Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival unspools 41 feature films and 12 short film programs over the following 10 days with virtual streaming continuing until October 8.
Reeling is the second longest-running film festival of its kind, and prides itself on showcasing the best LGBTQ+ films and videos each year. From award-winning international feature films to social documentaries to experimental shorts, Reeling has always presented a range of genres that demonstrate the rich diversity of work being produced. Not only has Reeling become one of the most important cultural events for Chicagoans, it also attracts LGBTQ+ people from throughout the Midwest who consider the festival to be the highlight of their cinematic year.
This year’s edition of Reeling, which coincides with the 50th anniversary of producing organization Chicago Filmmakers, is programmed by award-winning filmmaker Morgan Jon Fox (narrative features); filmmaker, editor, and former Columbia College Chicago professor Sharon Zurek (shorts); and film critic, filmmaker, and DePaul University professor Dan Pal (documentary features); with the QuE3R FrAm3s series co-programmed by recent Loyola University graduate Levi Sierra and long-time film programmer and Columbia College Chicago instructor Patrick Friel.
This year’s Narrative Centerpiece is Tom Gustafson’s GLITTER & DOOM, a vibrant musical romance set to the tunes of the Indigo Girls which follows the summer love story of a serious musician and a free-spirited circus performer, starring a phenomenal cast including Missi Pyle, Ming-Na Wen, Lea DeLaria, Tig Notaro, and more.
Additional highlights of this year’s narrative features program include the U.S. Premiere of Emily Railsback’s AMERICAN PARENT, in which the everyday chaos of raising a toddler is intensified for a Chicago lesbian couple maneuvering through the pandemic and professional uncertainty; the World Premiere of GANYMEDE, Colby Holt and Sam Probst’s Southern gothic tale in which the son of a small-town politician falls in love with an openly gay classmate; Erica Tremblay’s directorial debut FANCY DANCE, a gripping crime thriller that explores family bonds and Native identity amidst a search for a missing woman; Jac Cron’s CHESTNUT, starring Natalia Dyer as an aspiring writer who becomes entangled in a relationship with a man and a woman; and the Berlin Film Festival Teddy award-winning Nigerian film, directed by Babatunde Apalowo, ALL THE COLOURS OF THE WORLD ARE BETWEEN BLACK & WHITE, about a truck driver in Lagos whose life is transformed when he meets a charismatic photographer.
Also making their World Premieres are THE JUDGMENT, Marwan Mokbel Elessawi’s tale of an Egyptian American gay man and his boyfriend who visit his family in Egypt and are threatened with witchcraft; and QUEEN TUT, starring Alexandra Billings as a drag mother to a shy young Egyptian immigrant who desperately wants to learn the ways of the glittery drag world, directed by Reem Morsi.
The documentary program explores the world we live in with features spanning topics from politics to parties, films to cooking, and beyond. Highlights include Timothy Harris’s KENYATTA: DO NOT WAIT YOUR TURN, the inspirational story of Malcolm Kenyatta, a Black gay man who grew up in North Philly and makes a historic run for the U.S. Senate; CHASING CHASING AMY, an illuminating look at the history and impact of Kevin Smith’s 1997 film CHASING AMY, from director Sav Rodgers; Marc Saltarelli’s dive into the story of a historic West Hollywood gay disco in STUDIO ONE FOREVER; and the World Premiere of SUSAN FENIGER. FORKED, about the celebrity chef who got her start working in the kitchen of Chicago’s Le Perroquet as she opens her first solo restaurant in Los Angeles, documented by her partner, Emmy-award winning filmmaker Liz Lachman.
