PROGRAM 

It is what it is – until it isn’t. Combining weird narratives and gnarly video montages ripped from social media and YouTube, SURVIVAL MODE features films and videos that create art and often laughter from the media that fuels our culture of hypervigilance. Stories of insomniacs, doomsday preppers, mysterious influencers, and retired child stars are presented with a tongue in cheek and a fist in the air.

I’m At Home | Philip Thompson | United States, 2021, 13 mins

The host of a children's television show about creativity starts experiencing burnout after needing to force his own creativity every day.

Utera | Alex Tahereh Kaucher | United States, 2021, 5 mins

Thoughts on the influences to want babies that the filmmaker experienced as a young girl.

Genital Reveal Part | Hogan Seidel | United States, 2021, 7 mins

An exploration of gender binarism, violence, climate disaster, and the second coming of Christ. A 3D spectacle for the whole family! Note: on 16mm - 3D glasses will be provided! 

Meteor | Unidad de Montaje Dialéctico | Mexico, 2021, 16 mins

METEOR juxtaposes, on the one hand, a biopic of Macaulay Culkin up to the moment he gave up acting and, on the other, the letters written by Arthur Rimbaud after he gave up literature. Drawing exclusively on found footage from YouTube, it undertakes a critique of the politics of total transparency and the commodification of the self. 

 Functions, Unlimited | Leslie Wool | United States, 2020, 11 mins

Strangeness abounds after a mysterious app appears in the lives of several people. 

The Well Prepared Citizen’s Solution | Lydia Moyer | United States, 2021, 5 mins

An account of life among those preparing for the end of the world. A report from the garden. 

Life Without Dreams | Jessica Bardsley | United States, 2022, 13 mins

LIFE WITHOUT DREAMS  is set within the outer space of consciousness, where the surfaces of far out planetary bodies form the terrain for an exploration of the gradual disappearance of darkness, 24/7 capitalism, and insomnia.

Chicago Filmmakers Firehouse Cinema

In-person screenings are held at Chicago Filmmakers firehouse cinema located at 1326 W Hollywood Ave in the Edgewater neighborhood. Please be sure to arrive 15 minutes prior to showtime and be ready to present your order confirmation number for admission. Proof of full vaccination or a negative Covid-19 PCR test result is required to attend all screenings and events.