Part verité essay, part political diary, “23 Mile” is an experimental nonfiction film following Americans during cataclysmic events in the swing state of Michigan throughout 2020 — including the plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer — painting a portrait of a populace that defies media stereotypes. A document of complex discourse, the film forces viewers to question their own assumptions about race, class, social status and geographical demographics, drawing a surprisingly hopeful human portrait against the foreboding backdrop of societal instability. Michigan premiere.

After the films: On Saturday, Nancy Kaffer, Free Press editorial page editor, talks to director Mitch McCabe; Dante Chinni, data and political journalist and director of the American Communities Project; Anika Goss, president and CEO of Detroit Future City; and Fred Makled, who is in the film. On Sunday, Emily Lawler, Free Press politics editor, talks to McCabe and Maria Luisa Gambale, field producer on the film.