Exposure for independent film
The village of Palatine this weekend just might be a stepping stone to the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
Filmmakers from across the country are in town for the seventh annual International Microcinema Film Festival, hosted the last three years by the Palatine-based Theatre Nebula company.
In recent years, the fest has drawn the likes of director Patrick Reed Johnson, of "Baby's Day Out," and award-winning director Bill Holmes, as well as independent directors, producers, writers and actors looking to see the latest trends in filmmaking.
Short and feature length movies are showcased at the fest, including dramas, comedies, sci-fi horror films, action and documentaries.
The festival opens at 7 p.m. Thursday at Cutting Hall, with screenings that last until 11:30 p.m. Successive screenings take place from 1-11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, all at Cutting Hall, with after-parties hosted at Furlongs at Hotel Indigo in Palatine.
J. Spencer Greene, founder of Theatre Nebula, says the committee drew nearly 80 submitted films for review, and of those they chose nine feature lengths and 27 shorts for screening at the festival.
"It's the best lineup of films we've had yet." Greene said. "Most of these are award-winners from other festivals who would love to see their film accepted at Sundance."
Included in the group of feature lengths is the film, "Imprint," airing Thursday night. The thriller was produced by twins Michael and Marc Linn, who started the Microcinema Film Festival seven years ago in their native Rapid City, SD.
Their latest film reflects their home state, as it follows an American Indian attorney prosecuting a Lakota teen in a controversial murder trial.
"Unfortunately, they won't be here this weekend, because they're in Los Angeles working on a full-length feature film," Greene said. "That just demonstrates how far these filmmakers can go."
As a body of work, selected films represent the growing number of independent filmmakers -- all over the world -- able to work in the medium thanks to the accessibility offered by more affordable equipment.
"Just to be accepted into this competition, these films had to have cost $30,000 or less to make," Greene said. "I'd say 90 to 95 percent of them cost $5,000 or less, but you'd never know it by their quality."
He adds that most of the films were made on a home computer, using increasingly sophisticated technology.
"The quality is just incredible," Greene said. "That's what is making this industry boom."
Feature lengths were submitted by production companies as far away as Auckland, New Zealand, as well as from Michigan, Iowa, Florida, Oregon, South Dakota and Texas.
Only one film from the Chicago area was accepted in the feature-length category. Collateral Damage Production Company, and its comedy, "The Chemistry of Dating," will be featured on Friday.
Written and directed by a pair of University of Iowa graduates, Jennifer Stolte and Matt Olson, now of Chicago, the film was adapted from a short story Olson wrote in college, about the pitfalls of a young man trying to make it in the college dating scene.
"The film has been screened in eight festivals and accepted into two more, including Microcinema Fest," Olson said. "We've had a great reaction to the film and are really excited about having another Chicagoland screening."
Awards will be given at a noon brunch on Sunday at Hotel Indigo, for everything from best acting and best films in the different genres, as well as best of the fest.
If you go
What: Seventh Annual International Microcinema Film Festival
When: Opens at 7 p.m. Thursday, with screenings that last until 11:30 p.m. Successive screenings take place from 1 to 11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Where: Cutting Hall, 150 E. Wood St. in Palatine
Cost: $6 for individual screenings or $7 onsite during the festival, or packages available for individual days, including $69 festival package, which includes all three days of screenings, meals and after parties, or $79 onsite
More information: www.microcinemafest.com