Transgender stories command a central focus in this year’s program, with highlights including Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren’s heartwarming, visually stunning journey of an eight-year-old girl exploring her gender identity in 20,000 SPECIES OF BEES; BREAK THE GAME, Jane M. Wagner’s look at a live-streaming gamer who attempts to become the world’s fastest “Legend of Zelda” player; Trevor Anderson’s BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND, about a gender nonconforming adolescent who forms a complex bond with the school bully; and, showing as part of the edgy QuE3R FrAm3s Series, creature-feature T BLOCKERS, 17-year-old director Alice Maio Mackay’s third feature, about ancient parasites taking over a small town; and a revival screening of Stephen Winter’s 1997 classic political satire CHOCOLATE BABIES, following a band of HIV-positive Black drag queens, trans and queer urban activists, and a gay Filipino-American government employee as they expose political corruption surrounding the AIDS epidemic, showing in a brand-new HD restoration.
Nominees for the AARP Silver Image Award, which recognizes excellence in the representation of LGBTQIA documentary subjects or fictional characters over age 55, include the feature films FEBRERO, in which a widowed Cuban-American woman celebrates her 64th birthday alone when she gets a surprise visit; MOE, about the going away party for a dying theater director; A BIG HAIRY HIT! WHERE THE BEARS ARE: THE DOCUMENTARY, about three middle-aged show business veterans who, fed up with the ageist Hollywood film industry, create a hit campy web series; and the documentaries STUDIO ONE FOREVER and SUSAN FENIGER. FORKED, as well as short films ALMOST FALL, THE END, CAMPFIRE, MAKING UP, NOW, DAPHNE, and TRIPPING.
Ticketing Information:
Tickets are available online at reelingfilmfest.org in advance, or at the theater’s box office on the day of the screening.
Locations:
Landmark’s Century Centre Cinema
2828 N Clark St
The Chicago Filmmakers Firehouse Cinema
1326 W Hollywood Ave
DAY 2 OF REELING 2023 9/22
Screening at the Reeling 2023 Festival Hub at the Landmark Century Centre Cinemas (2828 N. Clark St.)
American Parent (Dir. Emily Railsback) at 7:00PM – Co-Presented by the PFlag Council of Northern Illinois with a post-screening event featuring director Emily Railsback!
Norwegian Dream (Dir. Leiv Igor Devold) at 7:15PM
The Judgment (Dir. Marwan Mokbel Elessawi) at 9:15PM with a post-screening event featuring director/writer Marwan Mokbel, star Junes Zahdi, and cinematographer Leo Purman!
All the Colours of the World are Between Black and White (Dir. Babatunde Apalowo) at 9:30PM
QuE3r FrAm3s @ The Chicago Filmmakers Firehouse Cinema (1326 W. Hollywood Ave.)
Anhell 69 (Dir. Theo Montoya) at 7:00PM
T Blockers (Dir. Alice Maio Mackay) at 9:00PM
DAY 3: SATURDAY 9/23 REELING SCHEDULE
Screening at the Reeling 2023 Festival Hub at the Landmark Century Centre Cinemas (2828 N. Clark St.)
The Chambermaid (Dir. Mariana Cengel-Solcanská) at 12:30PM
This is Not Me (Dirs. Jeyan Kader Gulsen, Zekiye Kacak) at 1:00PM
Studio One Forever (Dir. Marc Satarelli) co-presented by Gerber/Hart at 2:45PM with a post-screening event featuring director Marc Satarelli!
Before I Change my Mind (Dir. Trevor Anderson) at 3:00PM
Chasing Chasing Amy (Dir. Sav Rodgers) co-presented by Gerber/Hart at 5:00PM
About Us But Not About Us (Dir. Jun Lana) at 5:15PM
Silver Haze (Dir. Sascha Polak) at 7:15PM
Ganymede (Dirs. Colby Holt, Sam Probst) at 9:00PM with a post-screening event featuring filmmakers Colby Holt, Sam Probst, Steve Stanley and stars Jordan Doww and Pablo Castelblanco!
SHORTS: Smokin’ Hot and Regular Hot at 9:15PM
QuE3r FrAm3s @ The Chicago Filmmakers Firehouse Cinema (1326 W. Hollywood Ave.)
