NATCHEZ — Two local filmmakers who have spent the last half-decade documenting an iconic Natchez woman reached a thrilling culmination of their work Sunday.

Tim Givens and Mark Brockway, directors of “Mississippi Madam: The Life of Nellie Jackson,” received the award for Best Feature Documentary at the 2018 Crossroads Film Festival in Jackson.

When the film’s name rang out over the speakers, Givens said he could hardly process what was a surreal moment.

“I was just flabbergasted,” Givens said. “I stood up immediately, pumping my fist like Michael Jordan.”

The documentary centered on the lore of Nellie Jackson, an African-American bordello owner in Natchez throughout the height of the Civil Rights Era who met her demise in July 1990 after a man set Jackson afire because she turned him away for being drunk.

Part of the thrill of receiving this award, Givens said, is that he and Brockway share the award with Natchez. Though he remembers little about what he said during his acceptance speech, still experiencing the onset of shock and jubilance, Givens made sure to credit the city that made the documentary possible.

“I feel like I’m sharing this award with Natchez,” Givens said. “Without Natchez, there’s no story of Nellie and what she did.”

Receiving this award was especially thrilling, Givens said, because the pair had fallen just short of a crowning achievement at the end of last year, coming away from the Oxford Film Festival empty-handed after being nominated for the film.

With Sunday’s recognition, Givens said he now reflects on how amazing the feat is given that just he and Brockway worked on the film. When watching other films at these festivals, Givens said he would note all the different names of numerous departments that rolled through the credits.

“With our credits, it’s just me and Mark, because we did everything,” Givens said.

Further, he said the duo made the film for less than $9,000, all while juggling full-time jobs over the course of producing the documentary.

Givens called the combination of himself and Brockway “Yin and Yang,” as Givens’ editing complemented Brockway’s research as they worked “tirelessly” on the project.

The pair interviewed approximately 170 subjects for the documentary, one of more than 40 films shown at the Crossroads Film Festival.