Looking for the suburbs' best film fests, and a few of the rest
Nothing says fall like - film festivals?
It's true.
Along with turning leaves, pumpkins and cooler weather, the suburbs can add an increasing number of exciting, new local film festivals to the list of annual expectations.
Naperville's film fest turns two this weekend. Elgin's is just getting started.
They join an impressive list of other, more established film fests in Chicago and the suburbs, making the autumn of 2009 a season any movie lover could fall for.
After all, the Chicago area - home of North America's oldest competitive film fest and birthplace of the original Siskel/Ebert movie-review TV show - can never have too many movie festivals, can it?
If you're ready for the excitement of experiencing new movies, from kitchen-sink amateur indies to slick studio productions, get ready! Here comes a selected list of the many film festivals dotting the local calendar this autumn.
The Naperville Independent Film Festival
This fest, under founders Edmond and Glessna Coisson, Gary Pradel and Daniel Nigg, has exploded into a major, weeklong cultural event on its second outing.
It starts Saturday, Sept. 19, with a "Ghostbusters" tribute at the Holiday Inn Select, 1801 N. Naper Blvd., Naperville. The opening night includes buffet dining, dancing, samplings of Dan Aykroyd's Crystal Head Vodka, a demo and a chance to win the new Atari Ghostbusters video game, plus a performance by Jim Peterik of the Ides of March. It's $10 per person or $15 per couple.
At 11 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 20, will be a "High School Musical Pep Rally" in downtown Naperville. A behind-the-scenes look at moviemaking, acting demos, stunts and discussions of film careers will be at the Holiday Inn Select.
Through Friday, Sept. 25, you can see loads of movies - shorts, animation, features, docs and foreign language works - at the Holiday Inn Select (6:30 to 11 p.m.) and the Ogden 6 Theatre (5 p.m. to midnight). More than 100 films from 19 countries will be featured.
Tickets cost $3; film fanatics can buy two tickets and get a third free at the Ogden 6, 1227 E. Ogden Ave., Naperville, for Wednesday and Friday premieres.
On Thursday, Sept. 24, the fest goes new-tech with "MuVchat," a brand-new technology that allows viewers to text onto the screen during the movie. It's at the Hollywood Palms, 352 S. Route 59, Naperville. Free admission! First-come, first-served.
On Saturday, Sept. 26, the Awards Gala will announce winners in the features, documentaries, short subjects, animation, foreign language, screenplay and student film categories.
Also on tap: "Raiders of the Lost Ark" star Karen Allen will make a personal appearance at the fest, along with Chicago's most durable and beloved film critic Roger Ebert, Naperville Mayor George Pradel and local musician Jim Peterik performing his hit song "Eye of the Tiger" from "Rocky III."
Tickets cost $25 and include dinner, all at the spectacular new theater complex Hollywood Palms.
Call (630) 514-4204 or go to naperfilmfest.org for details.
Elgin Short Film Fest
WGN entertainment reporter and film critic Dean Richards will serve as master of ceremonies for the awards program that caps the one-day Elgin Short Film Fest on Saturday, Sept. 26, at the Hemmens Cultural Center, 45 Symphony Way, Elgin.
Richards will lead a panel of judges in selecting the five finalists with winners voted on by audience members and the judges.
First prize is $1,000, second prize is $500 and third prize is $300. A special Hattie Hemmens Award of $500, named for the center's benefactor, will be presented to the short that best portrays Elgin.
More than 50 shorts are in competition. Tickets cost $5. Go to hemmens.org/filmfest for ticket purchase and schedules.
The Illinois International Film Festival
This year's fest will offer up a horror film made in Hampshire, comedic and dramatic shorts, features, documentaries and several experimental works. The three-day event begins Friday, Oct. 23, at the historic Arcada Theatre, 105 E. Main St. St. Charles.
Ticket information is yet to be announced. You can check on tickets and obtain schedules at illinoisinternationalfilmfestival.com.
The Chicago International Film Festival
Chicago's annual fest, now 45 years old, long ago established itself as a world-famous Windy City institution, still under the stewardship of its founder and executive director Michael Kutza.
The 2009 event runs from Thursday, Oct. 8, through Wednesday, Oct. 21. More than 150 motion pictures from more than 40 countries will be shown.
Individual tickets go on sale starting Wednesday, Sept. 23. (It's $12 for general admission.) A complete film schedule will be available on that date as well. In the meantime, you can still get a sneak-peek at the upcoming lineup at chicagofilmfestival.org.
The Chicago International Children's Film Festival
The 26th annual Children's Film Fest gets under way Thursday, Oct. 22, through Sunday, Nov. 1, at a couple of locations in Chicago and a theater in Wilmette. It remains North America's largest children's movie festival and the only one sanctioned by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. (That means local winners can go on to compete for the film shorts at the Oscars.)
Go to cicff.org for tickets, schedules and a long, long list of movies entered this year. Among them: the Chicago premiere of the new Wallace and Gromit animated short "A Matter of Loaf and Death," plus American premieres of "A Shine of Rainbows," "From Time to Time" and "Through a Glass Darkly."