Locally based director Jesse Edwards’ second feature film, The Wildman of Shaggy Creek, will have its red-carpet premiere at The Franklin Theatre on May 28.
Edwards, who lives in the Nippers Corner area of Brentwood, shot Wildman entirely in the Middle Tennessee area. The film, which is receiving a wide release this fall, was recently honored at the 2025 IndieFEST Film Awards.
We spoke with Edwards prior to the film's premiere about his career, the making of the movie and more.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Why did you decide to shoot Wildman locally?
My first movie [western The Stolen Valley] I did in Utah four years ago, and it was just really hard traveling. It's beautiful because you get the amazing landscapes and all of that, but for this one, the goal was to do it as close as possible and with as many people here as possible just so it could get done quickly. And all films end up going into re-shoots, so I wanted to be able to go back easily as well, and also do something with the local community. This was shot in Murfreesboro for eight days, one day in Columbia and one day in Franklin. There was one actor who came in from LA to help. But besides that, everybody else was local, including my friend and one of the stars [Franklin native] Allee-Sutton Hethcoat.
I love this area. I love the people here. ... I don't think you could ask for anything more in a film community. I'm really grateful to be able to have made this movie here, and I hope to make more here in the future.
The Wildman of Shaggy Creek
How did the premiere at The Franklin Theatre come about?
My last movie played there for the Nashville Film Festival. Since then, I’ve wanted to go back with my next film. I really love going there. The whole Main Street is very charming. The theatre itself is great. They've done a lot of work to renovate it and keep the the sound and the picture all just really modern and high quality. So, it's a great place to screen a film, and it's just such a fun, kind of homey atmosphere.
Can you tell us about the film's release?
Family Movie Events is who's taking it out, and they target theaters that are looking for family movies. ... There's lots of communities out there that are actually looking for something that isn't PG-13, that isn't rated R, that isn't super violent, something that that families can come out and see together. Family Movie Events goes after those kind of theaters and those kind of bookers specifically and says, "Hey, we have something that we can offer that's good, it's exciting, it's entertaining. You're not going to have to close your eyes or explain what all those bad words were to your 9-year-old." ... I don't know how many theaters yet, but anywhere from 50 to a couple hundred is the range that they shoot for.
What were some influences on Wildman?
The Iron Giant, I love that movie. I loved it as a kid. It kind of blew my mind and stuck with me.
[Wildman] was based on a book, and the book itself was kind of [inspired by] Goosebumps. ... So, that's definitely how it's packaged. ... The movie itself has a lot of heart, a lot of humor, and I think a really exciting ending to the whole thing, too. I would say it's like ET meets Stranger Things.