Synopsis

In the quiet and impactful Memorial (U.S.) the community of Highland Park, Illinois, commemorates those who lost their lives in the Independence Day shooting of 2022. The documentary recollects the attack and chronicles a public memorial created in response by residents in the days that followed. A meditation on processing collective trauma, Memorial uses simple elements–the voices of survivors and site-specific images of the area–to mark the tragedy.

Followed by a post-screening discussion with director Jon Siskel, co-founder of Siskel/Jacobs Productions, whose Louder Than a Bomb and The Road Up screened previously at the Chicago International Film Festival. He will be joined by one of the subjects of Memorial, Jacqueline Von Edelberg, and activist, Delphine Cherry.

Delphine Cherry is the founder of the TY Foundation (Tender Youth); formed after the murder of her son Tyler Randolph. The foundation provides support, resources for family members and loved ones impacted by gun violence in our communities. Delphine is an activist for peace and is on the forefront of the movement to find solutions to America’s gun violence crisis. She also works as an Illinois state lead with Brady United Against Gun Violence.  Delphine has been a resident of Hazel Crest for sixteen years; she grew up on the south side of Chicago.

Jacqueline Von Edelberg is the artist activist who created and nourished the memorial in Highland Park after the deadly attack. Jacqueline is the founder of Arts4Impact.org, working to empower people through the transformative power of the arts.

This film also screens as part of the Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion program.

Synopsis

In Accidental Athlete, Paulette Jones Morant recounts her athletic journey at the University of Virginia in the 1970s. This doc short is a recent entry in the Black Fire series co-created by filmmaker Kevin Jerome Everson and historian Claudrena N. Harold with students and alumni of the University of Virginia. Using re-enactment, first person accounts, and contemporary modes of performance, the series creatively mixes elements of the past and present to celebrate those who worked for racial equality at the university.

This film screens as part of the Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion program.

Synopsis

Mountain Man chronicles Phuntsho Tshering and his annual sacred journey to the Himalayas to track the movement of the glaciers. The difficult trip separates him from his family for extended stretches of time and represents a singular responsibility as he is the only person permitted to disturb the region for urgent climate research. The breath-taking views of the remote location nearly untouched by humans and the often solitary nature of his journey constitute a meditative treatise on the on-going effects of climate change and our relationship to the wild planet we call home.

This film screens as part of the Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion program.

Synopsis

The poetry of the passage of time is seen on the faces of the elderly and in the voices of a youth choir in A reflection. This abstract doc is a simple testament to the effect of music on human emotion.

This film screens as part of the Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion program.

Synopsis

In this tense thriller, a gamer reveals the sexist harassment and threats she receives from online trolls and finds they infiltrate more than just her computer. Resonances between the war game being played online and IRL political protests happening outside destabilize the viewer’s experience.

This film screens as part of the Shorts 5: Drama – Breaking Points program.