Calendar: February 13-19, 2026
Our movie and media Calendar appears every Friday/Saturday on C-U Blogfidential and caters to the downstate region anchored by Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, USA.
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THE BLOGFIDENTIAL TELETYPE | Film News You Can Use, C-U
What we’re seeing on our beat this week … 7 Palms Entertainment, LLC, of Columbus, OH, has started its release strategy for THE FAIRFIELD COUNTY FOUR, the recently completed found footage werewolf horror from Watseka filmmaker Joshua Brucker for Horror Dadz Productions; Amazon Prime is now offering it VOD as of last Friday, February 6, with more avenues on the way and streaming/physical media options going out soon to the project’s backers, per Brucker …
We neglected to mention a special addition to the recent Champaign Movie Makers 48-hour contest presentation at the Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX last month, the local premiere of Earth-217 Studios’ newest short, FLIP & SUZY; the dark romance stars Tayler Holler, Mercedes DeSilva, Chloe Loren, and writer/director Chase Todd, who announced yesterday that it and another Earth-217 dose of doomed love, AN AFFAIR AT THE END OF THE WORLD, are now available to watch on YouTube in time for Valentine’s Day …
Ye Ed’s rummaging around at DeepDiscount has revealed the upcoming physical release of a central Illinois indie that was produced a few years ago, DON’T LET ME STAY, which will be available as MOD from Filmhub starting on Tuesday, March 3; made in the Springfield and Bloomington areas in 2021; director Aaron Thomas’ feature debut, which has already been available to stream on services like Prime, YouTube, and Tubi, is about a young peoples’ outing at a country homestead that exhibits malevolence as the weekend wears on …
Simeon Faith and Fathom Entertainment’s release of MOSES THE BLACK has ended in the area after a two-week run, while it’s difficult to gauge how well it did nationwide since Fathom hasn’t been reporting numbers to the aggregates like Boxoffice Pro or Box Office Mojo; Amy Penne of Smile Politely recounted the special screening of the locally-filmed drama at Savoy 16, hosted by Chambana Film Society, and Chuck Koplinski offered his critical thoughts on it via the News-Gazette … and that’s what we can reveal for today. Always remember – this is not just movies, it’s our lives.
CONFIDENTIAL ALMANAC | Dates in Film Culture History
5 Years Ago … Thursday, January 21, 2021: At approximately 4:30 a.m., following an all-night cleaning session that included removal of the remaining decorations from the walls of the Secret MICRO-FILM Headquarters, publisher Jason Pankoke takes his name off the mailbox in the lobby of the World Famous “Building” on the corner of Hill and Prairie streets in Champaign’s Sesquicentennial Neighborhood and slips the keys through the mail slot of the manager’s office. It concludes a run of nearly thirty years for Pankoke as a citizen, taxpayer, wage-earner, community member, and contributing arts promoter and creator in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, with the last quarter century spent as the occupant of Suite 3D. He makes it safely to his mother’s house at sunrise with a vehicle packed to the hilt and then crashes in bed after an eight-week-long ordeal clearing out the space almost single-handedly during the pandemic.
30 Years Ago … Saturday, July 1, 1995: A recent Twin Cities transplant named Jason Pankoke takes over as the tenant of apartment 3D in a property managed by the owners of a downtown Champaign family business, Custom Flooring and Interior. Wanting to move on from his original residence in west Champaign, Pankoke responded to an advertisement in the News-Gazette and agreed to meet with landlord Jean Niemann at the location, an older and converted business building one block north of West Side Park. He was surprised at the character and make-up of the immediate vicinity, having never set foot before in the Sesquicentennial Neighborhood, and took a liking to the roomy third-floor unit. The spare bedroom would soon be turned into a workspace for his art and design activity, eventually designated as the Secret MICRO-FILM Headquarters after the first issue of MICRO-FILM was published in 1999.
LOCAL FILMS & EVENTS | Support Your Media Storytellers
@ Esquire Lounge, Champaign, IL
Champaign Movie Makers* meeting (2/16, 7 p.m.)
@ Flyover Film Studio, Rantoul, IL
“Background to Speaking Roles” with Compass Casting* (2/16, 6 p.m.); “Flyover Labs: Camera & Lens Shootout” gear demonstration (2/20, 6 p.m., free w/ticket)
@ Martens Center, Champaign, IL
Pens to Lens* Student Screenwriting Workshop (2/14, 1 p.m.)
@ Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL
Francophone Film Festival presents 120 BATTEMENTS PAR MINUTE (2/18, 6:30 p.m.)
