Open Screening in Chicago

While we were in Chicago we saw that Chicago Filmmakers, an organization for independent filmmakers in Chicago, was holding an open screening. Anyone could bring a short film under 20 minutes and it would be screened in front of an audience just like an open mic night for musicians.

This was a very interesting concept and we jumped at the chance to attend. We chose to show "Bad Day at Zia Rock" from T3 Albuquerque because we thought it would stand out the most. We figured most other films would be shot in Chicago rather than the desert. I'm actually surprised that more events like this are not offered. One of the biggest challenges for independent filmmakers is to get an audience for their films.

The films ranged from very amateur to huge cast and crews. Like we predicted, most had an urban feel making ours very different from the others. We were a little weirded out by other people watching our movie that had no part in the production. I'm still not sure what to think about the reaction. There wasn't time for us to talk about it or take questions. The films just played one after the other.

Watching the range and diversity of all the movies was really fun and a great concept in general. I would have liked to add more social aspects, though. It would have been nice to have some networking opportunities and at the very least been able to introduce the film we submitted. Overall I think this concept has a lot of possibilities and is something for all independent filmmaking communities to consider implementing. Any thoughts?