This documentary will cause a sensation: the story of friends who hid in a shopping center for four years!

When the Providence Place Mall was built in the late 1990s, Rhode Island state leaders touted it as a sign of urban renewal for its ailing capital city. For eight artists, it became something else: their home.

In fact, eight friends built a makeshift apartment—complete with couch, TV, video game system, microwave, and cistern wall—in a hidden nook off a shopping complex’s garage. They used the mall’s electricity to run the equipment. Surprisingly, this meeting place (where some spent several nights) remained unknown for four years. Their daring gambit was made in response to the gentrification unfolding around them, a humorous protest against the capitalist forces that threatened to push the city’s artistic community to its limits.

Today this story has become a subject Secret Molly’s apartmentA new documentary from Jeremy Workman (Lily Shatters the World) premieres March 8 at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival.

“The plot is a bit of a trojan horse where you expect one thing and it keeps breaking your preconceived notions as you watch it.“, you said Jeremy Workman (via Variety ). “You hear the premise and you’re like, “Oh, this is going to be like one of those crazy joke movies.” But it’s about using it to explore deeper ideas about art and what it means, as well as gentrification and how we live in the shadows of these communities.“

Produced by Jesse Eisenberg

The director once again brought in Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Zombieland) to produce. The actor really felt a personal connection to the history of the Providence Place infiltrators.

“As an art critic, I kept thinking that what they were doing was so pure and perfect“, he said. “This is art for art’s sake. I kind of saw it from that perspective. My favorite things to do in life are: I write plays, I do my play, and we read a little, and it’s my favorite day of the year. And then, unfortunately, it becomes a commodity. We have to sell tickets and that becomes this product. So when I watch this film, I, as an artist, am just blown away by the purity of their art and that kind of imagination.“

A heist movie… or almost!

Secret Molly’s apartment Followed by Michael Townsend, who had the good idea to inhabit this bastion of consumerism. His identity was known, but his seven co-workers went largely unnoticed. Jeremy Workman They were interviewed for the film, where they talk about the complex logistics involved in moving furniture and building materials through a busy mall, right under the noses of security guards. “It’s almost like a heist movie“- says the director.

Workman also had access to footage taken by friends of their secret apartment life, as well as the planning and construction that led to their incredible hideaway. After its discovery, mall workers tore down the structure, so the original filmmakers and artists built a replica of the documentary’s location.

“It seemed logical to do that for this filmWorkman explains. “I had to find a clever way in a space that no longer exists.“

Criticism of society

Although the artists living in the mall are not rich (some even live in marginal economic conditions), they are aware of certain advantages that they enjoy. The film points out, for example, that Michael Townsend, who is white, did not have the same fear of law enforcement that a black man might.

“What’s so interesting about this film is how it fits into a larger discussion about housing, gentrification, urban development, and even class and race, as these artists reflect on their own kind of privilege.“, explain Jesse Eisenberg. “They were allowed to do anything without having to worry about the danger of intense police surveillance.“

From now on, filmmakers are shooting Secret Molly’s apartment in Austin, Texas, a city that has itself experienced some gentrification in recent years. “I have a feeling it will be really appreciated and understood there“, he declares Jeremy Workman.

As for Providence Place Mall, it has seen better days. Amazon has disrupted the retail space, leading to a number of store closures and declining customers. “It’s really hard for you“- adds the director.

Finally, as for Michael Townsend, he is still banned from the mall he once called home!