On October 12th through the 26th, the 53rd Chicago International Film Festival, the longest running competitive festival in North America, will roll out the red carpet and the proverbial film reels for what might possibly be the best line-up of films in its history. Chicago, as they say, is “my kind of town,” but Chicago also does things its own way and that is to its audiences’ benefit as the festival is highlighting architecture—think of it as a city’s fashion statement—with the Spotlight: Architecture category.
CIFF began Spotlight: Architecture in 2015 and is now partnering with the Chicago Architecture Biennial for its inaugural year. In addition to the 6 feature- and short-films at CIFF, there will also be several events taking place around the city to showcase Chicago’s unique and rich architectural history. CIFF programming director Anthony Kaufman shared his excitement about the film “The Experimental City” and filmmaker Chad Freidrichs’ attendance at his screenings. He added, “[Chad] is also doing a free talk before his premiere at the Chicago Cultural Center on ‘Future Cities.’