Muskrat Lovely is Amy Nicholson’s cinematic slice of Americana. It focuses on Golden Hill, a small town in Maryland home to the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge and some unlucky muskrats. Every year contestants gather in Golden Hill for two important competitions in the National Outdoor Show. This year eight local high school girls compete to become “Miss Outdoors.” With varying degrees of confidence, they explain why they’d like the crown and what it would mean to them. Side by side, on the very same stage, the world’s best muskrat skinners compete to see who can skin the fastest, attracting intense competitors eager to demonstrate their skills. The film juxtaposes footage of the girls preparing for the pageant with shots of a muskrat trapper setting his traps, and features an annual entrant in the women’s skinning division demonstrating her craft. You may even find yourself cheering for your favorite beauty contestant – perhaps the one with the knife. Miss America, look out!

Amy Nicholson is a native of Baltimore, Maryland. She currently lives in New York City where she works as an art director. Her first documentary was Beauty School (2003), a short about the New York School of Dog Grooming.

Producers: Amy Nicholson Screenwriter: Amy Nicholson Cinematographer: Jerry Risius Editor: John Young

Note: Muskrat Lovely will be shown with The Last Western