CHICAGO PREMIERE OF QUEENS OF COUNTRY
WITH APPEARANCE BY LIZZY CAPLAN, JOE LO TRUGLIO, AND MORE, LAUNCHES
4TH ANNUAL CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL MOVIES & MUSIC FESTIVAL
AT VARIOUS VENUES AROUND CHICAGO, APRIL 12-15
WITH APPEARANCE BY LIZZY CAPLAN, JOE LO TRUGLIO, AND MORE, LAUNCHES
4TH ANNUAL CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL MOVIES & MUSIC FESTIVAL
AT VARIOUS VENUES AROUND CHICAGO, APRIL 12-15
Individual Tickets On-Sale Now!
ChiIL Live Shows will be there and have reviews and photo filled recaps all weekend. The features in red are some of our favs.
The Chicago Premiere of Queens of Country with a special appearance by Lizzy Caplan, Joe Lo Truglio, and Matt Walsh; appearances by other filmmakers, actors, and musicians including Horatio Sanz, Irvine Welsh, and Bobby Bare Jr.; several World and U.S. Premieres; three film series: “British Invasion,” “Punk Around the World,” and “Always for Pleasure and More: Six Music Films by Les Blank”; a rare performance of “Rapper’s Delight” featuring Wonder Mike and Master Gee, founding members of The Sugarhill Gang; special events and live performances; and much more highlight the 4th Annual Chicago International Movies & Music Festival (CIMMfest). The four-day festival annually brings together filmmakers, musicians, and devotees from around the world for a celebration of movies and music at various venues around Chicago’s Wicker Park and Logan Square neighborhoods, including the recently renovated Logan Theatre, Thursday, April 12 – Sunday, April 15.
More than 50 films from over 20 countries will be screened including features, documentaries, shorts, concert films, animation, and music videos, all of which have music at their center. Supplementing the films will be live performances, numerous appearances by filmmakers and actors, incredible DJ/VJ events, a Rock Poster Show, panel discussions, and more. The complete schedule of films, events, and locations is available on www.CIMMfest.org.
“Now entering our fourth festival we are excited to showcase an even wider range of films and live performances, including Brit and Punk rock, Improv, and Broadway, all across Chicago’s vibrant Wicker Park and Logan Square neighborhoods,” said Josh Chicoine, CIMMfest Co-Director, with Ilko Davidov. “CIMMfest is unique in that we truly aim to highlight the crossover of film and song, shedding light on the interconnectedness of all people, around the world, through the lens of music and moving image. Along with our board of directors, partners, sponsors, friends and supporters, we are thrilled to be curating these amazing four days in April!”
Festival highlights include:
• This year’s Opening Night film will be the Chicago Premiere of Queens of Country (Dirs. Ryan Page and Christopher Pomerenke) at Wicker Park Arts Center, 2215 W. North Avenue, on Thursday, April 12 at 7pm. Starring Lizzy Caplan (Mean Girls), Ron Livingston (Office Space), Joe Lo Truglio, and Matt Walsh, the film is about a spacey line-dancing queen who falls in love with the owner of a lost iPod because the music on it touches her soul, thus launching a deeply weird plot that leads to kidnappings, time travel, doppelgangers, and Joe Lo Truglio in a dress. Lizzy Caplan, Joe Lo Truglio, Matt Walsh, and directors Ryan Page and Christopher Pomerenke will be in attendance for a post show Q&A.
• Closing out this year’s festival will be the exclusive work-in-progress preview of Don’t Follow Me (I’m Lost): A Film about Bobby Bare Jr. (Dir. William Miller) at the Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, on Sunday, April 15 at 7pm. The film is a compelling look at the hard life of a touring musician who, despite his famous pedigree, still has to worry about feeding his family while trying to connect with his fans and follow his muse. Following the film will be a performance from “shit-hot honky-tonk” legend Lawrence Peters with his Outfit and then the film’s star, Bobby Bare Jr.
• A rare performance of “Rapper’s Delight” featuring Wonder Mike and Master Gee, founding members of The Sugarhill Gang, in support of the documentary, I Want My Name Back, at Wicker Park Arts Center on Friday, April 13 at 7pm. The film follows the rise, fall, and comeback of the band. Director Roger Paradiso will also be in town for a post-screening Q&A.
• The Chicago Premiere of High Road at the Logan Theatre on Friday, April 13 at 7pm, directed by Matt Walsh, founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade. The film captures the disillusionment and resilience of the Millennial Generation and features several well known comedians. Lizzy Caplan, Horatio Sanz, Joe Lo Truglio, Zach Woods, and Joe Nunez will all be in attendance for the screening along with Walsh.
