FUNDING NOW

*Our Indiegogo campaign has officially ended as of 10/31/22.
We are now accepting contributions through PayPal’s platform.

A MOMENT IS ENOUGH

the prelude to
POET IN A MODERN WORLD

the prelude to POET IN A MODERN WORLD

MOURNING DOVE FILMS

REVIVING CINEMA AS ART.

A drawing of French filmmaker Robert Bresson.

French filmmaker Robert Bresson warned in 1983, “Right now, cinema isn’t an art. If it continues as it is now, it never will be.” He declared that cinema must become, “[. . .] something extraordinary in itself [. . .]”


In lieu of the depravity and decadence of Hollywood, founder William Jacobs saw potential for a subversive independent film industry in the Midwest. “There is the expression that a poet must not avert his eyes from the world, but facing the unprecedented ugliness of modernity is no easy task. It is my great objective to initiate a spiritual renascence with cinema—to bring forth films of Beauty, Goodness, and Truth.”

Founder William Jacobs speaks about Mourning Dove Films’s mission.

FILMMAKING NOT FOR THE BODILY APPETITES, BUT THE HUNGER OF THE SOUL

JOIN OUR VOYAGE INTO TIME

Mourning Dove Films is not only an independent film production company, but a quest for a more beautiful cinema.

NEWS & PRESS

"[...] Peoria filmmakers showcase their work"

Journal Star | By Dean Muellerleile
Published April 21, 2023 at 4:43 A.M. CDT

“ ‘What audiences will see at this screening is a glimpse of what is possible when filmmakers remain creating in the Midwest, untrammeled by politics and groveling studio executives.’ ”

"Peoria native sets out to create debut feature film on 16mm celluloid film"

WCBU | By Jody Holtz
Published September 2, 2022 at 2:07 P.M. CDT

“Cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, and Atlanta are hubs for aspiring filmmakers, but one Peoria native decided the River City was the best place to establish his production company, Mourning Dove Films. 
[. . .]”

LATEST TITLE

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SACRED & PROFANE LOVE

ABOUT THE FILM

A young artist recollects his past muse on a blustery winter day. Vacillating between upholding certain ideals and compromising them to end his friction with modernity, a bittersweet truth eventually emerges from a fantasy.


A Moment Is Enough—a 16mm short film excerpt of an upcoming feature film taking place in Peoria, Illinois.

FEATURED

A MOMENT IS ENOUGH

The proof-of-concept short film for Poet in a Modern World follows a young artist recollecting his past muse on a blustery winter day.

POET IN A MODERN WORLD

Poetry is not merely to be read, but to be lived. An upcoming 16mm feature film about family, home, the necessity of tradition, and choosing beauty in a world defying it.

HELP US ILLUMINATE TRUTH & BEAUTY

It takes a miracle to make a film.

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“[…] I should be sorry if I only entertained them. I wish to make them better.”

—George Frideric Handel
A famous painting of Handel.