Chicago International Film Festival
Encyclopedia
The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival
held every fall. Founded in 1964, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America.
In 2010, the 46th Chicago International Film Festival presented 150 film from over 50 countries. The Festival's program is composed of many different sections, including the International Competition, New Directors Competition, Docufest, Black Perspectives, Cinema of the Americas, and Reel Women.
The 47th Festival will be held October 6-20, 2011.
, and to make the festival more appealing to audience and staff of various ethnicities. Foreign films are screened for free throughout the city weekly from July through September.
was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Previous winners include Shirley MacLaine
, Lord Richard Attenborough
, François Truffaut
, Jodie Foster
, Sigourney Weaver
, Robin Williams
, Manoel de Oliveira
, and Clint Eastwood
.
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
held every fall. Founded in 1964, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America.
In 2010, the 46th Chicago International Film Festival presented 150 film from over 50 countries. The Festival's program is composed of many different sections, including the International Competition, New Directors Competition, Docufest, Black Perspectives, Cinema of the Americas, and Reel Women.
The 47th Festival will be held October 6-20, 2011.
International Connections Program
The International Connections Program was created in 2003 in order to raise awareness of the international film culture and diversity of ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and to make the festival more appealing to audience and staff of various ethnicities. Foreign films are screened for free throughout the city weekly from July through September.
Grand Prize: Gold Hugo
| Year | Winning film | Director(s) | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Maborosi Maborosi Maborosi, known in Japan as Maboroshi no Hikari is a 1995 Japanese film by director Hirokazu Koreeda starring Makiko Esumi, Tadanobu Asano and Takashi Naitō... (Maboroshi no Hikari) |
Hirokazu Koreeda Hirokazu Koreeda is a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. His films explore themes of memory, death, and coming to terms with loss.Koreeda originally planned to be a novelist, but after graduating from Waseda University instead worked as an assistant director on documentaries for TV Man Union... |
 Japan |
| 1996 | Ridicule Ridicule Ridicule is a 1996 French film set in the 18th century at the decadent court of Versailles, where social status can rise and fall based on one's ability to mete out witty insults and avoid ridicule oneself... |
Patrice Leconte Patrice Leconte Patrice Leconte is a French film director, actor, comic strip writer, and screenwriter.-Biography:... |
 France |
| 1997 | The Winter Guest The Winter Guest The Winter Guest was British actor Alan Rickman's debut as a director, and stars Emma Thompson and Phyllida Law.-Plot:Set in Scotland on one wintry day, the film focuses on eight people: a mother and daughter, Elspeth and Frances ; two young boys skipping school, Sam and Tom ; two old women who... |
Alan Rickman Alan Rickman Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman is an English actor and theatre director. He is a renowned stage actor in modern and classical productions and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company... |
|
| 1998 | The Hole The Hole (1998 film) The Hole is a 1998 drama-musical film directed by Tsai Ming-liang. It stars Yang Kuei-Mei and Lee Kang-sheng.-Plot:A strange disease hits Taiwan just before the turn of the new millennium... (Dong) |
Tsai Ming-liang Tsai Ming-liang Tsai Ming-liang is one of the most celebrated "Second New Wave" film directors of Taiwanese Cinema, along with earlier contemporaries such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Edward Yang... |
 Republic of China |
| 1999 | Sachs' Disease (La maladie de Sachs) | Michel Deville Michel Deville Michel Deville is a French film director and screenwriter.Deville started his filmmaking career in the late 1950s, paralleling the emergence of the French New Wave directors... |
France |
| 2000 | Amores perros Amores perros Amores perros is a 2000 neorealist Mexican film, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. Amores Perros is the first movie in Iñárritu's trilogy of death, and was followed by 21 Grams and Babel. It is a triptych; an anthology film, sometimes referred to as the "Mexican Pulp Fiction," containing... |
Alejandro González Iñárritu Alejandro González Iñárritu Alejandro González Iñárritu is a Mexican film director.González Iñárritu is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the DGA of America for Best Director. He is also the first and only Mexican born director to have won the Prix de la mise en scene... |
 Mexico |
| 2001 | Fat Girl Fat Girl À ma sœur! is a 2001 French film directed by Catherine Breillat and starring Roxane Mesquida. It was released in some English speaking countries under the alternative titles For My Sister or Fat Girl.... (À ma soeur!) |
