The Kartemquin Fall Festival is Here!
Starting tonight! Kartemquin Films will mark the culmination of its 50th Anniversary year with The Kartemquin Fall Festival, to be held in partnership with ArcLight Cinemas at the the ArcLight Chicago NEWCITY location in Lincoln Park, Chicago, on three nights from Wednesday, November 2nd to Friday, November 4th, 2016. The Kartemquin Fall Festival at ArcLight Cinemas once again offers the cinema’s guests an unparalleled experience in their commitment to independent cinema, while looking to the future of Chicago's documentary community.
The Kartemquin Fall Festival features two Chicago premieres, sneak previews of three works-in-progress, and fresh new work from emerging Midwest documentary makers who have graduated from Kartemquin’s acclaimed filmmaker development programs. Of the 26 projects, 62% are directed by people of color, and 50% are directed by women. More information can be found at www.ktq50.org/fall-festival, and to purchase tickets please go to https://www.arclightcinemas.com/en/news/kartemquin-fall-festival.
“Throughout this year our 50 year history has been showcased and honored in a number of thrilling ways. But we wanted to now put an emphasis on the new projects and rich documentary filmmaking talent that is in our community,” said Gordon Quinn, Kartemquin co-founder and Artistic Director. “This event is a chance to get a glimpse of the future of documentary filmmaking in Chicago.”
“Kartemquin’s incredible history as a creative conduit for documentary filmmakers, makes them an exciting partner to celebrate and share the future of cinema with ArcLight guests,” states Gretchen McCourt, Executive Vice President Cinema Programming, ArcLight Cinemas.
The Festival opens at ArcLight Cinemas Chicago NEWCITY location with the Chicago premiere of UNBROKEN GLASS, the debut feature of director Dinesh Das Sabu, in which the filmmaker and his siblings confront the trauma of losing their parents at an early age. Dinesh Sabu interned at Kartemquin in 2008 and subsequently developed the film there as a co-production, with several other former interns becoming key crew members, including editor Matt Lauterbach, co-producer R. Patrick Lile, and cinematographer Ian Kibbe. The film screens at 8pm on Wednesday, November 2nd, with a reception to follow.
On Thursday, November 3rd at 6pm, the 2016 Diverse Voices in Documentary (DVID) Graduation honors the participants of this program, which mentors 12 producers of color each year. The free event will include short previews clips from each project, a keynote by Lyric Cabral, co-director of (T)ERROR, (winner of the Special Jury Award for Breakout First Feature at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival), with a reception to follow. It also marks the opening of applications for DVID 2017. RSVP here. DVID is a year-long mentorship program for documentary producers of color coordinated by Kartemquin and the Community Film Workshop of Chicago.
On Friday, November 4th at 8pm, the Kartemquin Fall Showcase offers exclusive previews of never-before-seen footage from three upcoming documentary projects, inviting viewers to give feedback directly to the filmmakers. AMERICA TO ME, directed by Steve James (HOOP DREAMS), is an epic series covering a year in Oak Park and River Forest High School, one of the country’s most exemplary and diverse public high schools, as students, teachers and administrators grapple with decades-long racial and educational inequities. Sergio Rapu's EATING UP EASTER explores how the most isolated community in the Pacific - Easter Island - uses lessons learned from their past to solve environmental and social challenges brought on by booming tourism and rapid development. Maria Finitzo's THE DILEMMA OF DESIRE explores the complex nature of female sexual desire and the ways in which it is both governed, and fulfilled, by notions of expression and repression.
Two showcases of the best short films from Kartemquin’s program alumni will open the evening on both Wednesday, November 2nd at 6pm and Friday, November 4th at 6pm.
On Thursday, November 3rd at 8:30pm, CITY OF TREES, a documentary about one community's fight for equal access to good jobs and safe parks in our nation's capital which was developed through Kartemquin’s KTQ Labs program, will have its Chicago premiere.
“The Kartemquin Fall Festival is a celebration of the accomplishments of our program alumni, showcasing the work for the larger Chicago documentary film community, the general public, and the industry,” said Betsy Steinberg, Kartemquin Executive Director.
