August 2008

In the Family is thrilled to be a part of the 2008 San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. On Saturday, at our first of four screenings in San Francisco and the Bay Area, Gordon Quinn and Nicola Stewart (Genetic Counselor, UCSF Medical Center) hosted an incredible, informative Q&A to a packed house after the screening.

We are excited to continue screening and discussions with three more opportunities: Thursday, August 7 - 4:15pm at the CineArts Theatre in Palo Alto followed by a 25 minute Q&A with Beth Iams (Co-Producer) & Kelly Ormond (Associate Professor of Genetics, Director of MS in Human Genetics and Genetic Counseling at Stanford University School of Medicine)

Saturday, August 9 - 5:45pm at the Roda Theatre in Berkeley followed by a 30 minute Q&A with Joanna Rudnick and Beth Iams

Sunday August 10 - 2pm at the Smith Rafael Film Center followed by a 60 minute panel with Joanna, Allison W. Kurian (Assistant Professor of Medicine and of Health Research and Policy at Stanford University School of Medicine) and Kelly Ormond (Associate Professor of Genetics, Director of MS in Human Genetics and Genetic Counseling at Stanford University School of Medicine).

Read a recent review of Kartemquin’s classic Hoop Dreams in the latest edition of the Mental Floss blog. The film’s new digital availability is sparking renewed interest in the award-winning documentary.

Three Kartemquin films will be featured in Facets’ 40 Years After: Filming the ‘68 Revolution retrospective taking place in Chicago August 22-28. Hum 255, Trick Bag and Thumbs Down will all screen over the course of the week. Get the details.

Due to circumstances out of our control with our venue, the Typeface fundraiser is being postponed until September. Details to be announced soon!

Kartemquin’s participation in the upcoming Facets’ film series 40 years after: filming the ‘68 revolution is covered in today’s chicagoist blog. Additionally, Gordon was interviewed about his involvement that summer for WBEZ’s 848. Listen to his memories.

Kartemquin’s Peter Gilbert and Reverend Carroll Pickett were interviewed for yesterday’s edition of the radio program The Story. Listen here.

Read this nice blog entry about Kartemquin’s recent newsletter piece on Gordon Quinn. Sign up on our contact page for our quarterly newsletter.

Earlier this week, Free Speech TV had a marathon of Kartemquin’s Vietnam: Long Time Coming. The film aired seven times throughout August 18 and 19. See when it will play next.

Join us Saturday morning, August 23rd at 10am for a discussion about Facets film series, “Filming the ‘68 revolution.” The event is described as:

“The year 1968 was a pivotal year in history. The Chicago Democratic Convention became a battleground that continues to shape social and political attitudes today. From a perspective 40 years later, what was it like to document this revolution? How does a filmmaker keep perspective in the midst of profound events? What is documentary truth in the face of social and political injustice? A panel of filmmakers and participants will reconnect us with issues that may be more essential today than they were in 1968.

Moderated by New City film critic Ray Pride, the panel includes Chicago Film Group founder and producer (of American Revolution II and Murder of Fred Hampton) Bill Cottle, filmmaker/professor of film Jill Godmilow (Far From Poland, Waiting for the Moon), filmmaker/cinematographer (Labor Stories) Judy Hoffman, filmmaker/Heartland Journal publisher Mike James, cinematographer and social activist Peter Kuttner, and Kartemquin Films co-founder and Hoop Dreams producer Gordon Quinn.” A Facets Seminar Series Event.

Reserve your seat now. Read coverage of the event in the Chicago Tribune.

Thanks to all who came out this weekend to Facets’ commemoration of the 1968 Chicago summer. Saturday’s panel (pictured) kicked off two great days of films and discussion.

Kartemquin’s Milking the Rhino will have four additional screenings in South Africa later this week. Get the details. Then a Chicago run is planned at the Gene Siskel Film Center for Sept. 26 - 30. Then, the film will be featured as a part of the Chicago Humanities Festival, November 2nd at the Cultural Center. Mark your calendar!

Joanna Rudnick, an alum of the Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program at New York University, will speak at her alma mater on Thursday, Oct. 9. She’ll present scenes from In the Family to journalism graduate students and discuss the film.

There’s still time to participate in the 2008 “Looking for Democracy” film contest! The deadline has been extended until September 15!

The Public Square, the Independent Television Service, Independent Lens, Kartemquin Films, Independent Feature Project (IFP) Chicago, Chicago Access Network Television (CAN TV), and the Columbia College Television Department present…

Looking for Democracy Short Film Contest

Now is your chance to show what democracy means to you in our Looking for Democracy Short Film Contest. Any genre is fair game: documentary, narrative, experimental, music video. We encourage filmmakers to unleash their radical imaginations and look for democracy in creative and unusual places. Can you find democracy where you might least expect it? As the 2008 presidential election heads into its final months, democracy is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. But democracy is defined by more than just electoral politics. Where do you find democracy in your life? Can you find it in your school, church, union, community, or a professional or sports association?How do you see democracy functioning locally, nationally, and globally?

All videos cannot be more than five minutes and must be submitted by Monday, September 15, 2008. Information on prizes, rules, and filmmaking resources is available below or by download. For more information, please contact Maggie Berndt at The Public Square at the Illinois Humanities Council at 312.422.5585 x239 or mkb@prairie.org or visit www.prairie.org/DemocracyFilmContest.

Read this great feature in the Evanston Review on Jim Trompeter, the composer for Kartemquin’s Prisoner of her Past. He’s playing this weekend at the Chicago Jazz Festival.

Read this interesting Health News Digest piece on Kartemquin’s In the Family. Press is starting in anticipation of the national October 1st broadcast on P.O.V.

Kartemquin’s At the Death House Door will be screening for free in Glen Ellen, Illinois at the College of DuPage on September 15. Reverend Carroll Pickett will be speaking the following day at the College. Get the details.