• The unique opportunity to see films screened with live music accompaniment, including Hubble’s Hubble and the Chicago Premiere of The Three Grace(s) Triptych (Dirs. Nicola Kuperus & Adam Lee Miller) at Wicker Park Arts Center on Friday, April 13, and the World Premiere of SciFiSol (Dir. Joseph Richard Lewis) at Wicker Park Arts Center on Saturday, April 14. Hubble’s Hubble at 9:30pm, pairs the minimalist, loop-based solo guitar music of Ben Greenburg with images from the world’s most famous telescope. Following, at 10:30pm, will be the The Three Grace(s) Triptych, accompanied live by ADULT, an avant-garde horror trilogy comprising three separate, but interconnected, short films—Decampment (2008), Traditions (2010), and Possession(s) (2011)—that reflect the dark, unsettling themes found in ADULT’s unique brand of dance music. SciFiSol, known as the first “silent movie super hero video game musical,” is about a lonely video game designer whose most recent creation starts to take over the world and will feature a live accompaniment by The Underground Multiplex and Melody Nife at 10:30pm.
• Coming off successful showings at SXSW will be the Chicago Premieres of Charles Bradley: Soul of America (Dir. Poull Brien), at the Logan Theater on Friday, April 13 at 9pm, and Just Like Being There (Dir. Scout Shannon), at Wicker Park Arts Center on Sunday, April 15 at 3:15pm. Charles Bradley: Soul of America is the story of Charles Bradley and how at the age of 62 he reached a point where he could share his story and music with millions of listeners. Just Like Being There is a look at the expanding scene of rock show posters and the artists who make them including Daniel Danger, Jay Ryan, and local hero Steve Walters who designed the CIMMfest poster.
• The exclusive work-in-progress preview of Parallax Sounds (Dir. Augusto Contento), a contemplative film that examines the relationship between Chicago’s dynamic urban landscape and the trailblazing musicians who defined its underground sound from the 1990s into the future, at Wicker Park Arts Center on Saturday, April 14 at 5:30pm.
• A special presentation of Irvine Welsh’s Ecstasy (Dir. Rob Heydon), a dark romantic comedy based on the controversial, bestselling book of the same name by Irvine Welsh, at Logan Theater on Friday, April 13 at 9:30pm. Director Rob Heydon and writer Irvine Welsh in person.
• A performance by the raucous, rowdy performance gang, Sister Spit, at Wicker Park Arts Center on Saturday, April 14 at 8pm. This multimedia explosion of taste-makers, novelists, luminaries, chanteuses, performance artists, poets and filmmakers will feature authors Michelle Tea (Valencia, Rent Girl) and Dorothy Allison (Bastard out of Carolina, Cavedweller), Mx Justin Vivian Bond, “the greatest cabaret artist of (v’s) generation” according to The New Yorker, and more!
• “British Invasion” featuring the World Premiere of This Band Is So Gorgeous! (Dir. Dunstan Bruce) at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 1pm, about Sham 69, the first important UK punk outfit to play in the land of Mao and managed capitalism; the Chicago Premiere of The Beat Is the Law: Fanfare for the Common People (Dir. Eve Wood) at The Society for Arts on Saturday, April 14 at 9:15pm, which traces Pulp’s long, slow, remarkable rise against a backdrop of political and creative ferment in a city that battled with Thatcher and gave rise to industrial funk and house as well as Britpop’s misfit messiahs; and the Chicago Premiere of The Posters Came from the Walls (Dirs. Jeremy Deller & Nick Abrahams) at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 11:15pm, highlighting the devout fan base of Depeche Mode.
• A film series focusing on niche genres such as “Punk Around the World” featuring the US Premieres of Pank: The Rise of Punk in Chile (Dir. Martín Núñez) at the Logan Theater on Sunday, April 15 at 1pm; Punk in Africa (Dir. Deon Maas, Keith Jones) at the Logan Theater on Sunday, April 15 at 3:15pm; Punk’s Not Dead (Dir. Vladimir Blazevski) at The Society for Arts on Saturday, April 14 at 5pm; and the Chicago Premiere Sons of Norway (Dir. Jens Lien) at The Society for Arts on Sunday, April 15 at 5:30pm.
• “Always for Pleasure and More: Six Music Films by Les Blank” featuring a six-film retrospective of the music documentaries of America’s greatest documentarian, Les Blank, at the Logan Theater. The films include: Ziveli! Medicine for the Heart (1987) and A Well Spent Life (1971) on Friday, April 13 at 7pm; Spend It All (1971) and Dry Wood (1973) on Saturday, April 14 at 5pm; and Dizzy Gillespie (1965) and Always for Pleasure (1978) on Saturday, April 14 at 9:30pm. Les Blank will be in attendance for all screenings.
