I thought Chicago-area members of the list might find this film series
(which I co-curated with the MCA's Dominic Molon) of interest.
Ines Sommer
>>MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
>>220 East Chicago Avenue
>>Chicago, IL 60611
>>
>>For more information, call the MCA box office at (312) 397.4010
>>
>>
>>MADE IN CHICAGO: INDEPENDENT FILMS
>>January 16 -19, 1997
>>
>>As part of the Time Arts Chicago exhibition and performance series, the
>>Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) will present "Made in Chicago:
>>Independent Films," a four-day festival showcasing Chicago independent
>>filmmaking in the new MCA theater from Thursday, January 16, to Sunday,
>>January 19, 1997.
>>
>>Vibrant, provocative, and stylistically diverse, Chicago's independent
>>filmmaking scene has flourished since the late 50's. "Made in Chicago:
>>Independent Films" includes such early works as the radical "Cry of Jazz"
>>(1959) by filmmaker Edward Bland and more recent experimental films such
>>as Ariana Gerstein's lyrical "Cycles" (1995). Unlike Los Angeles or New
>>York, Chicago's strength lies not in its feature film production
>>(although quite a few feature-length independent films have been shot
>>here), but its hard-hitting documentaries, idiosyncratic experimental
>>films and highly original animated works.
>>
>>"Made in Chicago: Independent Films" offers viewers a condensed journey
>>through nearly five decades of experimental and independent filmmaking,
>>filled with glimpses of the sarcastic, the poetic, the entertaining, the
>>personal, and the political.
>>
>>
>>MADE IN CHICAGO: INDEPENDENT FILMS
>>
>>RITUALS & DEFINITIONS
>>Thursday, January 16, 8 PM
>>
>>Conceptual and frequently humorous in tone, the short films on this
>>program engage viewers in sophisticated games of the mind through their
>>very form - be it Dana Hodgdon's lexicographic wit in "Dialectic
>>Definitions" or Michelle Citron's fusing of mock documentary and home
>>movie footage in her landmark feminist film "Daughter Rite" (1978). Also
>>screening are "Hiding Out for Heaven" (1989) by Fred Marx (Hoop Dreams),
>>"Wide Angle Saxon" (1975) by Owen Land, Wayne Boyer's "George and Martha
>>Revisited" (1967) and David E. Simpson's "Paradiso" (1990).
>>
>>
>>LYRICAL EXPLORATIONS
>>Friday, January 17, 8 PM
>>
>>Hailed as the "Blue Velvet of documentary film," Sharon Sandusky's ironic
>>"C'mon Babe (Danke schoen)" (1988) has won international festival acclaim
>>for its hilariously biting montage of Disney-style nature footage. Also
>>on the program are animated films by Byron Grush and READER cartoonist
>>Heather McAdams, Lawrence Janiak's lyrical "Adam's Film" (1964), and
>>Tatsu Aoki's mesmerizing optical explorations in "Rapturous" (1984).
>>Also showing: Adele Friedman's "Untitled #1" (1982); Barbara Scharres'
>>"Northern Light" (1977); Robert Stiegler's "LICHT SPIEL NUR 1" (1962);
>>Jean Sousa's "Ellen of the Rope" (1978); and Sharon Couzin's "Deutschland
>>Spiegel" (1980).
>>
>>
>>STORIES TO TELL
>>Saturday, January 18, 4 PM
>>
>>One of Chicago's most prolific independent filmmakers, Tom Palazzolo (aka
>>Tommy Chicago) often paints a dark, satirical view of the city. His film
>>"Ricky and Rocky" (co-signed by Jeff Kreines) is a study in Americana,
>>centering on an early 1970's bridal shower on Chicago's South Side.
>>Also showing are Mike Shea and Gordon Quinn's "And This Is Free" (1964),
>>which beautifully captures the sounds, stories and textures of the
>>legendary Maxwell Street flea market; and Zeinabu irene Davis'
>>imaginative, folktale-inspired "Mother of the River" (1995), which tells
>>the story of a young slave girl.
>>
>>
>>EXPLODING PLASTIC INEVITABLE
>>Saturday, January 18, 8 PM
>>
>>From a Velvet Underground concert in Ron Nameth's rarely seen "Andy
>>Warhol's Exploding Plastic Inevitable" (1966) to John Heinz' campy
>>Markopoulos spoof "Thomas Trismagistus" (1967) to the hilariously
>>cartoonish showdown between two drummers in Greg Nickson and Markus
>>Greiner's "Drum Struck" (1991), this program delivers a wild roller
>>coaster ride of times, styles and subject matter. Also showing: "Love
>>It/Leave It" (1970) by Tom Palazzolo, "Master of Ceremonies" (1987) by
>>Chris Sullivan, and "When I Regain My Foliage" (1991) by Allan Ross and
>>Robert Metrick.
>>
>>
>>ART AND POLITICS, POLITICS AND ART
>>Sunday, January 19, 4 PM
>>
>>Best known for the widely seen documentary "Hoop Dreams," Kartemquin
>>Films has been an important collective for political documentary
>>filmmaking in Chicago for nearly 30 years. "Golub" (1984) offers viewers
>>an insightful behind-the-scenes look at the politically charged work of
>>artist Leon Golub, whose work is currently on view in the MCA's "Art in
>>Chicago, 1945-1995" exhibition. Jazz as an expression of black culture
>>and liberation is at the center of Edward Bland's "Cry of Jazz" (1959),
>>which has been hailed as "light-years ahead of its time" for both its
>>afro-centric viewpoint and its hybrid mix of narrative and documentary
>>forms.
>>
>>
>>SUBVERSIVE REFLECTIONS
>>Sunday, January 19, 7 PM
>>
>>When artists reflect on society, frequently urban reality creeps in, and
>>becomes refracted through their personal experience and viewpoints,
>>whether through the comical character of a silverfish in JP Somersaulter
>>and Lillian Somersaulter-Moats' magical, animated "The Silverfish King
>>"(1973) or through reflections on homelessness and complacency in Laurie
>>Dunphy's experimental "Poverties" (1993). Also showing: Jon Jost's
>>"City" (1964); Hans Schaal's "1968" (1968) and Peter Thompson's
>>"Universal Hotel" (1986).
>>
>>Tickets:
>>MCA members $3
>>students and seniors $4
>>general admission $6
>>
>>For more information, call the MCA box office at (312) 397.4010
>>
>>
>
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