The 16th Annual Black Harvest International Festival of Film and Video is the Midwest’s largest festival of the black experience on film.

Gene Siskel Film Center

The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Gene Siskel Film Center present the 16th Annual Black Harvest International Festival of Film and Video
August 6 – September 2, 2010

Gene Siskel Film Center
164 North State Street
Chicago, IL 60601

http://www.siskelfilmcenter.org

The 16th Annual Black Harvest International Festival of Film and Video is the Midwest’s largest festival of the black experience on film.

A total of 42 features, documentaries, and shorts representing the African diaspora will be presented, 17 of which have a Chicago connection, reaffirming the city’s role as a vital center for independent filmmaking. Local features include India of K-Town, On the Frontline: Taking Back Our Streets, Chicago Heights, and Dog Jack, with appearances by filmmakers.

Documentaries focus on artists (Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child and Sharkula: Diarrhea of a Madman); Civil Rights (Blues March: Soldier Jon Hendricks and Neshoba: The Price of Freedom); music (Kinhasa Symphony and Saint Louis Blues); and dance (Nora). Cross-cultural comedies featured are My American Nurse 2 and the shorts programs Love African American Style and Sex African American Style. Powerful urban dramas showcased are Bilal’s Stand, Everyday Black Man, Pro-Black Sheep, and Inside a Change. Continuing the urban theme is shorts program Urban Visions.

Event highlights include Opening Night, A Black Harvest Feast, when Grammy® Award-winning hip-hop artist Common will be honored with the Deloris Jordan Award for Excellence in Community Leadership; Festival Panel Discussion, How to Get a Movie Made; Black Harvest Sneak Preview Party featuring Lottery Ticket; and Closing Night Film, Night Catches Us.

In conjunction with Black Harvest in the Film Center’s gallery/café is Face Off, a solo exhibition by artist and current SAIC student Kenrick Mcfarlane. Mcfarlane’s work revolves around the concept of reality versus fantasy and the proverbial question, “How can an individual turn his or her fantasy into reality?”

Black Harvest festival passes are available for $50 each. Each pass includes six movies for the price of five, plus a free small popcorn with each film. The pass will not be accepted for Opening Night, A Black Harvest Feast, on August 6.

For a complete schedule, please visit http://www.siskelfilmcenter.org/blackharvest2010

About the Gene Siskel Film Center

The Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago celebrates 38 years of presenting cutting edge programs, independent and international cinema, premieres, retrospectives, and classic films. Internationally recognized for its original film programming, the Film Center is a vibrant cultural destination in Chicago that attracts a diverse and creative annual audience of over 80,000.

About the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

A leader in educating artists, designers, and scholars since 1866, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) offers nationally accredited undergraduate, graduate, and post-baccalaureate programs to nearly 3,200 students from across the globe. For more information, please visit http://www.saic.edu