Filmmakers will be present at every screening. More information can be found at www.ktq50.org/fall-festival, and to purchase tickets please go to https://www.arclightcinemas.com/
ArcLight Cinemas - Chicago
NEWCITY Lincoln Park
1500 N. Clybourn Ave, 3rd Fl.
Chicago, IL 60610
6:00 PMWednesday, November 2nd - Shorts Showcase 1: Kartemquin Alumni
A showcase of projects from Kartemquin's acclaimed Internship and Diverse Voices in Docs programs.
In this shorts program you will meet a beloved and eccentric Chicago-area magician in The Amazing Mr. Ash, directed by Brian Gersten; director Max Asaf embarks on a journey into his family’s past to confront their unspeakable experience in the Holocaust in Within the Box; Beyond Blind, created by Matt Lauterbach, will help you understand vision loss; Shuling Yong's Intuition looks into the bottom rung of the academic ladder in Singapore; and Embodies by Hillary Bachelder explores perceptions of the female form through portraits of a nude model, a medical embalmer, and a roller derby mother of three.
Films:
The Amazing Mr. Ash, Brian Gersten (11 min, 59 sec)
Within the Box, Max Asaf (21 min 47 sec)
Beyond Blind, Matt Lauterbach (6 min)
Intuition, Shuling Yong (10 min)
Embodies, Hillary Bachelder (38 min. 35 sec)
Special Guests: Filmmakers will be present
Tickets: $14
8:00 PMWednesday, November 2nd - Unbroken Glass Chicago Premiere
When he was six-years-old, Dinesh Das Sabu’s parents died. Raised by his older siblings, he had little idea who his parents were or where he came from. Through making Unbroken Glass (2016, 55min), he attempts to piece together their story and his own. Uncovering a silenced family history and disturbing truths, Dinesh and his siblings must finally reconcile the past, confronting the trauma of losing their parents and the specter of mental illness. This is the Chicago premiere of Unbroken Glass, Dinesh Das Sabu's debut feature length film, which he originated while working as a Kartemquin intern in 2008, and produced in collaboration with several former Kartemquin Intern Program alumni in key roles.
Special Guests: dir. Dinesh Sabu
Tickets: $14 general, $20 VIP with access to post-screening reception
6:00 PMThursday, November 3rd - Kartemquin Diverse Voices in Doc: 2016 Graduation
The 2016 Diverse Voices in Documentary (DVID) Graduation honors and showcases the participants of the 2016 DVID program. The evening will include clips from each project and a keynote speech by Lyric
Cabral, co-director of (T)error, winner of the Special Jury Award for Breakout First Feature at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. It also marks the opening of applications for DVID 2017. Visit the website to apply: https://www.kartemquin.com/diversevoices.
Now completing its fourth year, DVID strives to create a network for filmmakers of color to collaborate and support each other, and increase their presence in the documentary field. The 2016 DVID program will graduate 12 fellows who developed their projects over six months of workshops and mentorship by Kartemquin staff, producers and associates, and industry leaders.
The Diverse Voices in Documentary program is operated by Kartemquin Films and The Community Film Workshop of Chicago, and made possible by support from the Voqal Fund, The Seabury Foundation, The Reva and David Logan Foundation, The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, The National Endowment for the Arts, the Efroymson Family Fund, CityArts, The Sage Foundation, and KatLei Productions.
Films:
From Chicago to South Africa, Ava Thompson Greenwell
Alexis, Lesley Etherly
Genius of a Different Hue: The Story of Black Advertising, Keith Purvis
Lunch With Friends at 58 Ave Foch, Vincent Singleton
Sounds of the Chi, Edwin Walker
Standing on the Bones of Our Ancestors, Kohl Miner
Resistimos (We Resist), Diana Quinones Rivera
Unjustified Chicago, Theresa Lenore Dumayas Campagna
Unapologetic, Ashley Mills
Panata, Alexander Skalomenos
Dance Group in Pilsen, Katherine Nagasawa
Tracing our Path Through Bronzeville, Reginald Rice
Tickets: Free with RSVP. Reception to follow.
8:30 PMThursday, November 3rd - City of Trees Chicago Premiere
During the recession, City of Trees (2016, 76mins) follows three trainees and the directors of a stimulus-funded green job-training program designed to put unemployed people back to work by caring for parks in DC. As they navigate the community’s distrust of outsiders and a fast-approaching deadline before the grant money runs out, City of Trees thrusts viewers into the inspiring but messy world of job training and the paradoxes changemakers face in urban communities everyday. (Chicago premiere)
This feature length film is a 2014 KTQ Labs graduate. KTQ Labs is a free monthly filmmaker service at which filmmakers present their demos and rough cuts to the Kartemquin community in return for constructive critique. Find more information about KTQ Labs here: https://www.kartemquin.com/involve/filmmakers/labs.
