C-U Blogfidential

Filmmaking entrepreneur Kimberly Conner of Springfield broke through when her first feature JUMP IN received national DVD distribution last September. Her second full-length drama is on the way!

Fool your friends! Fluster your fellow film fans! Flock to Chicago’s The Elbo Room for a fantastic fundraiser to benefit Juan Francisco Moctezuma’s newest horror freak-out, DEMONOID (1970)!

From the “Images of the Week” Dept.: A quartet of thirtysomethings attempt to reconcile past with present by reforming their rock group in the upcoming independent drama WE HAD THIS BAND, filmed in Bloomington-Normal. We have the teaser trailer for you.

Sometimes it is imperative to discuss the nitty gritty concerning Champaign-Urbana movies, including production costs. Today, we take a brief look at the crowdsource campaigns for LOWLIFES, ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE 1970s, and THE GARDEN OF CHLOE.

It’s been a few years, but Champaign-Urbana will play host this summer to a film production that didn’t originate here. Read on for our first thoughts about Daryl Wein, Zoe Lister-Jones, and FOOD. (P.S. They’re casting, too!)

Urbana filmmaker Johnny Robinson and crew would love to see you put on your best summertime threads and appear as extras later tonight, Saturday, March 22, 2014, in a concert scene for his feature THE GARDEN OF CHLOE.

Hear ye, hear ye! A new Roger Ebert story completely unrelated to Russ Meyer will hit the big screen later this year, and YOU can take part in its creation! Read on for information on tonight’s auditions for THE THINKING MOLECULES OF TITAN!

WILL Channel 12, the PBS affiliate based at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, is reviving a previous collaborative project with the production of the special program WE ARE MONTICELLO. If you are a resident of Monticello, you can be involved!

Champaign Movie Makers, a group dedicated to fostering independent and personal filmmaking in the Champaign-Urbana area, will next meet at Shatterglass Studios just south of downtown Champaign, IL, on Tuesday, August 20, 2013. Focus will be on the makers of the feature HOUSE OF THADDEUS!

This may not constitute a “scene” as we’ve been experiencing lately in the C-U, but at the least WE HAD THIS BAND and THE GRAVEYARD MENACE bring some fresh filmmaking blood to Bloomington-Normal!

In this edition of C-U Blogfidential’s NEW all-purpose column, “The C-U Film Leader,” we talk about the SCARY NORMAL premiere, a Mike Boedicker profile, Richard J. Leskosky thoughts on film in C-U, and the new QuantumCat Animation ‘blog!

In this edition of C-U Blogfidential’s NEW all-purpose column, “The C-U Film Leader,” we talk about Dreamscape Cinema budget fundraising, Nina Paley surprises, and the 75th birthday of the Normal Theater!

From the “Images of the Week” Dept.: Disenfranchisement leads to self-empowerment as the fictional grandson of Eugene V. Debs goes up against a nemesis in an Indiana political race in THE DRUNK, a Midwest-filmed indie from Tanoos Fleschner Pictures.

In the first edition of C-U Blogfidential’s NEW all-purpose column, “The C-U Film Leader,” we talk about Shatterglass Studios achievements, Sine Fine Films activity, “Cinema-Scoping” resurrection, and the Roger Ebert documentary!

From the “Images of the Week” Dept.: The music keeps on playing as area filmmaker Bob Zimmerman readies what may be the first-ever full-length documentary on Champaign-Urbana rock musicians, OUT OF NOWHERE!