• Three shorts programs: Shorts Program 1: Variety Is the Heart of CIMMfest featuring Two Sisters, Audiogram, Heart of Rhyme, Mo Kenny’s “Eden,” and Below New York at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 1pm; Shorts Program 2: Roots-Rock Gods and Welshmen featuring Approximately Nels Cline, One Big Holiday, and a sneak preview of Joe Angio’s upcoming film Revenge of the Mekons at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 3pm; and Shorts Program 3: North and South of the Border featuring Narcocorrido and Hamac Caziim at Wicker Park Arts Center on Sunday, April 15 at 1pm.
• The Chicago Premieres of Jason Becker: Not Dead Yet (Dir. Jesse Vile) at The Society for Arts on Friday, April 13 at 7pm, a documentary about legendary rock guitarist, Jason Becker, a child prodigy diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease who is still alive, writing music using his eyes; Louder Than Love: The Grande Ballroom Story (Dir. Tony D'Annunzio) at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 3pm, the story of The Grande Ballroom, the epicenter of Detroit’s rock music scene in the late ‘60s, told by the artists who helped create the legend; Uprising: Hip Hop and the LA Riots (Dir. Mark Ford) at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 7:15pm, a feature length documentary executive produced and narrated by hip hop legend Snoop Dogg that captures the connection between the Los Angeles Riots of 1992 and rap music; The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best (Dir. Ryan O’Nan) at the Logan Theater on Saturday, April 14 at 7:15pm, a multihyphenate road trip about Alex, a pathetically down-on-his luck singer-songwriter, who hits the road with a self-described “musical revolutionary”; Fluchkes (Dir. Ofer Inov), a feature documentary about an inspiring group of women artists in their 70’s who refuse to let age get in the way of their art at The Society for Arts on Sunday, April 15 at 1pm; One Night Stand (Dirs. Elisabeth Sperling & Trish Dalton) at the Logan Theater on Sunday, April 15 at 1pm, a documentary about the 24-hour musical festival in New York, featuring Rachel Dratch, Roger Bart, Nellie McKay, and Cheyenne Jackson; and more!
COMPETITION
For the fourth year, most films will be up for competition, with awards given to the Best Feature Documentary, Best Short Documentary, Best Fictional Feature, Best Short Fiction, and Best Music Video. The esteemed jury consists of: Allison Anders (Filmmaker, Border Radio, Gas Food Lodging), Keirda Bahruth (Filmmaker, "Bob and the Monster", Best Doc at CIMMfest'11), Warren Cohen (Executive Producer, VH1 Rock Docs), Jon Langford (Artist/Musician), Marty Lennartz (WXRT Radio Personality), John McNaughton (Filmmaker, Mad Dogs and Glory), Dave Watson (MusicFilmWeb), and Irvine Welsh (Author, Trainspotting).
FESTIVAL TICKETS & VENUES
Single tickets are now on-sale and priced at $7-$10; most special events are $15. Concerts are priced by the venues. Tickets for all screenings and events are available at www.CIMMfest.org.
Festival venues include: Debonair Social Club (1575 N. Milwaukee), Double Door (1572 N. Milwaukee), Hideout (1354 W. Wabansia), The Logan Theater (2646 N. Milwaukee), Rodan (1530 N. Milwaukee), The Society for Arts (1112 N. Milwaukee), and Wicker Park Arts Center (2215 W. North Avenue).
The 2012 CIMMfest is sponsored by the DePaul School of Cinema and Interactive Media.
ABOUT CIMMFEST
The mission of the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival (CIMMfest) is to highlight the crossover of film and song through the production of an annual four-day, multi-venue festival in the city of Chicago. Ultimately, we strive to shed light on the interconnectedness of all people, around the world, shown through the lens of music and moving image, both recorded and performed live. All of the films screened at CIMMfest have music at their center: short and long form documentaries and narrative fiction; concert films; animation; music videos, along with related performances and concerts, art exhibits and panel discussions, presented at historic and famous venues around Chicago. Operating as a non-profit organization, we mean to provide a platform for filmmakers and musicians to present their vision and a connection point for like minded artists, directors, producers, fans, and aficionados to come together for a celebration of movies, music, and great times in the greatest city on earth -- Chicago! For more information or to get involved visit www.CIMMfest.org. CIMMfest is a 501C-3 organization.