Special Guests: Lance Kramer (director) and Brandon Kramer (producer)
Tickets: $14
6:00 PMFriday, November 4th - Shorts Showcase 2: Kartemquin Alumni
A showcase of projects from Kartemquin's acclaimed Internship and Diverse Voices in Docs programs.
In this shorts program, director Rachel Dickson examines the Chicago school closings of 2014; filmmaker Mina Fitzpatrick explores the emotional complexities of Korean culture around adoption; the first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer, Gwendolyn Brooks, is profiled in Shahari Moore's film Brooks People; and we meet a Vietnam veteran with an unlimited faith in Disney in Keep Moving Forward, directed by Brent Bandemer and produced by Emily Strong. Approx. 90 minute long program.
Films:
Closed for Good, Rachel Dickson (5 min)
Two Together, Mina Fitzpatrick (36 min 15 sec)
Brooks People, Shahari Moore (10 min 55 sec)
Keep Moving Forward, Brent Bandemer and Emily Strong (26 min 6 sec)
Special Guests: Filmmakers will be present
Tickets: $14
8:00 PMFriday, November 4th - Kartemquin Fall Showcase
Kartemquin invites you to enjoy exclusive previews of never-before-seen footage from three upcoming documentary projects, and give your feedback directly to the filmmakers. America to Me, directed by Steve James, is an epic series looking into a year in one of the country’s most exemplary and diverse public high schools, as students, teachers and administrators grapple with decades-long racial and educational inequities. Sergio Rapu's Eating Up Easter explores how the most isolated community in the Pacific - Easter Island - uses lessons learned from their past to solve environmental and social challenges brought on by booming tourism and rapid development. Maria Finitzo's The Dilemma of Desire explores the complex nature of female sexual desire and the ways in which it is both governed, and fulfilled, by notions of expression and repression. Audience members can give feedback directly to the filmmakers in the theater and in a post-screening reception. Serving as both a window into our process and an opportunity to impact the future of these works-in-progress, this event embodies the Kartemquin spirit of collaborative creation and meaningful audience engagement.
Films:
America to Me (dir. Steve James)
Eating Up Easter (dir. Sergio Rapu)
The Dilemma of Desire (dir. Maria Finitzo)
Special Guests: Steve James, Maria Finitzo, Sergio Rapu
Tickets: $14 general, $20 VIP with access to post-screening reception
About Kartemquin Films
Kartemquin Films is a not-for-profit collaborative center for documentary media makers who seek to foster a more engaged and empowered society. In 2016, Kartemquin celebrates 50 years of sparking democracy through documentary. Best known for producing HOOP DREAMS and THE INTERRUPTERS among over 55 other documentaries that examine and critique society through the lives of ordinary people, Kartemquin has marked their 50th Anniversary with a yearlong celebration encompassing events across the world, including screenings, masterclasses, broadcasts, free online streaming of every film in their catalog, and an exhibition of artifacts and equipment at Expo 72 gallery in Chicago from May 20 - August 20. For more information, visitwww.ktq50.org.
2016 Kartemquin releases include ABACUS: SMALL ENOUGH TO JAIL and RAISING BERTIE, both of which are screening at the 2016 Chicago International Film Festival.
About ArcLight Cinemas
ArcLight Cinemas, created by Pacific Theatres, a privately owned, Los Angeles based company with 60 years of theatrical exhibition history throughout California, Hawaii and Washington is a premiere moviegoing experience with an unparalleled commitment to bringing a variety of rich cinematic content to moviegoers in all markets. ArcLight Cinemas operates seven theaters in California including Hollywood, Pasadena, Sherman Oaks, El Segundo, Santa Monica, Culver City and La Jolla, as well as theaters in Bethesda, MD, Chicago and Glenview, IL, with a new location in Boston for 2019. ArcLight also owns and operates the historic Cinerama Dome and programs the TCL Chinese Theatre and IMAX in Hollywood. Pacific Theatres currently operates theaters in Los Angeles that include The Grove and The Americana at Brand in Glendale, CA. Additional information about ArcLight Cinemas is available at www.arclightcinemas.com.