Playland (Dir. Gordon West) at 7:00PM
Chocolate Babies (Dir. Stephen Winter) at 9:00PM with a post-screening event featuring director Stephen Winter!
DAY 4: SUNDAY 9/24 REELING SCHEDULE
Screening at the Reeling 2023 Festival Hub at the Landmark Century Centre Cinemas (2828 N. Clark St.)
Egghead and Twinkie (Dir. Sarah Kambe Holland) at 12:30PM with a special post-screening event featuring director/writer Sarah Kambe Holland!
Fireworks (Dir. Giuseppe Fiorello) at 1:00PM
Big Boys (Dir. Corey Sherman) at 2:30PM with a special post-screening event featuring director/writer Corey Sherman and star Emma Broz!
20,000 Species of Bees (Dir. Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren) at 3:30PM co-presented with Instituto Cervantes of Chicago.
Susan Feniger. FORKED (Dir. Liz Lachman) at 4:30PM with a special post-screening event featuring director Liz Lachman, producer Lisa Donmall-Reeve, and Susan Feniger herself!
Leilani’s Fortune (Dir. Loveleen Kaur) at 6:00PM with a special post-screening event featuring director Loveleen Kaur!
Since the Last Time We Met (Dir. Matías De Leis Correa) at 7:00PM
House of Izabel (Dir. Gil Baroni) at 8:15PM
Drifter (Dir. Hannes Hirsch) at 8:45PM
SPOTLIGHT ON SCREENINGS:
Sun, Sep 24th, 12:30 PM @ Landmark’s Century Centre Cinema, Theater 4
From the new article in Block Club Chicago featuring #Reeling2023 Narrative Features Programmer, Morgan Jon Fox:
“Redefining the coming-of-age film: ‘Egghead & Twinkie’
Most queer coming-of-age films follow the typical tropes of the coming-out narrative: queer teenagers wrestling with their sexuality, struggling to come to terms or express it to those around them. But as with this year’s lineup, Fox found it refreshing to see more films in this space celebrating queer love and crushes, “truly allowing the queer voice to own these narratives as opposed to the forces working against them.”
One powerful example of this is director Sarah Kambe Holland’s ‘Egghead & Twinkie,’ a quirky charmer starring Sabrina Jieafa as an Asian-American teen who, shortly after coming out to her parents, drags her nerdy, straight best friend (Louis Tomeo’s Egghead) on a cross-country road trip to a lesbian dance party where she might just meet her crush. ‘This debut feature confidently embraces the joy and freedom that so many queer coming-of-age movies don’t allow their characters to express,’ said Fox.’”
Stick around after the screening for a special Q&A with director/writer Sarah Kambe Holland!
TICKETS TO EGGHEAD AND TWINKIE: SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 AT 12:30PM
DAY 5: MONDAY 9/25 REELING SCHEDULE
Screening at the Reeling 2023 Festival Hub at the Landmark Century Centre Cinemas (2828 N. Clark St.)
Queen Tut (Dir. Reem More) at 7:00PM with a special post-screening event featuring producer Shant Joshi!
Healed (Dir. Meghan Weinstein) at 7:15PM
Single, Out (Dir. Lee Galea) at 9:15PM
Break the Game (Dir. Jane M. Wagner) at 9:30PM
DAY 6: MONDAY 9/26 REELING SCHEDULE
Screening at the Reeling 2023 Festival Hub at the Landmark Century Centre Cinemas (2828 N. Clark St.)
Fancy Dance (Dir. Erica Tremblay) at 7:00PM
Kenyatta: Do Not Wait Your Turn (Dir. Timothy Harris) at 7:15PM Co-presented with Black Alphabet!
Golden Delicious (Dir. Jason Karman) at 9:00PM
The Floating Man (Dir. Michael V. Smith) at 9:30PM
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