Film Venues Archives: Virtual/Streaming

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Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion

  Various

  Bhutan, Germany, Switzerland, Ukraine, United States     90 minutes

Synopsis

These short documentaries offer singular looks into lives that have been transformed by pivotal events. Featuring works by Mila Zhluktenko, Daniel Asadi Faezi, Sean Wang, Jon Siskel, Kevin Jerome Everson, Claudrena N. Harold, Arun Bhattarai, Francesca Scalisi, and Mark Olexa.

Displaced by war, Ukrainian children make a former military barrack their playground in waking up in silence (Germany, Ukraine). Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó (U.S.) is a moving portrait of an elderly pair, their quirky rituals, and their strong sentiments for life. The community of Highland Park, Illinois, commemorates those who lost their lives in the Independence Day shooting of 2022 in Memorial (U.S.). In Accidental Athlete (U.S.), Paulette Jones Morant recounts her athletic journey at the University of Virginia in the 1970s. Mountain Man (Bhutan) chronicles Phuntsho Tshering and his annual sacred journey to the Himalayas to track the movement of the glaciers. 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 (Switzerland).

 Dzongkha, English, French, Mandarin, Russian, Spanish, Ukrainain with subtitles 

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.

Sponsors

Documentary Program Sponsors

Logo: WTTW (2019)Cynthia Stone Raskin

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Shorts 5: Drama – Breaking Points

  Various

  Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, France, Qatar, Switzerland, Turkey     95 minutes

Synopsis

These powerful shorts reflect on life’s twists and turns, exploring what we do in moments of profound impact. Featuring works by Valeria Hofmann, Kasım Ördek, Anya Chirkova, Meran Ismailsoy, Jorge Cadena, and Morad Mostafa.

A gamer reveals the sexist harassment and threats she receives from online trolls and finds they infiltrate more than just her computer in the tense thriller AliEN0089 (Chile, Argentina). A young couple is brought to a breaking point when their lifestyle of stealing cars goes too far in Together, Alone (Turkey, France). An Iranian immigrant enlists his son’s help to negotiate with his landlord with both disastrous and humorous results in Baba (Canada). In Flores del otro Patio (Colombia, Switzerland), a group of queer activists in the north of Colombia uses fearless performance art and direct action to protest the region’s largest coal mine. In the aftermath of a violent incident, a 17-year-old must do all he can to protect his family before it’s too late in the stunning and impactful I Promise You Paradise (Egypt, France, Qatar).

 Arabic, English, Persian, Spanish, Turkish with subtitles 

Content Considerations
Stalking, violence
Learn about Festival content considerations...

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.

Sponsors

Film Supporters

Logo: Canada 313x100

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Shorts 3: After Dark – Twisted Tales & Shadows of Innocence

  Various

  Canada, France, United States     89 minutes

Synopsis

These tense and terrifying shorts reflect how everyday life can turn into horror. Featuring works by Joséphine Darcy Hopkins, Olivia Loccisano, Stephanie Izsak, Kristine Gerolaga, Daphne Gardner, and Michael Gabriele.

Sweet Tooth (France) follows a game among children that grows increasingly out of control. After having her first period, a young girl goes through an unexpected transformation in First Blood (Canada). A teen girl discovers a new way to keep up with toxic beauty standards, but things don’t go as planned in Consumer (Canada). In Mosquito Lady (U.S.), a pregnant teen girl tries to get an abortion despite the objections of her conservative parents, forcing her into an unconventional and horrific experience. In the Flesh (U.S.) finds Tracey pleasuring herself in the shower when the pipes explode and she starts to leak black goo. In Get Away (U.S.), a group of friends rents a remote house in the desert. There, they find an old TV, a VHS player, and a tape containing terrifying coincidences.

 English, French, Tagalog with subtitles 

Content Considerations
Self harm, body horror, disordered eating, sexual violence
Learn about Festival content considerations...

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.

Sponsors

Film Supporters

Logo: Canada 313x100

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Shorts 1: City & State – Revelations

  Various

  United States, Japan     95 minutes

Synopsis

The six shorts in this program represent distinct modes of storytelling through film, while reflecting the diversity and creativity of our region. Featuring works by Dustin Nakao-Haider, McKenzie Chinn, Linh Tran, Tetsuya Mariko, Ian Kelly, and Brian Zahm.

In Ethan Lim: Cambodian Futures (U.S.), we follow a chef with a mission to share and elevate Cambodian food using his family’s recipes. Two friends living on the south side of Chicago find their friendship tested when one reveals a tightly-held secret in A Real One (U.S.). In Video Funeral (U.S.), two Vietnamese sisters bond over their father’s death and funeral. Two small-time thieves encounter an abandoned car with a small child in the backseat in Before Anyone Else (Japan, U.S.). A grandson uses animation to reconstruct a loved one’s lost memories in the documentary Soft Lights and Silver Shadows (U.S.). Photosynthesis (U.S.) takes the viewer on a 3D journey in the form of a 1960s perceptual art-inspired experience.

 Canronese, English, Khmer, Vietnamese 

Content Considerations
Sexual abuse
Learn about Festival content considerations...

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.

Accessibility options for this screening:
  • Closed Captions
Learn more about accessibility options...

Sponsors

Accessibility Partner

logo: Periscope Post & Audio 308x100

Live Captioning

Logo: Caption Consulting 164x150

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Under a tent lined with string lights, a man and a woman stand closely. He looks down while she gazes as him.

Because We Have Each Other

  Sari Braithwaite

  Australia     90 minutes

Synopsis

In this wondrous and warm-hearted portrait, director Sari Braithwaite (ChicagoIFF winner [Censored]) follows a very unique Australian family. Middle-aged and deeply in love, thoughtful and witty couple “Buddha” Barnes and Janet Sharrock live in a dusty working-class Melbourne suburb, still caring for their five adult kids from separate marriages. Adding to the complexities of a mixed family is the fact that they are all neurodivergent, living with a range of conditions from autism to depression to extreme dyslexia.

Sharing their deepest thoughts, fears, and dreams, we get to know each of the family members as they confront their vulnerabilities. And of course life, in all of its joys, misfortunes, and traumas, gets in the way. Blending the mundane with the universal through intimate verité footage and poetic shots of starry nighttime skies, Because We Have Each Other is a tender chronicle of the most normal, extraordinary lives.

 English 

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This film will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT, available only in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Learn more about streaming…

Accessibility options for this screening:
  • Closed Captions
Learn more about accessibility options...

Media

Film Credits

  •   Chloé Brugalé
  •   Patrick McCabe
  •   Jeremy Virag
  •   Janet Barnes, Buddha Barnes, Rebecca Sharrock, Jessica Sharrock, Kylie Barnes, Brendan Barnes, Dylan Barnes
  •   Munro Melano
  •   Robert Connolly, Robert Patterson
  •   Arenamedia
  •   https://becausewehaveeachother.com/

Sponsors

Documentary Program Sponsors

Logo: WTTW (2019)Cynthia Stone Raskin