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 >> >> > ---- To signoff SCREEN-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF SCREEN-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask]