Started in 1981 for local female filmmakers who had few places to showcase their work, Women in the Director’s Chair has burgeoned into one of the more important and influential independent film and video festivals in the country.
This year’s fest, which runs Friday through March 28, will be presented at 10 venues throughout the city. And while exhibiting the work of Chicago artists is still a primary goal, the 1999 festival is represented by works from 15 countries, including Panama, New Zealand, Germany, India, Romania, Israel, Australia, Costa Rica, Brazil, Uruguay, Zimbabwe, Canada, Mexico and even Tobago.
One of the more daunting tasks for festival programmers, who deal mostly with shorts, is figuring out the best way to exhibit the eclectic work. (According to festival programmer Sabrina Craig, 113 films will be shown, culled down from more than 400 submissions.)
WIDC programmers decided to separate the entries into thematic categories, which makes it easy for audiences to find what they’re looking for while still leaving wiggle room for the occasional foray into locale. (For instance, this year’s fest features an evening devoted exclusively to the work of Indian or Indian-American filmmakers).
The festival kicks off Friday at 6 p.m., with an opening night reception at HotHouse, followed by a program of works by Chicago women labeled, appropriately enough, “Homegirls.” This mix of dramatic shorts and documentaries includes work by such local talents as Paula Froehle (“Fever”) and Vanalyne Green (“Saddle Sores”). A highlight of the evening should be a video by Judith McCray titled “For My People,” about poet and political activist Margaret Walker, whose career stretches back to the days of the Harlem Renaissance.
The programs on Saturday, once again at HotHouse, include two that look especially engrossing. “Thresholds,” starting at 5 p.m., deals with assorted rites of passage. A highlight here should be the Panamanian film “The Errand,” by Pituka Ortega Heilbron, about a novelist’s difficult return to her home, where she comes face to face with the social mendacity that drove her away years before. At 7 p.m. is “Epic Journeys,” featuring “Motorcycle Diaries,” Diane Howells’ documentary on the changing face of female bikers, and “The House She Flew In On,” a challenging sound mix by School of the Art Institute graduate Natasha Spencer that taps into our collective cinematic unconscious by weaving together bits and pieces from the soundtrack of “The Wizard Of Oz” to suggest that perhaps Dorothy had more problems back in Kansas than she wanted to admit to the Tin Man.
Other programs to watch for include “Crimes of Omission” on March 21; “Invisible Labor: Women in the Workforce” on March 23; “Africa’s Children” on March 25; and “Dysfunction Junction” on March 26.
Below are mini-reviews of a few of the other films and videos I was able to preview for the festival.
“A Letter Without Words” A mesmerizing documentary by Lisa Lewenz, revolving around nine hours of film she discovered in her parents’ attic, shot by her grandmother in Berlin during the 1920s and 1930s. The footage gives an unsettling look at the furtive rise of the Nazis, and how it eventually came down like a hammer on the Jews of Germany. Director Lewenz adds to the drama by interviewing many family members who were there as children, and even employs a lip reader to discover hidden secrets of the silent film. (March 24)
“Treyf” A funny and moving documentary about a wise pair of Jewish lesbians who examine their loving relationship through the prism of their religion. The Yiddish term “treyf” refers to things unclean, and while the romance between Alisa and Cynthia might upset the more traditional members of their congregation (they met during a Passover seder), it clearly contains much that is politically and emotionally kosher. (March 24)
“Alma” Ruth Leitman, a New York performance artist, chronicles the journey she took back to Georgia to care for her wacky mother, Alma. While there, mother and daughter go at it as they battle for the truth about Ruth’s painfully difficult childhood. The film’s allure stems from us never knowing how much of Alma is show, how much creeping insanity. (March 26)
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“The 18th Annual Women in the Director’s Chair International Film and Video Festival” will run at assorted venues around the Chicago area, including HotHouse (31 E. Balbo Ave.), Horizons (961 W. Montana St.), Insight Arts (1545 W. Morse Ave.), Viaduct (3111 N. Western Ave.), Unite (333 S. Ashland Ave.), Video Machete (5732 N. Glenwood St.), Decima Musa (1901 S. Loomis St.), the South Shore Cultural Center (7059 South Shore Drive), Facets Multimedia (1517 W. Fullerton Ave.) and The Film Center of the Art Institute (280 S. Columbus Dr.). Tickets are $8 per program, with a six-show pass available for $35. For more info, call 773-281-4988, or visit festival Web site at www.widc.org.
