We’re so pleased to announce that Chicago Film Archives has been awarded a Basic Preservation grant from the National Film Preservation Foundation for the photochemical preservation of five short midwestern amateur films. These technically ambitious, decidedly offbeat sound films were each made without institutional support by people who were not professional filmmakers.
This project will result in the creation of new 16mm polyester soundtrack negatives, interpositives, and prints for each of these films, which currently exist only as original acetate reversal prints.
Obey Your Air Raid Warden (1942, Robert Davis & Harry Hilfinger, 3 minutes)
A darkly humorous take on Tony Pastor’s World War II public service ditty, made as an exercise in DIY sync sound filmmaking by a group of friends from Kansas City, Missouri.
Dancing Flowers (ca. 1941-1946, John Nash Ott, 1.5 minutes)
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.
The Switch (1961, Margaret Conneely/Metro Movie Club, 6 minutes)
A cheeky and quietly subversive film about husbands, wives, and sexy movies, directed by Margaret Conneely and produced by Chicago’s Metro Movie Club, an organized group of amateur filmmakers.
Back Alley Rip-Off (1970, Don McIlvaine, 8 minutes)
An unfinished fiction film about a lottery ticket, made by Chicago muralist Don McIlvaine in the North Lawndale neighborhood with local actors.
Games for Married Men (1977, Ed Sinnott/Central Cinematographers, 10 minutes)
A convoluted and comedic tale of diamonds, train station lockers, and infidelity produced by Central Cinematographers, an invite-only ciné-club of “advanced amateur” filmmakers from Chicago.
Since 2005, CFA has photochemically preserved 50 films from our collection thanks to the NFPF, a nonprofit organization created by the U.S. Congress to help save America’s film heritage. You can read more about CFA’s previous NFPF-funded projects on our Conservation Projects page. Many thanks to the NFPF for their continued support in preserving these films for the future!
