The crew sets up before a shot.
Tim Blake Nelson (left) and James Franco (right) discuss the approach.
Tim Blake Nelson waits for the others to arrive on the scene.
The crew prepared for a shot later in the day with a machine that makes rain.
Actor/Director James Franco checking out the rain.
Scouting a location for the next setup.
James Franco on the set of “As I Lay Dying.”

The production has been filming an adaptation of William Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” in and around town over the past few weeks. James Franco is directing the movie.

Mississippi native Donna Ladd and partner Todd Stauffer founded the Jackson Free Press in 2002 in the capital city. The heavily awarded local newspaper did many investigations heralded across the state and nation and served as a paper of record due to its diversity, inclusion, in-depth reporting and deep connection to readers and dedication to narrative change in and about Mississippi. In 2022, the nonprofit Mississippi Free Press, founded by Ladd and JFP Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin in 2020, purchased the journalism assets and archives of the Jackson Free Press. A Google grant through AAN Publishers enabled Newspack's integration of the JFP archives into the Mississippi Free Press website to become part of a more searchable archive of recent Mississippi history and essential journalism.