FACETS will host a special one-night-only screening of Hekla, by Chicago filmmaker Michael Glover Smith, on Thursday, June 4, followed by a live Q&A featuring the cast and crew.
The event takes place at FACETS, located at 1517 W. Fullerton Ave., beginning at 7 p.m. General admission tickets are $14, with FACETS members receiving a discounted $10 admission.
Described by Richard Roeper as “a real Chicago gem,” Hekla offers an intimate portrait of life as a working actor navigating ambition, heartbreak, uncertainty, and the struggle for artistic survival in Chicago.
Set across one emotionally chaotic day, the comedy-drama follows aspiring actress Hekla Gudmunsdottir, played by co-writer Elizabeth Stam, as she races between auditions, relationship fallout, intrusive thoughts, and a performance of Lady Macbeth staged in a dive bar. Watch the trailer below:
The film leans heavily into the realities of creative struggle rather than romanticizing the profession, grounding itself in recognizable Chicago spaces and the grit of independent filmmaking.
Before the feature screening, audiences will also see Psychogenic Fugue, a short film from photographer and filmmaker Sandro Miller starring John Malkovich.
Following the screening, FACETS will host a Q&A moderated by Indie Outlook critic Matt Fagerholm featuring:
- Michael Glover Smith
- Elizabeth Stam
- Actress Mary Tilden
- Cinematographer Jose Perez
- Production designer Heather Kuhlmann
- Hair and makeup artist Heather Vogt
Smith has steadily built a reputation within Chicago’s independent film community for character-driven stories rooted in emotional realism and local texture, and Hekla continues that tradition with a sharply personal look at the emotional toll and persistence required to pursue a creative life.
Honestly, Chicago indie cinema rarely gets enough credit for how consistently it produces deeply human, actor-focused storytelling outside the studio system. Events like this feel like a reminder of that ecosystem still thriving.
Tickets and additional information are available through FACETS.
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