2023 not only marks the return of Celluloid Now, but also the centennial of 16mm motion picture film, preferred gauge for independent / underground / experimental filmmakers the world over. In our book, that’s plenty of reason to be feeling festive, so we’re kicking things off with a two-part, jumbo-sized Film Party featuring some of our favorite recent 16mm work, along with a couple of 20th century subterranean classics we thought you might like.

For the first half of this program, we elevate your heart rate with visual elation, presenting some on-screen deviance with this selection of frenetic, miniature wonders, nearly all under 200 feet in length. We’ll start by flushing your eyes with hand-drawn Sailor Moon, heart-shaped tubs, a quest for water, impassioned hardboiled egg eating, and of course, a love letter to 16mm. The second half of the program barrels on: from a micro-concert movie, a mere 100 feet long, documenting part of a raucous, squalling performance by experimental music icon Keiji Haino, to methodically printed abstractions courtesy of Michael Walsh and arc, from a supremely beautiful landscape study that’s only occasionally interrupted by demolition derby footage to a dizzying look at a chaotic DIY aviary, and capping it all off with the greatest cartoon ever made about bats shitting and having sex. Film party tonight!

>>>> The films in this program will be projected in 16mm. <<<<

Part 1:

Moon Cycle (I: bran stakhage’s moonlight; II: mercury retrograde) (2023, Justine Lai, 1 min.)

It Was A Good Day (2022, Christopher Carver, 2 min.)

With The Tide, with the tide (2022, Anna Kipervaser, 3 min.)

Frame of Mind (2022, Kevin Roy, 2 min.)

Mobile Phone Studies Nos. 1-25 (2020, Barron Sherer, 5 min.)

Skip Jumbo (2016, Jorge Ravelo, 2 min.)

A Picture for Parco (2022, Ayanna Dozier, 3 min.)

lovertits (2022, Ayanna Dozier, 4 min.)

an exercise in parting (2022, Ayanna Dozier, 4 min.)

Plastic Blag (1970, Judith Wardwell, 7 min.)

GUN (2016, Mary Billyou, 3 min.)

HAT (2016, Mary Billyou, 3 min.)

¡PíFIES! (2016, Ignacio Tamarit, 4 min.)

Pump (2022, Charles Cadkin, 5 min.)

===== INTERMISSION =====

Part 2:

One Roll in the Blackness (2011, Chris Kennedy, 3 min.)

Centre of the Cyclone (2015, Heather Trawick, 18 min.)

Ray’s Birds (2010, Deborah Stratman, 7 min.)

ascensions (2017-2020, arc, 8 min.)

Dude Asending a Staircase (year unknown, Michael Walsh, 3 min.)

The Bats (1999, Jim Trainor, 8 min.)

Runtime: Approx. 120 minutes plus an intermission.

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Tags: Anna Kipervaser, ARC, Ayanna Dozier, Barron Sherer, Celluloid Now, Charles Cadkin, Chicago, Chicago Film Society, Chris Kennedy, Christopher Carver, Constellation, Deobrah Stratman, Heather Trawick, Ignacio Tamarit, Jim Trainor, Jorge Ravelo, Judith Wardwell, Justine Lai, Kevin Roy, Mary Billyou, Michael Walsh