Chicago

LOS ANGELES – At the 2013 Chicago International Film Festival awards ceremony at the Ambassador East, an older man started shooting me with a video camera in the bar area. Later that same man, Haskell Wexler, picked up a lifetime award at that ceremony. Haskell Wexler died on Dec. 27, 2015, at the age of 93.

CHICAGO – When HollywoodChicago.com last spoke to writer/director Adam McKay in 2013, he was about to release “Anchorman 2,” and wasn’t really known for anything but his wacky comedy films. That all changed this month, with the release of “The Big Short,” a brilliant indictment of the financial meltdown of 2007 and ’08, and an impressively creative and serious effort from the comic director.

CHICAGO – Standing up at the Lyric Opera house in Chicago is unusual before a show. But in this case, it was the night after a tragedy, and the operetta “The Merry Widow” – set in Paris, France, in 1905 – was about to unfold. The orchestra struck up La Marseillaise, a reminder that we’ll always have Paris.

CHICAGO – Chicago-born Gigi Pritzker is a prominent and successful film producer – through OddLot Entertainment – and a perfect headliner to be honored during “Industry Days” at the 51st Chicago International Film Festival. An Industry Days Tribute to Gigi Pritzker will take place October 22, 2015, at the festival site.

CHICAGO – Jack C. Newell will ride his bike when he meets you for an interview in Chicago, naturally. The locally based director is a welcome original, with credits in both documentary and narrative films. His latest feature, “Open Tables,” will screen at the 51st Chicago International Film Festival on October 20th, 2015.

CHICAGO – Roger Ebert is an icon, in both film criticism lore and his inspirational life. Two years after his passing, the Black Ensemble Theater of Chicago is honoring his legacy by focusing on a love story, the passionate relationship with his wife Chaz Ebert. Actor Kevin Pollack portrays Roger in “The Black/White Love Play.”

CHICAGO – The Shortcut 100 Film Festival, presented by Nebula Creatives, is now in its third year, and gaining momentum as one of the premiere short film festivals in Chicago. The one day international film fest is Saturday, October 3rd, 2015, and is split up into several different events. The opening Red Carpet (3pm) and screenings (4pm) will be above Strings Ramen Shop, 1629 North Halsted in Chicago, and the post-screen reception (7pm) will be at Lure Izakaya Pub, 2925 North Halsted.

CHICAGO – If you want to experience the old cliché of “everything old is new again,” look no further than the excellent documentary, “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of a Revolution.” The formation of the famous 1960s political group is rooted in the same issues that came out of Ferguson and Baltimore – the marginalization and harassment of African Americans by law enforcement authority. Yes, the group’s techniques were questionable, but so was the use of tax payer money – through the FBI – to destroy the organization.

CHICAGO – It’s been an amazing week for “Reeling33,” the Chicago International LBGTQ Film Festival, and on Thursday, September 24th, 2015, it concludes with the Closing Night film, “Death in Buenos Aires.” The taut thriller – directed by Natalia Meta – is set in 1980s Buenos Aires, Argentina, and involves the corruption, paranoia and secret gay lives of the wealthy elite in the city.

CHICAGO – The Red Carpet was rolled out at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago on September 17th, 2015, as the 33rd “Reeling” Film Festival – the second oldest LGBTQ celebration in cinema history – had its Opening Night. The film that kicked off the fest was “Fourth Man Out,” beginning a week long showcase of LGBTQ films.