Tired of over-polished, over-long, soulless Hollywood fare? Long for something shorter, stranger and with more midwestern accents? Join us in celebrating the inaugural Amateur Movie Day at the Music Box with a program of amateur films from CFA’s collections!
The program will include 16mm prints as well as digital scans of films that currently exist only as unpreserved elements.
Amateur Movie Day events will be happening all over the world this March, celebrating weird and wonderful films produced by ciné-clubs, teenagers, and other skilled non-professional filmmakers. These films were made to be screened and shared beyond just the small groups that made them — so in that spirit, we’ve put together a program of some of the best hidden gems the Chicago Film Archives has to offer.
Do you have amateur movies in your own closet/attic/basement? Get in touch with us about including them in future Amateur Movie Day screenings!
THE PROGRAM
Obey Your Air Raid Warden
1942, Robert Davis & Harry Hilfinger, 3 min — screening digitally
A trio of Kansas City, MO friends came together to parody the popular song (and public service announcement) by Tony Pastor and His Orchestra as an exercise in DIY sound-on-film filmmaking.
An original 16mm Kodachrome reversal print of this film is part of CFA’s Robert and Theresa Davis Collection. Currently, the film is being photochemically preserved at Colorlab with support from the National Film Preservation Foundation.
Tender Loving Care of Your Films
1963, Bob Messenger, 7.5 min — screening digitally
A short amateur film about how filmmakers can extend the life of their motion pictures, made and distributed by the Society of Amateur Cinematographers (SAC).
An original 16mm Kodachrome reversal print of this film is part of CFA’s Ron Doerring Collection.
February 31st
1972, Mardik Sikat, Philip Tascon, Richard Saenz & Raymundo Villarreal, 3.5 min — screening digitally
A deeply silly stop motion film starring a quartet of fruit, made by four boys from St. Thomas of Canterbury grade school in Chicago. It won an award at the 1972 Young Chicago Filmmaker’s Festival, which was sponsored by the Chicago Public Library and welcomed submissions from “any amateur filmmaker, who is a resident or attending a Chicago high school, junior college or undergraduate college, as well as non-students, 25 years of age or younger.”
Two original 16mm distribution prints of this film are part of CFA’s Chicago Public Library Collection.
Listen
ca. 1970, Helen & Sidney Moritz, 3.5 min — screening digitally
An amateur anti-smoking film produced by Helen and Sidney Mortiz that mocks cigarette advertisements of its day. Shot in the late 1960s or early 1970s and distributed by the Society of Amateur Cinematographers (SAC).
An original 16mm distribution print of this film is part of CFA’s Ron Doerring Collection.
The Big Green House on the Corner
1982, Mike & Bill Armstrong, 3.5 min — screening digitally
A delightfully chaotic Super 8 horror film made by teenage brothers in Wheaton, Illinois with some real low-budget ingenuity. Originally silent, CFA film technician Justin Dean recorded music to accompany the film in 2020.
The Super 8 reversal positive of this film is part of CFA’s Armstrong Family Collection.
Dancing Flowers
1941-1946, John Nash Ott, 1.5 min — screening digitally
A stop-motion film of potted primroses dancing in sync to a Strauss waltz, made by Winnetka, Illinois resident John Nash Ott using a variety of inventive greenhouse and camera equipment.
CFA’s John Nash Ott Collection contains multiple 16mm elements related to the production of this film, including two complete prints. Currently, the film is being photochemically preserved at Colorlab with support from the National Film Preservation Foundation.
Close to You
1971, David Strutzel, 4.5 min — screening digitally
Stop-motion ceramic piggies dance to The Carpenters’ hit in this film made by a Chicago high school student as a hobby. It went on to win an award from the Young Chicago Filmmakers Festival in 1971. A beloved CFA classic.
This film was made on Super 8 but was blown up to 16mm for distribution; an original 16mm distribution print of this film is part of CFA’s Chicago Public Library Collection.
Modern Design
1941, Robert Davis & Harry Hilfinger, 2.5 min — screening digitally
Two men (amateur filmmakers Robert Davis and Harry Hilfinger) lip sync to the song “Modern Design” by Johnny Messner And His Orchestra.
A 16mm print and the original sound and picture elements for this film are part of CFA’s Robert and Theresa Davis Collection.
The Fairy Princess
1956, Margaret Conneely, 7.5 min — screening on 16mm
An amateur Christmas film made by Chicago filmmaker Margaret Conneely, who frames stop-motion animation and trick photography with live action footage to fuel her very own holiday fairy tale.
An original 16mm Kodachrome picture element and a 16mm reversal composite print are part of CFA’s Margaret Conneely Collection. The film was photochemically preserved by CFA in 2005 with support from the National Film Preservation Foundation as one of our first preservation projects.
Film No. 4
1950, Denver Sutton, 1.5 min — screening on 16mm
Colorful Kodachrome cubes and lines are synchronized to a jaunty tune. This film, found in the collection of Chicago-based filmmaker Margaret Conneely, was made by amateur filmmaker Denver Sutton of San Francisco, and was distributed by the Northern California Council of Amateur Movie Clubs.
Two 16mm Kodachrome prints of this film are part of CFA’s Margaret Conneely Collection.
Ratamata
1970, Jeff Kreines, 8.5 min — screening on 16mm
A portrait of the diverse opinions of Chicagoans as they reflect on the general state of affairs in America, the war in Vietnam, social and racial conflict, freedom and personal liberty, happiness, and social justice. Ratamata was made by future Tom Palazzolo collaborator Kreines when he was 16 years old, and was an award winner at the Young Chicago Filmmakers Festival.
An original 16mm distribution print of this film is part of CFA’s Chicago Public Library Collection.
Mister E
1960, Margaret Conneely, 11.5 min — screening on 16mm
Mister E narrates the revenge acted out by a young wife, left at home while her husband is at a card game. New Yorker critic Richard Brody included it on his list of Greatest Independent Films of the Twentieth Century, writing: “The most extreme independence is the amateur’s. Margaret Conneely worked with essentially no budget and no technique recognizable as belonging to any film industry at all. She created movies with friends and family that, at their best, embody a hectic and teeming cinematic imagination (albeit in short and compressed form)—as in this comedic drama about a woman’s oddball efforts to make her gadabout husband jealous enough to stay home with her.”
CFA’s Margaret Conneely Collection contains multiple 16mm elements related to the production of this film. In 2006, it was photochemically preserved by CFA at Colorlab with support from the Women’s Film Preservation Fund.
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Total program runtime: about 1 hour