C-U Biz-en-scène: 04.13.2011
“C-U Biz-en-scène” (usually) appears every Thursday/Friday on C-U Blogfidential to give our readers a succinct snapshot of the cinema activity in and near Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, USA. Please support the artists and their work, attend screenings and events, and otherwise become active in our esoteric little world!
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MFHQ & YOU:
It’s Time for CUBiz: The Half-Assed Format!
Wow! How about that New Art Film Festival last Friday at the Art Theater in downtown Champaign, dearest readers? Two locally-made features and 11 regionally-made shorts attracted several hundred Champaign-Urbana citizens and visitors throughout the program! We at C-U Blogfidential couldn’t be prouder of our community for providing the NAFF such a positive outpouring! We also couldn’t be more in crisis mode right now because two little itsy bitsy things kept getting hoodwinked in the immediate weeks leading up to the fest – CUBlog and C-U Confidential no.5. Yes, whoops.
Therefore, we missed out on issuing a C-U Biz-en-scène column last week for the first time since we launched the weekly effort back in July. Yes, whoops again. Given all the surprises we plan to spring on you between now and May, we might have to ride out the next month by offering a bare-bones Biz for your informational pleasure. We therefore offer this makeshift update with some immediate items you will want to pay attention to now, whether it involves movie-watching or film-making:
- Later today, Wednesday, April 13, local director Jay Rosenstein will present his film THE LORD IS NOT ON TRIAL HERE TODAY in the auditorium of the UIUC College of Law at 12 p.m.;
- UIUC student A. Lawrence Dreyfuss needs cast and crew for his short film, HAD HE FIDELITY, which will shoot in C-U this September. For the latter, he desires a director of photography, production assistants, make-up artist/hair stylist, grips, a stunt coordinator, colorist, craft services, and a second assistant cameraperson. For the former he will stage an audition for two male actors, ages 18-35, at Room 151 of UIUC’s Allen Hall in Urbana on Sunday, April 17, 2-5 p.m. Contact Dreyfuss at ABDKProductions [at] gmail [dot] com for more details.
- On Monday, April 25, 7 p.m., UIUC senior Ryan Marzolph will premiere his 40-minute science-fiction film FALLING UP at the Art Theater in downtown Champaign. Admission is free;
- Mark Borchardt will attend a special screening of the documentary about his filmmaking pursuits, AMERICAN MOVIE, on Tuesday, April 26, 7:30 p.m., at Foellinger Auditorium on the UIUC campus. The event is free for University of Illinois students and sponsored by Roger Ebert’s Film Festival;
- Another casting call will be held on Sunday, May 8, 12 to 7 p.m., at the Illini Union on the Main Quad of the UIUC campus, for a currently untitled indie feature to be made by Indianapolis filmmakers but shot primarily in Champaign-Urbana. Film Firm producer Eric Isenhart tells CUBlog that the show is looking for actors of all ages but lead roles will be for high school and college-age parts. Actors should arrive with a short monologue prepared; head shots or questions can be sent in advance to filmfirmcasting [at] gmail [dot] com. Filming is scheduled to take place in June and July.
More relevant news is in the pipeline, and we’ll do our best to share it with you in as timely a manner as possible!
PLAYING THIS MID-WEEK
THE LORD IS NOT ON TRIAL HERE TODAY*: Wednesday, 4/13, 12 p.m., free @ Auditorium, College of Law, UIUC, Urbana, IL
@ The Art Theater, Champaign, IL: The Found Footage Festival (4/13, 7:30 p.m., $10), INSIDE JOB (4/14, 7:30 p.m.), THE IRON GIANT (4/14, 10 p.m.)
@ Champaign Public Library, Champaign, IL: STONEWALL UPRISING screening/discussion/taping (4/14, 6:30 p.m.)
@ Room 151, Allen Hall, UIUC, Urbana, IL: HAD HE FIDELITY* casting call (4/17, 2-5 p.m.)