Catherine Breillat Catherine Breillat Catherine Breillat is a French filmmaker, novelist and Professor of Auteur Cinema at the European Graduate School.-Life and career:Breillat was born in Bressuire, Deux-Sèvres, but grew up in Niort... |
France |
| 2002 | Madame Satã Madame Satã (film) Madame Satã is a 2002 Brazilian-French drama film directed by Karim Aïnouz. It tells the story of Madame Satã and premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Lázaro Ramos - João Francisco dos Santos / Madame Satã... |
Karim Aïnouz Karim Aïnouz Karim Aïnouz is a film director.-Filmography:* 2006 - O Céu de Suely , 35mm, color, 88 min.* 2002 - Madame Satã, 35mm, color, 105 min.... |
 Brazil |
| 2003 | Crimson Gold Crimson Gold Crimson Gold is a 2003 Iranian film directed by Jafar Panahi, and written by Abbas Kiarostami. The film was never distributed in Iranian theatres, because it was considered too "dark"... (Talaye Sorkh) |
Jafar Panahi Jafar Panahi Jafar Panahi is an Iranian filmmaker and is one of the most influential filmmakers in the Iranian New Wave movement. He has gained recognition from film theorists and critics worldwide and received numerous awards including the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and the Silver Bear at the... |
 Iran |
| 2004 | Kontroll Kontroll Kontroll is a Hungarian comedy-thriller released to theatres in 2003. Shown internationally, mainly in art house theatres, the film is a darkly comic thriller set in a Hungarian Metro system.... |
Nimród Antal Nimród Antal Nimród E. Antal is a Hungarian American film director, screenwriter and actor.-Life and career:... |
 Hungary |
| 2005 | My Nikifor (Mój Nikifor) | Krzysztof Krauze Krzysztof Krauze Krzysztof Krauze is a Polish film director, screenwriter, photographer and cinematographer from Warsaw best known for his 1999 film thriller Debt.... |
 Poland |
| 2006 | Fireworks Wednesday Fireworks Wednesday Fireworks Wednesday is a 2006 Iranian film directed by Asghar Farhadi and co-written by Farhadi and Mani Haghighi. It stars Hedyeh Tehrani, Taraneh Alidousti, and Hamid Farokhnezhad.-Plot:... (Chaharshanbe Suri) |
Asghar Farhadi Asghar Farhadi -Career:Asghar Farhadi is a graduate of Theatre, with a BA in Dramatic Arts and MA in Stage Direction from Tehran University and Tarbiat Modarres University. Farhadi made short 8mm and 16mm films in Isfahan branch of Iranian Young Cinema Society before moving on to writing plays and screenplays for... |
Iran |
| 2007 | Silent Light Silent Light - External links :* * at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival* - External links :* * at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival* - External links :* * at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival*... (Stellet Lijcht) |
Carlos Reygadas Carlos Reygadas Carlos Reygadas is a Mexican filmmaker known for his three films Batalla en el Cielo, Japón and Silent Light . After Batalla en el Cielo, he was known for his raw depiction of sex in his films and the use of old or ugly-seeming characters... |
Mexico |
| 2008 | Hunger Hunger (2008 film) Hunger is a 2008 film about the 1981 Irish hunger strike. It was written by Enda Walsh and Steve R. McQueen, who also directed. It was made by Blast! Films and commissioned by Channel 4 and Film4. It premiered at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, winning the prestigious Caméra d'Or award for... |
Steve McQueen Steve McQueen (artist) Steve Rodney McQueen CBE is a British artist and filmmaker. He is a winner of the Golden Camera at the Cannes Film Festival, a Turner Prize and BAFTA.-Early years:... |
 Republic of Ireland |
| 2009 | Mississippi Damned Mississippi Damned Mississippi Damned is an American drama film directed by Tina Mabry. The drama features Adam Clark, Malcolm Goodwin and Michael Hyat... |
Tina Mabry |  United States |
| 2010 | How I Ended This Summer How I Ended This Summer How I Ended This Summer is a 2010 Russian drama film directed by Alexei Popogrebski. It was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival.-Plot:... (Kak ya provyol etim letom) |
Alexei Popogrebski Alexei Popogrebski Alexei Popogrebski is a Russian film director and screenwriter. His 2010 film How I Ended This Summer was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival.-Filmography:* Koktebel * Prostye veshchi... |
 Russia |
| 2011 | Le Havre Le Havre (film) Le Havre is a 2011 comedy-drama film written and directed by Aki Kaurismäki, starring André Wilms, Kati Outinen, Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Blondin Miguel. It tells the story of a shoeshiner who tries to save an immigrant child in the French port city Le Havre. The film was produced by Kaurismäki's... |
Aki Kaurismäki Aki Kaurismäki -Career:After studying Media Studies at the University of Tampere, Aki Kaurismäki started his career as a co-director in the films of his elder brother Mika Kaurismäki. His debut as an independent director was Crime and Punishment , Dostoyevsky's famous crime story set in modern-day Helsinki... |
 Finland |
Best Actor
- 2011 - Maged El KedwanyMaged El KedwanyMaged El Kedwany is an Egyptian actor. He began acting in the 1990s, playing supporting roles. He has won the Muhr Arab - Feature Best Actor Award for his role in 678 from Dubai International Film Festival...
