Arts & Entertainment
Chicago International Film Festival Unveils Lineup, Plans to Launch Physical Media Fair
The Chicago-based filmmaking duo Alex Thompson and Kelly O’Sullivan will present their latest film, “Mouse,” during the Chicago International Film Festival, which runs Oct. 14-25 across various venues. (Courtesy of Nate Hurtsellers and Luke Dyra)
The full lineup of films and programming for the 62nd Chicago International Film Festival — which kicks off next month — was announced Thursday.
Highlights include the 30th anniversary of the festival’s “Black Perspectives” program; tributes, retrospectives and awards; an inaugural physical media fair; free community screenings; feature films and shorts from Chicago filmmakers; and films from more than 60 countries.
The Chicago International Film Festival takes place Oct. 14-25 across various venues, including AMC NEWCITY 14, Music Box Theatre, Gene Siskel Film Center and UChicago’s Logan Center for the Arts.
This year’s festival includes 113 feature films and 57 shorts. View the full lineup here.
Tickets for screenings go on sale to the general public Sept. 24. Tickets go on sale for members Friday.
The festival opens with A24’s “Club Kid” directed by Jordan Firstman, who will receive the festival’s Breakthrough Award. The festival closes with “Behemoth!” from Oscar-nominated director Tony Gilroy and stars Pedro Pascal, Olivia Wilde, Eva Victor and Will Arnett.
In a special presentation, the Chicago-based filmmaking duo Alex Thompson and Kelly O’Sullivan (the filmmakers behind “Ghostlight” and “Saint Frances”) will present their latest film, “Mouse.” The Oct. 21 screening will include a tribute to the film’s star, Sophie Okonedo, who will receive the festival’s Spotlight Award.
The festival also celebrates the 30th anniversary of its “Black Perspectives” program.
Writer, director and star Cheryl Dunye of the landmark queer film “The Watermelon Woman” will receive the festival’s Career Achievement Award at a retrospective screening Oct. 16. Following the screening, Dunye will be in conversation with filmmaker Stephen Winter. His contribution to the New Queer Cinema movement, “Chocolate Babies,” will have its own retrospective screening Oct. 18.
Writer, director and star Cheryl Dunye of the landmark queer film “The Watermelon Woman” will receive the Chicago International Film Festival’s Career Achievement Award at a retrospective screening Oct. 16. (Provided)
Other highlights from the “Black Perspectives” program include Ava DuVernay’s “14th,” a documentary that explores the 14th Amendment, and William and David Greaves’ documentary “Once Upon a Time in Harlem,” offering a snapshot of a 1972 cocktail party filled with the living luminaries of the Harlem Renaissance.
A “Black Perspectives: Love With No Place to Go” short film program includes Lauryn Darden and Ragan Henderson’s “When They’re Gone,” which features Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs and Glynn Turman, the stars of the Chicago classic “Cooley High.”
On Oct. 17-18, the festival will hold an inaugural physical media fair. In a physical media swap, guests can bring their own laserdiscs, VHS tapes, DVDs, Blu-ray and 4K movies to trade with one another. A pop-up shop will be stocked with films from distributors and local stores.
The festival’s “City & State” program, featuring Chicago and Illinois stories, includes:
- Frankie Nasso’s documentary “Ever After,” which follows chef Curtis Duffy as he launches a new world-class restaurant during a pandemic
- Kris Rey’s witty, queer coming-of-age comedy “Trash Mountain”
- Chicago filmmaker Reveca Torres’ “While We Are Here,” a documentary that engages in dialogue with celebrated painters Frida Kahlo, Vincent Van Gogh and Henri Matisse
- Daniel Clarke’s documentary “No Hands: The Wild Ride of the Schwinn Bicycle Company”
- Guy Bauer’s thriller “Ana the Cleaner,” about a true crime enthusiast who believes she’s uncovered a murder while cleaning the homes of Chicago’s elite.
The festival also has several free screenings, including Maya Angelou’s “Down in the Delta”; Arlieta Hall and Brittany Alsot’s “Finding Your Laughter”; Karla Badillo’s “Oca”; Fernanda Tovar’s “Sad Girlz”; and a selection of shorts from the “City & State” program, part of the Loop Arts Fest.
Note: WTTW is a program partner for the festival’s documentary program.
Contact Eunice Alpasan: [email protected]
WTTW News arts coverage is supported by the JCS Arts, Health & Education Fund of the DuPage Foundation.
