There is an endearing quality to this doc, but also an underlying melancholy all the way through. Half way through I found my self wanting to take a road trip down to this mall just to purchase things from the people showcased. He thinks moving out into a more-trafficked area will allow his business to thriveit appears that he's right (as of this month, it seems that he's still open in his new location). The mall is largely vacant today and mostly abandoned, yet amazingly, was still open for foot traffic as of 2018. Visually, at times "Jasper Mall" resembles an indie feature or Netflix limited series. Jasper Mall opened in August 1981. is jasper mall in alabama still open. I didnt know how there were regulars. So what does the future hold for malls and shopping centers, especially those that are currently vacant (assuming theyre not already demolished and the property redeveloped)? Seeing the Jasper Mall for the first time: I was driving back from Nashville one day and saw that the Jasper Mall was right there and just pulled off and walked around for a little while and was immediately taken by how it looked. Jasper Mall Branch | Regions Bank in Jasper, AL | Regions Stay up to date on new open call deadlines, film releases, filmmaker interviews,career and film fundingopportunities, and thoughtful words on the South. If I live to be in my 80s, I'm probably going to become that old dude telling corny jokes at the mall, except I'll be reciting old memes from the 2010s. Click Here to Book Direct. If there wasnt, then we would sometimes just sit in the food court with our gear and just wait for stuff to happen, which you can imagine looked kind of strange to have two people with professional camera gear just sitting in the middle of mall [at] 8 p.m. on a Tuesday, but we did it. It currently is approximately 350,000 square feet (33,000m2) in size,[3] and includes two anchors and about 10 smaller stores. Then when we spent time in the mall and met the people inside, we felt pretty confident that this would be our next project. The mall does love to host Jungle Safaris events even after they been cited numerous times by the USDA. After filming for a year at the malls patrons, tenants, and employees, the store closed its doors permanently on July 31, 2020. Currently there is one anchor store, Belk, and about ten smaller stores. As his story relates to what's going on with the mall. in Jasper, Alabama, but it feels like a signature southern small town.Regulars frequent the largely empty space like they're attending church. Piccadilly Cafeteria in Alameda Mall was a big one for me. Thomason: We're both Houston natives and I moved to Birmingham when I met my wife at (Birmingham's) Sidewalk Film Festival. The movie theater in particular was where all the major first-run movies played; I saw all the big blockbusters of the era there, like the original Star Wars movies, Superman (the Christopher Reeves version) Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T. But even by the mid-80s, the mall was getting long in the tooth. Where the hell is a "FYE" or "Victoria Secret's" store now those chains are something everyone can relate to. In addition to sharing director and producer tasks, Bradford was the film's editor and Whitcomb cinematographer. Later we opened a store in the Jasper Mall in 1982. I turned it on depressed, after trying another "failed development" documentary too impressed with its own travelogue production values. It was respectful and in good taste. MORE: In the 90s Toys R Us was a retail powerhouse then the internet happened. See all. Now theres real plants inside of it. Watch on PBS. Lowest Rate Guarantee! is jasper mall in alabama still open - coachchic.com You can tell by the look of the shopping center. https://www.youtube.com/deadmallwalking?sub_confirmation=1Intro: Jingle Punks All This Down Time (pitched down)Music: Kevin MacLeod Lobby Time (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Corp Area 7 Recreational Facilities Corp PlazaCourtesy of . Jasper Mall. Leaves you thinking about your mall days! Jasper Mall is still surviving after malls started dying: Are malls Upon this event, the mall effectively has two anchor stores, Belk Department Store and Dunham's Sports. The answer is yes! ago That first photo brought me back in time to the mid 80's. That was exactly what malls looked like when I was a tiny, new person. Required fields are marked *. [7], Ethan Brehm of Spoiler Magazine named it the best film of the year. [2], Third anchor Belk opened an approximately 60,000-square-foot (5,600m2) store in March 2002. Hours including holiday hours and Black Friday information. Co-directors Bradford Thomason and Brett Whitcomb spent a year shooting the film. "[3], The film also follows the day-to-day operations of the remaining 20 or so store owners with a focus on the slowdown of customers. Such examples are the amazing analogically-like footage where mostly elderly customers order funeral flowers, play dominos in an empty food court, sing contradicting gospel music and unable to connect with modern technology. JASPER - Another store has permanently closed its doors in the Jasper Mall. What keeps you inspired to make work in Alabama and in Birmingham? It is about a very sad mall in Alabama that has been crumbling over the years and now has very few stores. This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. Subtitled, A year in the life of a dying shopping mall, the doc Jasper Mall, is now streaming on video on demand platforms. This film nailed this phenomenon.