(Egypt) for 678678 (film)678 is a 2010 Egyptian film by director Mohamed Diab. It offers a succinct depiction of the plight endured by millions of Egyptian women who deal with sexual harassment on daily basis in a highly misogynistic society... - 2010 - Youssouf DjaoroYoussouf DjaoroYoussouf Djaoro is a Chadian film actor.He made his debut by appearing in the film Daresalam in 2000 in which he played the character of Tom. It was directed by the critically acclaimed Issa Serge Coelo and was the first of several films they have collaborated with...
(Chad) for A Screaming ManA Screaming ManA Screaming Man is a 2010 French-Chadian drama film by Mahamat Saleh Haroun, starring Youssouf Djaoro and Diouc Koma. It revolves around the current civil war in Chad, and tells the story of a man who sends his son to war in order to regain his position at an upscale hotel. Themes of fatherhood... - 2009 - Filippo Timi (Italy) for VincereVincereVincere is a film that is based on the life of the first wife of Benito Mussolini. It stars Giovanna Mezzogiorno as Ida Dalser and Filippo Timi as Benito Albino Mussolini. It was filmed under the direction of Marco Bellocchio, who also wrote the screenplay with Daniela Ceselli, and it was released...
- 2008 - Michael FassbenderMichael FassbenderMichael Fassbender is an Irish-German actor. He is best known for playing Lt. Archie Hicox in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds and Magneto in the superhero blockbuster X-Men: First Class...
(Ireland) for HungerHunger (2008 film)Hunger is a 2008 film about the 1981 Irish hunger strike. It was written by Enda Walsh and Steve R. McQueen, who also directed. It was made by Blast! Films and commissioned by Channel 4 and Film4. It premiered at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, winning the prestigious Caméra d'Or award for... - 2007 - Sam RileySam RileySam Riley is an English actor and singer.-Early life:Riley was born in Menston in the Metropolitan District of Bradford in West Yorkshire, the son of "a textile agent and nursery-school teacher". He was educated at Uppingham School...
(United Kingdom) for Control - 1989 - Jörg Gudzuhn (GDR) for Fallada, letztes KapitelFallada: The Last ChapterFallada: The Last Chapter is a 1988 East German drama film directed by Roland Gräf. It was entered into the 39th Berlin International Film Festival.-Cast:* Jörg Gudzuhn as Hans Fallada* Jutta Wachowiak as Anna Fallada* Katrin Saß as Ursula Losch...
- 1987 - Avtandil MakharadzeAvtandil MakharadzeAvtandil Makharadze is a Georgian actor.He was born in Batumi. Active since the 1970s, Makharadze played Joseph Stalin in the 2005 BBC TV series Archangel in which he starred opposite Daniel Craig.-Selected filmography:...
(Georgia) for MonaniebaMonaniebaRepentance is a Georgian film directed by Tengiz Abuladze. The movie was made in 1984, but its release was banned in the Soviet Union for its semi-allegorical critique of Stalinism. It premiered at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival, winning the FIPRESCI Prize, Grand Prize of the Jury, and the Prize...
Best Actress
- 2011 - Olivia ColmanOlivia ColmanOlivia Colman is an English actress, best known for her supporting roles in various comedy shows, such as Sophie Chapman in Peep Show and Harriet Schulenburg in Green Wing. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and has appeared in radio, television and theatre.-Personal life:Colman...
(UK) for TyrannosaurTyrannosaur (film)Tyrannosaur is a 2011 British drama film written and directed by actor Paddy Considine .The film depicts an environment similar to what Considine witnessed growing up on a council estate in the Midlands, although the film is in no way autobiographical... - 2010 - Liana LiberatoLiana LiberatoLiana Daine Liberato is an American television and film actress. Liana is known for the 2010 film, Trust. She starred in the Fox Faith film The Last Sin Eater and recently appeared in the House episode "It's a Wonderful Lie"...
