge. Parents of young children are cautioned that  there is some adult language in the film.

Last August, Meggers completed principal photography for his short film produced in and around Lansing. Since filming was completed, Meggers has been working on the editing and finishing of his film and is excited to debut it for many of the people that helped in its creation.

“Films take a long time to complete; often times they take longer than you want them to,” Meggers said. “In the ten months since we shot the film, I’ve had to work on finishing the film during my off hours, making it take longer than I had hoped. I’ve done all of the editing myself, with help in sound mixing from my friend and collaborator, Kristian Day. But that’s the way it goes sometimes when you’re making ultra-low budget films. I’m very happy with how the film is turning out. The footage of Lansing and the river is some of the most beautiful I’ve ever had the privilege to shoot.”

Following the showing of the nearly half hour film, Meggers and his lead actress in the film, Nokomis Leaman-Logsdon of New York City, will participate in the Q&A session for those in attendance.

The film follows Abby, a young woman of Native American and Caucasian descent played by Leaman-Logsdon, as she returns to her childhood home in northeast Iowa. After receiving word that her estranged father has passed away, she returns to settle her father’s affairs, only to fall in with some childhood friends and ignore her responsibilities. The group makes a startling discovery in the woods and must deal with the consequences of their poor decisions.

This premiere is the first of two planned screenings of the film, the second taking place in Des Moines June 22 at the State of Iowa Historical Museum auditorium at 4:30 p.m.

“The completion of this short film is a dream come true,” Meggers shared. “I am eternally grateful to all those that helped me along the way, especially those in Lansing and Allamakee County.”