Although their movie “What’s the Matter with Kansas?”  has not officially premiered yet, in October they had what was supposed to be a modest work-in-progress screening at the Tallgrass Film  Festival in Wichita that just exploded.

The original purpose was to screen the movie for the people who appear in it, to invite them to attend and get their feedback, but as soon as Tallgrass fell in love with the movie and programmed it for the opening night of the festival, it became much bigger than that.

The screening quickly sold out the festival’s largest venue, so they opened up a second screen, and when that sold out, they booked an encore screening a couple days later – which also sold out!

Best of all, the movie drew an audience of conservatives, moderates and liberals into a lively discussion, the kind of exchange that rarely happens even during election season….. or maybe, especially not during election season…..

Some news coverage follows:

“What’s the Matter With Kansas?” Opens Tallgrass With Record Crowd
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27352833/

Tallgrass has best opening yet
http://www.kansas.com/entertainment/story/573484.html

A preview of the “What’s the Matter With Kansas” documentary sold out
despite added screenings at a Wichita film festival.
http://www.nbcactionnews.com/content/news/kansas/story.aspx?
content_id=9c3b8330-0700-40e2-802e-4d3309dc06af

Movie Mom admires “What’s the Matter with Kansas?”
http://blog.beliefnet.com/moviemom/2008/10/return-from-tallgrass.html

Radio interview with Laura and Joe:
http://www.whatsthematterwithkansas.com/JLinterview.mov

Local Chicago filmmaker and IFP/Chicago member, Joe Swanberg’s new film is featured in IndieWire.  Visit IndieWire to read this great review.

We are pleased to announce that Gary Marks’ ‘Dream Havana’ had its European premiere. ‘Dream Havana’ was recently chosen to participate in two separate film festivals in Spain.

The first one will be in the North, in the province of Galicia in a town called Ourense. The Festival is the 13th Annual Ourense Internaional Film Festival and Dream Havana is part of a special section called
Cuba Si!

The second festival, called Miradasdoc, takes place in the Canary Islands and begins October 31st. You can go and check on the exact dates and times of our screenings through their website.

Congrats Andrew Suprenant and 137 Films!

On Friday, September 19th, The Atom Smashers will premiere at the Museum of Science and Industry here in Chicago as a keystone event during the opening weekend of Science Chicago, a yearlong citywide effort to promote science.

The initiative is funded, in part, by the generous support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust.  It is also made possible through the generous financial support of Abbott, the Boeing Company, Illinois Tool Works Inc., and Motorola. The Museum of Science and Industry, which is spearheading the initiative and more than 100 additional partners have also come together to provide the content and programs that will help electrify the region.

This screening is in additional to multiple festival screenings including: Vedere la Scienza Milan, The Chicago Underground Film Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, Pariscience, Bergen International Film Festival, and the Austin Film Festival.

Best wishes on your continued success!

Congratulations Scott Smith!

LIKE DIZZY GILLESPIE’S CHEEKS, is a humorous glimpse into the life of an unmotivated, Chicago Jazz Pianist who is stuck playing dingy bars, museum benefits and Nordstrom’s half-yearly sales. As a matter of fact, he’ll play at just about any establishment that will hire him. Typically, he can count on his longtime mentor, jazz great Ben Webster, to join him for a late night set on the piano. Irritable and not just because he’s in his seventies, Ben leaves the club before playing a single note. The next day, Sam is devastated to learn that his best friend is dead. As a result, Sam’s perspective on life takes an abrupt change. He notices how pathetically insignificant ones life can truly be. Stumbling through some interesting yet awkward situations, both funny and sad, including being conflicted about whether he should allow himself to fall in love with Kate Buckley, the reporter trying to get a story about his friend Ben for ESQUIRE, or continue his unhealthy relationship with Liz Brightwater of the Brightwater Marble fortune,Sam realizes that life is happening now. It’s admirable to respect the past, but he must also learn to trust his future.

Writer/Director, Michael Caplan, and Co-Producer Sharon Zurek premiered their film “A Magical Vision” at the Gene Siskel Film Center on Friday, September 12 at 7:45 pm.

A Magical Vision spotlights Eugene Burger, a Chicago-based philosopher and magician, who is considered one of the great teachers of the magical arts. Eugene and his peers have fostered a movement reviving the shamanistic roots of magic performance. We have traveled across the country to interview Eugene, Max Maven, Jeff McBride, Luna Shemada, Larry Hass, and other magicians and thinkers who have opened the doors to this astounding world.

The Gene Siskel Film Center is located at 164 North State Street in Chicago.

Ohio Filmmaker Set for Premiere of Locally-Produced Short Film

Dayton, OH – Aug 28, 2008 – Derek W Beck, a Medina County native now living in Los Angeles, prepares for his directorial debut of his short film titled “Y Not”. Shot entirely in the Dayton area and completed in early 2007, the film will be showcased at the Chicago International REEL Shorts Fest running Sept 12 through the 14th.

Shot on 16mm color film using Dayton-area actors and crew, “Y Not” tells the story of a successful realtor who takes a moment from her busy life to help a complete stranger. But in a comedic and unexpected way, the realtor finds their lives are more connected than it seems.

After graduating from Ohio University in physics, Derek received a commission in the US Air Force. His first assignment was at the Los Angeles AFB, where he had the opportunity to make a technical Air Force video that was later aired in part on CNN. It was then that his love affair with directing and film began.

Derek then spent the next several years balancing his passion for film while serving on active duty. “Y Not”, his second major production, was shot in Dayton while off-duty from his assignment at Wright-Patterson AFB.

With the exception of a few technical courses taken at the New York Film Academy, where he directed several student films, most of Derek’s film education is self-taught, either from reading books or trial-and-error.

Derek recently left active duty military life to pursue film directing full-time. He now resides in Los Angeles, but continues to serve in the Air Force Reserves at Wright-Patterson.

Gary’s film Dream Havana was chosen as winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary this year’s Chicago Latino Film Festival.

“We’re very pleased about the prize, both because of the importance of the festival and because it was awarded by the film going public.” -Gary Marks