(USA) for TrustTrust (2010 film)Trust is a 2010 American drama film directed by David Schwimmer and based on a screenplay by Andy Bellin and Robert Festinger. It stars Clive Owen, Catherine Keener, Viola Davis, and Noah Emmerich.-Plot:... - 2009 - Giovanna MezzogiornoGiovanna MezzogiornoGiovanna Mezzogiorno is an Italian theatre and film actress.Giovanna Mezzogiorno was born in Rome, November 9, 1974, daughter of actors Vittorio Mezzogiorno and Cecilia Sacchi. She grew up watching her parents on set, conscious about acting. At first she wanted to become a ballerina and she...
(Italy) for VincereVincereVincere is a film that is based on the life of the first wife of Benito Mussolini. It stars Giovanna Mezzogiorno as Ida Dalser and Filippo Timi as Benito Albino Mussolini. It was filmed under the direction of Marco Bellocchio, who also wrote the screenplay with Daniela Ceselli, and it was released... - 2008 - Preity ZintaPreity ZintaPreity Zinta is an Indian film actress. She has appeared in Hindi films of Bollywood, as well as Telugu, Punjabi and English language films. After graduating with a degree in criminal psychology, Zinta made her acting debut in Dil Se in 1998 followed by a role in Soldier the same year...
(India) for Heaven on EarthHeaven on Earth (film)Heaven on Earth a.k.a Videsh is a 2008 Canadian film directed and written by Deepa Mehta. Preity Zinta plays the leading role of Chand, a young Indian Punjabi woman who finds herself in an abusive arranged marriage with an Indo-Canadian man, played by theatre actor Vansh Bhardwaj... - 2007 - Yu NanYu NanYu Nan is a Chinese actress. Born in Dalian, Yu Nan studied at the Beijing Film Academy, where she graduated in 1999.-In China:...
(China) for Tuya's MarriageTuya's MarriageTuya's Marriage is a 2006 Chinese film directed by Wang Quan'an.-Storyline:The film depicts life in Inner Mongolia, in a region where desertification is making life hard for nomadic herders... - 2003 - Ludivine SagnierLudivine SagnierLudivine Sagnier is a French actress and model, who has appeared in 33 films since 1989. She was nominated for two César Awards for Best Supporting Actress in Swimming Pool and Un secret .-Early life:...
(France) for Little Lili
Lifetime Achievement Awards
In 2006, director Steven SpielbergSteven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Previous winners include Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
, Lord Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
, François Truffaut
François Truffaut
François Roland Truffaut was an influential film critic and filmmaker and one of the founders of the French New Wave. In a film career lasting over a quarter of a century, he remains an icon of the French film industry. He was also a screenwriter, producer, and actor working on over twenty-five...
, Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
, Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver is an American actress. She is best known for her critically acclaimed role of Ellen Ripley in the four Alien films: Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection, for which she has received worldwide recognition .Other notable roles include Dana...
, Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
, Manoel de Oliveira
Manoel de Oliveira
Manoel Cândido Pinto de Oliveira, GCSE is a Portuguese film director born in Cedofeita, Porto. He began working on films in the late 1920s, but did not receive international recognition until the early 1970s. Since the late 1980s he has been one of the most prolific working film directors and...
, and Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
.
Career Achievement Awards
- Terrence HowardTerrence HowardTerrence Dashon Howard is an American actor. Having his first major role in the 1995 film Mr. Holland's Opus, which subsequently led to a number of roles in films and high visibility among African American audiences. Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of well-reviewed television...
(2005) - Susan SarandonSusan SarandonSusan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
(2005) - Shirley MacLaineShirley MacLaineShirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
(2005) - Robert ZemeckisRobert ZemeckisRobert Lee Zemeckis is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Zemeckis first came to public attention in the 1980s as the director of the comedic time-travel Back to the Future film series, as well as the Academy Award-winning live-action/animation epic Who Framed Roger Rabbit ,...
(2004) - Irma P. HallIrma P. HallIrma P. Hall is an African American actress who has appeared in numerous films and television shows since the 1970s. She is best known for playing matriarchal figures the films A Family Thing, Soul Food and The Ladykillers....
, Robert Townsend and Harry J. LennixHarry J. LennixHarry Joseph Lennix III is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Terrence "Dresser" Williams in the Robert Townsend film The Five Heartbeats and as "Boyd Langton" in the Joss Whedon television show Dollhouse....
(2004) - Annette BeningAnnette BeningAnnette Carol Bening is an American actress. Bening is a four-time Oscar nominee for her roles in The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right, winning Golden Globe Awards for the latter two films...
(2004) - Robin WilliamsRobin WilliamsRobin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
(2004) - Nicolas CageNicolas CageNicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
(2003)