NATCHEZ &8212; The federal courthouse under construction on Pearl Street will be a film star once it is finished.

The government agency in charge of refurbishing the 1850s building is creating a documentary on the building&8217;s history and renovation.

The building&8217;s unique history, and some of its architecture, will be preserved in its new incarnation as a federal courthouse.

The film will explain the building&8217;s history and how it was restored, said Jeffrey Jensen, a history preservation specialist with the General Services Administration.

&8220;We wanted to show the process from beginning to end and talk about what a neat and inventive project it is,&8221; Jensen said.

The building has been a school auditorium, an opera house, a city museum and one of the first sites of the annual Pilgrimage, Jensen said.

Turning such a historic building into a federal courthouse is not typical, he said, and the film&8217;s creators hope to highlight that.

&8220;I think it&8217;s unique. It&8217;s certainly very unusual,&8221; Jensen said. &8220;Since it had this long history and we&8217;re doing so much work to it, we thought it&8217;d be neat to film it as we go along.&8221;

Filming started about three years ago before the GSA touched the building, he said. Then, a few months ago, they filmed again to show the work on the outside shell and some renovation inside.

The film crew will visit Natchez again in the next few months to capture renovation of the staircases that frame the front hall, Jensen said.

&8220;Then, we&8217;ll get the grand opening, the judge hitting his gavel to open court for the first time,&8221; Jensen said.

While the building and renovation will star in the documentary, the filmmakers have also interviewed Natchez residents, Jensen said.

&8220;People remember going to the Natchez Pilgrimage there,&8221; Jensen said. &8220;We&8217;ll also be talking to the head of my agency and to the judge, talking about the project and what it means.&8221;

The final film will be distributed to historic preservation committees and the city of Natchez, he said.

It will also come in handy for the GSA, as they plan to nominate the building project for the National Trust Preservation Awards, Jensen said.

Mimi Miller, director of the Historic Natchez Foundation, said she was thrilled with the idea of a documentary on the building.

&8220;It&8217;s a building that illustrates almost like no other how a historic building can continue to be useful,&8221; Miller said Friday.

Many agencies and organizations had to cooperate to make the rebuilding happen, Miller said. The historic foundation, city, county, Mississippi Department of Archives and History, GSA, United States court system and the U.S. Marshal Service were involved.

&8220;They all had to work together, and that&8217;s one reason the GSA wants to do the documentary,&8221; Miller said. &8220;They&8217;ve been under pressure to reuse historic buildings instead of knocking them down, and they want to use the courthouse as an example.&8221;