HAPPY CAMPERS chronicles the final days of a working-class summer colony 
in a scrappy trailer park that just happens to
hold the secret to a rich life. In a waterfront campground off the coast of Virginia, residents spend their summers living spitting distance apart in rust-bitten RVs. They chuckle about the modest rent they pay for a million-dollar location, but what makes them the luckiest people in the world is more than just stunning sunsets, it’s the 
community they’ve created. Beneath cliched trailer park stereotypes lies an unlikely utopia where all are welcome. Neighbors help each other out, and share everything from power tools to simple pleasures. Loneliness and isolation 
are inconceivable. When their affordable paradise is sold to developers, the residents brace for eviction and the loss of friendships that span generations. They hold tight to their final days in the sun. The well-heeled crowd that takes their place will never be as wealthy. Director Amy Nicholson (Zipper: Coney Island’s Last Wild Ride) stops by to talk about how she discovered this magical community, gaining the confidence of the denizens, her own history vacationing there and why the loss of places like Inlet Park is undermining our connection with one another.
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About the filmmaker – Amy Nicholson is a New York-based filmmaker and commercial director whose projects often explore the essence of Americana with a humorous eye and a warm respect for her subjects. Nicholson’s most recent documentary, a short titled Pickle, won multiple audience awards, was selected for The New York Times’ Op Docs, and was featured on the Criterion Collection alongside Errol Morris’ Gates of Heaven. Pickle was also nominated for an IDA Award and Cinema Eye Honors. Nicholson has produced and directed several features. Zipper: Coney Island’s Last Wild Ride won the Special Jury Prize at DOCNYC and was held over twice at the IFC Center. Muskrat Lovely premiered at the Hamptons International Film Festival and was broadcast on Independent Lens. Nicholson’s films have screened at Hot Docs, Sheffield, Full Frame, DOK Leipzig, BFI London, Camden, Traverse City, Rooftop Films, and the MoMA. They have been reviewed by Variety, Indiewire, The Hollywood Reporter, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times.
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“Amy Nicholson’s empathy for her subjects is undeniable.” – Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine
“Ultimately, Happy Campers is the kind of film that functions as a testament to the power of place and the resilience of the human spirit, but without any of the maudlin sentimentality such a description implies.” – Emily DuGranrut, In Review Online
“Made up entirely of beautiful shots, the kind that tells stories on their own, define the people that are featured, and move our hearts to beat at their fullest capacity.” – Bill Arceneaux, Moviegoing with Bill
“Happy Campers sometimes feels like a lark, only glancing at the cycles of capitalism that erase these communities. But it’s nevertheless an emotional exploration of a group on the fringes and how anyone can find a welcoming community.” – Christian Gallichio, The Playlist
“Rather than have the audience relive the summers of the Inlet, we experience it right now in its last gasp. Yet the footage collection feels so timeless, Happy Campers becomes a portrait of a place of hope, love, and melancholy.” – Alan French, Sunshine State Cineplex