& man I'd hire that security man.what a good dependable worker! Race relations doesn't really connect with the overall mall narrative at all. Slamdance 2020: JASPER MALL Review | Film Pulse You can rate this movie to give feedback. Documentaries like "Jasper Mall" are why I initially started getting into watching docs. It takes on a sort of community center vibe, I think. Jasper Mall - store list, hours, (location: Jasper, Alabama) | Malls in A "10" When, in Real-Time, You Know You'll Remember It. Instead of expanding those key moments a little more to fit the overall narrative of the shopping center creeping closer to its own demise. All rights reserved (About Us). There are great stories here. The mall is viewed as being notorious passe than modern. There is something simple and poetic about the plight of middle class America, and this puts it into portrait form. Season 6 Episode 607 55m 46s A dying shopping mall outside of Birmingham, Alabama, its patrons, and its tenants embody the diversity and tenderness of Americana culture in a changing South. The mall opened on August 8, 1981. And many local and independent shops have better selection of items than mall stores. By | March 10, 2023 | 0 . The 350,000-square foot mall was designed to hold about 35 or so stores. The cinematography and editing is very well done. A very nice and integer documentary about a dying mall and the people to whom this mall means something in their lives, in one way or another. The mall was the subject of a recent documentary film. Even so, I think it's worth watching to be reminded of how the other America, flyover America, may not be exactly what you think it is. I worked at a mall similar to the Jasper Mall that opened in 1985 in NH and like the JM was busy always and forget the weekends (read mall rats). Recommended Reviews Your trust is our top concern, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. The various causes of the mall's decline emerge throughout the documentary. Co-directors Bradford Thomason and Brett Whitcomb spent a year shooting the film. Frozen Yogurt Shop. Nevertheless, the music that went along with the film was well used. To order, give us a call & we will ship to you! I'll be the first to admit that, in some sense, you're not going to learn anything from this that you didn't already know. eastfield mall covid testing registration. Bradford: We'll lose that feeling of community that comes from shopping in an indoor space. ", It's well documented consumers have gravitated to online shopping in recent years and shopping malls are looking extinction in the eye. There is no security guy at the Jasper Mall. Monday: 10:00am-9:00pm Tuesday: 10:00am-9:00pm Wednesday: 10:00am-9:00pm Thursday: 10:00am-9:00pm Friday: 10:00am-9:00pm Saturday: 10:00am-9:00pm Sunday: 1:00pm-5:00pm Jasper Mall location, map Directions to Jasper Mall Store directory and map of Jasper Mall Open full size plan Added to that, the couple are not really employees nor persistent shoppers at the mall. . Twitter. . The roles had changed here and it's somewhat surreal. The mall offers a variety of stores and services, so theres something for everyone. Thomason: Some of the same ones Brett listed, plus "Marjoe," "American Movie," "F for Fake," "Crumb" and "Hands on a Hardbody.". We want people to see humans. Is that why you decided to make this film? Gruen imagined a mall residing in the heart of a communitys downtown business center, not exclusive to retailers, but also integrating residential housing, schools, museums and parks. 20 music stars who got their start as sidemen/sidewomen, How Muscle Shoals music Meccas are surviving and reopening, How local libraries turned the page during a pandemic, Black is Beautiful for these Huntsville breweries, Alabama rappers timely Black Lives Matter music video. What will ever become of it? Jasper Mall takes you inside the titular mall in Alabama to witness the slow, monotonous process of its closing down. I remember watching Vernon, Florida for the first time and not being able to shake it for a while. While this was never uttered in the film. I would definitely recommend the Jasper Mall to anyone looking for a great shopping experience. Construction of malls boomed throughout the 60s and 70s, finally peaking around 1985. And stare at the Reebok Pumps I desperately wanted before school started again. That being said, goal achieved. Truth be hold; the filmmakers only gave the viewer a few glimpses that something was a bit off about the Jasper mall.