@ The Avon Theater, Decatur, IL: ARTHUR, SOURCE CODE, INSIDIOUS (4/8 on)
@ The Normal Theater, Normal, IL: THE ILLUSIONIST (4/14-4/17, 7 p.m.)
@ The Lorraine Theatre, Hoopeston, IL: INSIDIOUS (4/8 on)
@ Gemini Cinemas, Villa Grove, IL: I AM NUMBER FOUR, MARS NEEDS MOMS (4/8 on)
@ That’s Rentertainment, Champaign, IL: TRON: LEGACY, I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS, CASINO JACK, LITTLE FOCKERS, FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS s5, TOPSY-TURVY (Criterion), more! (4/5 on)
@ Wicker Park Arts Center/Music Box Theatre/etc., Chicago, IL: Chicago International Movies & Music Festival (4/14-4/17)
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Locally produced movies and events featuring locally produced movies are marked with an asterisk (*). Go see ‘em!
COMING SOON
NEW! 4/19: Champaign Movie Makers meeting
@ Class Act Interactive, Champaign, IL, 7 p.m., free
NEW! 4/25: FALLING UP* w/UIUC filmmakers
@ The Art Theater, Champaign, IL, 7 p.m., free
NEW! 4/26: AMERICAN MOVIE w/Mark Borchardt
Sponsored by Roger Ebert’s Film Festival
@ Foellinger Auditorium, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7:30 p.m.
4/27-5/1: Roger Ebert’s Film Festival
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
4/30: THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW
@ The Canopy Club, Urbana, IL, 11 p.m. w/Millikin U. shadow cast
5/4: 2nd Annual Feminist Film Festival
@ The Art Theater, Champaign, IL
NEW! 5/8: Film Firm Casting audition for untitled indie film
@ Room 409, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 12-7 p.m.
6/23-6/26: Onion City Experimental Film and Video Festival, Chicago, IL
7/19-7/24: Blue Whiskey Independent Film Festival, Palatine, IL
9/16-9/18: Route 66 International Film Festival
@ Hoogland Center for the Arts, Springfield, IL
NEW! 11/10-11/12: Embarras Valley Film Festival
@ EIU campus/Will Rogers Theater/etc., Charleston, IL
COMMUNITY FILM SERIES
The News-Gazette Film Series 2011
@ The Virginia Theater, Champaign, IL, 1 & 7 p.m.
4/23: TOY STORY; 5/14: REAR WINDOW; 6/4: MOULIN ROUGE!; 7/23: BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S; 8/6: ARSENIC AND OLD LACE; 9/10: ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT; 10/8: THE EXORCIST; 11/5: THE GODFATHER; 12/3: THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
WILL-TV/Independent Lens “Community Cinema” series
@ Champaign Public Library, Champaign, IL, 6:30 p.m.
4/26: BHUTTO: 5/10: WELCOME TO SHELBYVILLE; TBA: TWO SPIRITS
UNIVERSITY FILM SERIES
AsiaLENS: AEMS Documentary/Film Series
@ Knight Auditorium, Spurlock Museum, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m.
5/3: IN THE MATTER OF CHA JUNG HEE
Global Lens 2011: International Films
@ Latzer Hall, University YMCA, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 5:30 p.m.
4/21: DOOMAN RIVER, China; 5/19: THE INVISIBLE EYE, Argentina; 6/16: THE LIGHT THIEF, Kyrgyzstan; 7/21: SOUL OF SAND, India; 8/18: STREET DAYS, Georgia; 9/15: THE TENANTS, Brazil; 10/20: A USEFUL LIFE, Uruguay; 11/17: WHITE MEADOWS, Iran
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That’s it for the “business of our scene” this week!
If you have relevant news, opportunities, dates, or promotions that you would like included in CUBiz, please forward the who, what, where, when, and how much to cuconfidential [at] gmail [dot] com.
Compiled by Jason Pankoke
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“C-U Biz-en-scène” no.37 © 2011 Jason Pankoke/C-U Blogfidential.