A lyrical, decades-spanning exploration across a woman’s life in Mississippi, the feature debut from award-winning poet, photographer, and filmmaker Raven Jackson and producer Barry Jenkins (Moonlight) is a haunting and richly layered portrait, and a beautiful ode to the generations of people and places that shape us.
Sumptuously shot on 35mm film with evocative sound design and elliptical editing, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt unfolds like a dream, skipping around in time and seizing on key moments in its protagonist’s existence from infancy to adulthood. With a sensitive touch, each frame captures the fragile beauty of every passing second. What emerges is a stunningly tactile vision of family, womanhood, and the sights and sounds of the American South.
Chicago native Haroula Rose (Once Upon a River) directs this delightful dysfunctional family comedy about Graham Landry (Josh Radnor), an eternally aspiring actor in Chicago who’s stuck in a funk and living in his family’s crumbling two-flat. When an old college crush (Chandra Russel) comes looking to rent the first floor apartment at the same time as his TV star brother Will’s (Rob Huebel) return home, Graham must finally grow up — if he can get out of his own way.
With a stellar cast of comic talents led by the lovable Radnor (How I Met Your Mother) and the love-to-hate Huebel (Childrens Hospital) and David Pasquesi playing a sleazy family friend, All Happy Families wrings humor and pathos from its flawed, yet sympathetic cast of characters as they try to overcome bad choices, entrenched sexism, and their own human foibles.
We chatted with director Haroula Rose about her very Chicago film All Happy Families,, how music fits into her filmmaking, and of course, her favorite Chicago movies.
Josh Radnor, Becky Ann Baker, Rob Huebel, Chandra Russell, John Ashton, Colleen Camp, David Pasquesi
Zac Rae, Oliver Hill
Ted Reilly, Kelly Waller, Mark Glassgow, Rhianon Jones, Tristan Scott-Behrends, Marshall Cordell, Susan Berghoef, Milan Chakraborty, Jack Williams, Michael Shannon
Ten to the Six, Chicago Media Angels, Glass Bead Films, Neon Heart, Fair Enough
Pulled pork, ribs, and liverwurst sandwiches — these are a few of the Southern delicacies filmmaker Eric D. Seals grew up eating alongside his father, Donnie Seals, Sr. But after facing death and undergoing the first of three quadruple bypass operations, the elder Seals decided to completely overhaul his life. Bike Vessel chronicles Donnie’s new chapter after becoming an avid cyclist, and follows the two men as they set out on an epic bike ride from St. Louis to Chicago.
Filled with flat tires, GPS snafus, and fast-food detours, the documentary is both a funny document of a father-son road trip and a powerful social statement. Through Eric and Donnie’s relationship, it takes a hard look at health disparities in the Black community and the systemic racism plaguing the well-being of Black men in America.
This film will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT, available only in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Learn more about streaming…
The heartfelt story follows two 10-year-olds, Malik and Eric, as they revel in the freedoms of boyhood and the joys of friendship. The projects are their playground, and every stairway, roof, and stretch of blacktop is just another place for adventure. But when violence comes to their neighborhood, their safe haven is fractured, and Malik’s mother Dolores (Jurnee Smollett) must decide whether to stay or move away.
We chatted with director Minhal Baig about the origin of the story behind We Grown Now, recreating 1990s Cabrini-Green on screen, and her favorite Chicago movies.
Andre Muir, Jennifer Boles, Ian Bertorelli, Jason Park, Jens Ericson, Danny Laboy Valdez, Akanksha Chawla
United States
Synopsis
Chicago-made short films create a patchwork of perspectives on life in the city.Featuring a profile of a busker (Red Line Lounge), an exploration of the city’s bricks (Sacred Brick Technology), a comedy about a souvenir salesman (BJs Mobile Gift Shop), a document of the reversal of the Chicago River (The Reversal), an examination of gun violence (4 Corners), a rumination on family and place (Under the Skyway), and a comedy about a dog sitter (Close Ties to Home Country).