NOW PLAYING | Champaign-Urbana Area
@ AMC Champaign 13, Champaign, IL
COLD STORAGE, CRIME 101, GOAT (animation), GOOD LUCK HAVE FUN DON’T DIE, O’ROMEO* (in Hindi with English sub), SCARLET (animé) (in Japanese with English sub), WUTHERING HEIGHTS, AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH*, DRACULA, THE HOUSEMAID*, IRON LUNG*, MELANIA* (documentary), THE MOMENT*, SEND HELP, SOLO MIO, THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER 3*, ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation) (2/13 on), STRAY KIDS: THE DOMINATE EXPERIENCE* (concert film; in Korean with English sub) (2/13-2/15), Fan Faves: LOVE & BASKETBALL* (2/13-2/16) and THE BEST MAN* (2/13-2/16), I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 sneak preview (2/14, 5 p.m.), AMC “Screen Unseen” (mystery movie) (2/16, 7 p.m.), BLADES OF THE GUARDIANS* (in Mandarin with English and Chinese sub) (2/17-2/18), HOW TO MAKE A KILLING, I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2, MIDWINTER BREAK, PSYCHO KILLER, THIS IS NOT A TEST (2/19 on) *single screenings daily
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
COLD STORAGE, CRIME 101, GOAT (animation), GOOD LUCK HAVE FUN DON’T DIE, THE MOMENT, O’ROMEO* (in Hindi with English sub), WUTHERING HEIGHTS, AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH, HAMNET, THE HOUSEMAID*, IRON LUNG, MARTY SUPREME, SEND HELP, SOLO MIO, THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER 3, ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation) (2/13 on), PRETTY IN PINK 40th anniversary (re-release) (2/13-2/16), Indian cinema: FUNKY* (in Telugu with English sub; 2/13, 2/16), COUPLE FRIENDLY* (in Telugu with English sub; 2/13-2/14, 2/17), O’ROMEO* (in Hindi with English sub; 2/13, 2/17-2/18), TU YAA MAIN* (in Hindi with English sub; 2/15), and MY LORD* (in Tamil with English sub; 2/18), The Metropolitan Opera: Cinderella (2/14, 12 p.m., simulcast; 2/18, 1 & 6:30 p.m., recorded), CASABLANCA (2/14, 4:30 & 7 p.m.), JURASSIC PARK (2/15, 3, 7 & 10 p.m.; 2/16, 3 & 7 p.m.; 2/18, 7 p.m.), I CAN ONLY IMAGINE 2 (2/19 on) *single screenings daily
@ Pine Lounge, 1st floor, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL
Illini Union Board presents “Spring 2025 Weekend Films” feat. REGRETTING YOU (2/13-2/14, 7 p.m.; free w/i-card)
Events featuring locally produced movies are marked with an asterisk (*). Additional “Now Playing” and “Coming Soon” listings appear after the jump!
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NOW PLAYING | The Cities Beyond
@ AMC Classic 12, Springfield, IL
Springfield Art Association presents Molly Schlich Independent | International Film Series feat. HOW TO MAKE MILLIONS BEFORE GRANDMA DIES (2/15, 1 & 4 p.m.; 2/17, 7 p.m.)
@ The Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL
“Valentine’s Day” special event feat. VALENTINE’S DAY screening (2/14, 6 p.m.)
@ The Lorraine Theatre, Hoopeston, IL
WUTHERING HEIGHTS (2/13-2/15, 2/19 on), MELANIA (documentary) (2/18)
@ The Normal Theater, Normal, IL
THE PRINCESS BRIDE (2/13-2/15), FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980) (2/13), CASABLANCA (2/14-2/15), ISU African American Studies Program presents THE RAINBOW COALITION (documentary) w/discussion (2/16, 6:30 p.m., free), Town of Normal and The Grand Prairie Bird Alliance present LISTERS: A GLIMPSE INTO EXTREME BIRDWATCHING (documentary) (2/17, 7 p.m.), ISU Queer Coalition, etc., present “Fired Up: The American AIDS Crisis on Film” feat. UNITED IN ANGER: A HISTORY OF ACT UP (documentary) w/discussion (2/18, 7 p.m., free), DO THE RIGHT THING (2/19)
@ The Princess Theatre, Leroy, IL
SOLO MIO (2/13-2/15)
NOW PLAYING | Midwest
For detailed and curated listings of Chicago-area film presentations and related events, please visit the fine folks at Cine-File and subscribe to their definitive “Cine-List” weekly blast. And for northern Illinois industry news, be sure to read Reel Chicago, Screen Magazine, and the Chicago Reader.
COMING SOON | Area-wide Events
NEW! 2/26
Film Fanatic Movie Nights* presents THE UNKNOWN (1927)
@ Analog Wine Library, Urbana, IL, 6 p.m.
2/28
43rd Insect Fear Film Festival*
@ Foellinger Auditorium, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m., free
4/3-4/10
28th annual Wisconsin Film Festival, Madison, WI
4/9-4/12
36th Onion City Experimental Film Festival, Chicago, IL
4/17-4/19
26th Roger Ebert’s Film Festival*
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
9/7-9/17
44th Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival
@ Landmark’s Century Centre Cinema + Chicago Filmmakers, Chicago, IL
COMMUNITY & CAMPUS SERIES | Champaign-Urbana area
Chambana Film Society presents “The Savoy Arthouse”
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL, 3 p.m. unless noted otherwise
“2026 Oscar-Nominated Short Films” series: 2/20: Live Action (7 p.m.), 2/21: Animation (7 p.m.), 2/22: Documentary (3 p.m.), 2/27: Animation (7 p.m.), 2/28: Documentary (7 p.m.), and 3/1: Live Action (3 p.m.)
Illini Union Board presents “Spring 2025 Weekend Films”
@ Pine Lounge, 1st floor, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m. Fri. & Sat, free w/i-card
2/20-2/21: ZOOTOPIA 2; 2/27-2/28: FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S 2; 3/6-3/7: THE RUNNING MAN; 3/13-3/14: THE HOUSEMAID; 3/27-3/28: WICKED: FOR GOOD; 4/3-4/4: ANACONDA; 4/10-4/11: MERCY; 4/17-4/18: 28 YEARS LATER: THE BONE TEMPLE
Roger Ebert Center for Film Studies events
@ Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m. (unless noted otherwise)
3/5: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER screening; 3/30: THE WIZ screening
Springfield Art Association presents the 31st annual Molly Schlich Independent | International Film Series
@ AMC Classic Springfield 12, Springfield, IL, 1 & 4 p.m. Sunday + 7 p.m. Tuesday
2/22, 2/24: TERRESTRIAL VERSES; 3/1, 3/3: NIGHT CALL; 3/8, 3/10: THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND
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Compiled by Jason Pankoke.
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“Calendar du C-U”
© 2026 Jason Pankoke/C-U Blogfidential
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