Chicago Film Festival, at 62, Trades Red Carpets for Neighborhoods

The Chicago International Film Festival is marking its 62nd year, and it's still the longest-running competitive film festival in North America — a title that belongs neither to Los Angeles nor New York, but to Chicago.

NPR's Marc Rivers reported from this year's edition, which is screening more than 100 films in competition. The festival has spread far beyond a single venue: its venues now include the AMC theater in Lincoln Park, the Chicago History Museum, the National Museum of Mexican Art, the University of Chicago and the Music Box Theatre in Lakeview.

That spread is deliberate. Mimi Plauche, the festival's artistic program director, said organizers reshaped the event after the COVID pandemic to broaden accessibility.

"We changed the model of the festival to really be out in the city," Plauche said. "We have some great partner venues in different neighborhoods."

What's new this year?

The festival hosted its first physical media fair, where film buffs traded and bought DVDs and even VHS tapes. Ian Robertson Kibbe of Kartemquin Films — the U.S.'s oldest documentary production company — sat at the fair and described the mood:

"It's just been a really pleasant day of seeing people get really excited over DVDs," Kibbe said.

He sees the fair as emblematic of the festival's character. "It's a reflection of Chicago in that it's a festival that is earnest," he said. "They're just here to celebrate their love of film."

Who's showing work?

The lineup spans more than 60 countries. Ava DuVernay screened her new documentary "14th," about the Reconstruction-era Constitutional amendment, at the University of Chicago.

Oscar-nominated actress Sophie Okonedo appeared at the Music Box Theatre after a screening of her new coming-of-age film "Mouse." "This kind of level of understanding from the audiences, the questions that I've been getting — I felt like people got every nuance," Okonedo said.

David Greaves and Liani Greaves, the filmmakers behind the documentary "Once Upon A Time In Harlem," spoke with attendees at the AMC in Lincoln Park. Among them was 34-year-old Damilola Laguda, a Chicago lawyer, who contrasted the festival with bigger-name events.

"I think that, unlike a Sundance or a Tribeca or a Cannes, it is very approachable," Laguda said.

Italian director Andrea Pallaoro, who has brought every one of his feature films to the festival, returned with his latest, "The Echo Chamber." "It's a great opportunity to travel all over the world from theater to theater," Pallaoro said.

The Black Perspectives program puts work by Black filmmakers front and center. Sterling Macer Jr.'s latest film, "Liz Here Now," screened in the series.

"That's one of the wonderful things about this festival," Macer said. "There's sensitivity and ability to know that certain films are going to have special meaning to various different communities."

What does this change for the festival's future?

Plauche said organizers want expansion without losing what distinguishes the event. "When we think about growth, we want to think about smart growth and not lose our identity as a festival, you know, the intimacy or the access that we can provide," she said.

The festival concludes this Sunday, and organizers plan to bring even more international cinema to Chicago's neighborhoods next year.