This episode of our podcast is a remix of an earlier interview conducted by Chicago based journalist Brett Stewart recorded with Blues authority Bill Dahl, feature writer for the Chicago Tribune, radio broadcaster and author of the books , “Motown the Golden Years” and more …
“Hala” is an indie film shot in Chicago that, if you’re like me, you might have missed. Sadly it was on my list for the Chicago International Film Festival but got scratched due to some scheduling conflicts. I finally got to see it and at …
Chicago native produces documentary, “Searching for Mr. Rugoff”
If you are a fan of indie films, an aspiring filmmaker, or a movie industry insider you might have a particular interest in “Searching for Mr. Rugoff” a documentary film about the man whose professional business decisions contributed to shaping the changing culture of the 1960s and 70s. However this is also a story of personality, the rise and fall of a career and how a once powerful individual can fall almost instantly into obscurity.
“Searching for Mr. Rugoff” largely features the New York film scene but I decided to include it here at Chicago Broadcasting Network because Ira Deutchman, the film’s producer and director is a native Chicagoan raised on the southside in the South Shore neighborhood which around the same time produced the likes of actor/ singer Mandy Patinkin and playwright David Mamet. Ira an Independent Film Producer based in New York, a Columbia University Professor, and self-described Cubs Fan was a former classmate of my wife Julie at Myra Bradwell Elementary School before he moved on to high school in Highland Park.
As is the case with many documentaries and good stories in general Deutchman takes us to places unfamiliar to most of us and shows us things we very likely have not seen. In this case it is a peek at the inner workings of the business of film distribution and how one person like Mr. Rugoff can make decisions that influence each of us subtly or even in direct and profound ways.
Deutchman acquaints us with the role of the film distributor as the individual or company with the responsibility of introducing new films to moviegoers and is thereby charged with creating the needed momentum that will ultimately lead a film to monetary success or not. It is at this point that many worthy films live or die.
If you are familiar with films like: Elvira Madigan, Z, The Sorrow and the Pity, Putney Swope, Trash, Marjoe, Gimme Shelter, Scenes From a Marriage, Swept Away, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Man Who Fell to Earth, or Pumping Iron to name a few it is probably at least in some part due to the decisions and possibly the “P.T. Barnum” tactics of film distributor Donald Rugoff.
If you are unfamiliar with these titles I can assure you that they each in their own way either expressed and reflected back to the audience images of the counter-culture or for many provided a virtual roadmap of changing values and shifts in social discourse.
If you were around Chicago during this era you probably went to see many of these films at the Carnegie on Wells, the Cinema off Michigan Avenue, maybe the Playboy Theater later renamed the Sandburg, or one of the other more progressive venues that championed independent film. Drop me a note and let me know where you first saw some of these films.
“Searching for Mr. Rugoff” is obviously a labor of love, or at least a labor of deep appreciation and respect for the man who Deutchman describes as his mentor, as the person who taught him everything he knows about film distribution.
The release of the 94 minute film was delayed due to COVID and is now enjoying a limited screening schedule at the Music Box Theater on Southport. However alternatively it can be downloaded at musicboxdirect.com for streaming online at home. For more viewing options nationwide visit Mrrugoff.com and to learn more about the producer / director or to see outtakes from the film visit iradeutchman.com.
I got a sneak preview of “Belfast” which was one of the highlights of the 57th Chicago International Film Festival. This podcast includes my review followed by some pre-movie comments from the writer/director Sir Kenneth Branaugh who was present to introduce his semi-autobiographical film and …
Connie Wilson talks about the film “Passing” and chats with director Rebecca Hall (Christine, Vicky Cristina Barcelona) on the red carpet at The 57th Chicago International Film Festival. Update: I finally got around to actually seeing the film “Passing” on Netflix over the 2022 New …
“Oscar Micheaux -The Superhero of Black Film Making” is a useful contribution to the library of Black History subjects placing Micheaux into the pantheon of individuals who contributed to the rise of twentieth century African American culture and ultimately, in a more “woke” sense, to the fabric of American culture as a whole.
Micheaux lived off-and-on in Chicago for decades. In 1918 he opened a film office in the South Loop. His first film, “The Homesteader” was made, at the then recently abandoned Selig-Polyscope studio on Chicago’s north side and became phenomenally successful with African American audiences leading him to become a mini-mogul in the flourishing Chicago silent film scene.
His last film “The Betrayal” produced in 1948, which has sadly been lost, was also produced in Chicago, shooting scenes throughout the South Side and on farms in Wisconsin and southern Michigan.
The documentary film, “Oscar Micheaux – The Superhero of Black Cinema” directed by Francesco Zippel had its North American premiere as part of the 2021 Chicago International Film Festival.
The 57th Annual Chicago Film Festival brought together two interestingly similar subjects, Mayor Harold Washington who became Chicago’s first African American mayor and Mayor Pete Buttigieg who was the mayor of nearby South Bend, Indiana who went on to become the first openly gay candidate …
This film hits all the right notes. Physically debilitated due to a childhood injury inflicted by his mentally impaired father, an aspiring pianist is virtually paralyzed on one side of his body and unable to use his right hand. In spite of his challenges, Norman …
Pre-opening preview review of “Broadcast Signal Intrusion” with Harry Shum.Jr. (Crazy Rich Asians) inspired by a true Chicago mystery. Also capsule reviews of SHORTS 1, a collection of 8 short subjects produced by filmmakers with ties to the Chicago area. Featuring works Winning in America, Close Ties to Home Country, Sink, Monochromatic Dreams, Get Well Soon, Speck of Dust, By the Time I Reach Him, and The Year I Went Looking for Birds by Amrita Singh, Akanksha Cruczynski, Curtis Matzke, Ashley Thompson, Simo Ezoubeiri, Kristen Butile, JP Olsen, Brian Zahm, Meg Walsh, and Danny Carroll.
In this Chicago based documentary “The Road Up” Mr. Jesse part preacher, part drill sergeant guides a class of mostly middle aged job seekers through a training course designed to raise their self-esteem and hone their skills to improve their readiness for employment. The Cara …
The Lyric Opera of Chicago is providing a recorded version of Rugerro Leoncavallo’s iconic opera “Pagliacci” to view online free of charge for an indefinite period of time beginning now. Listen to our podcast review then visit lyricopera.org/pagliacci to reserve your streaming link. Photo: Kyle …
Reno Lovison talks with master energy healer, actor, performer Richard Damien about growing up on the southside of Chicago and reminiscences about his experiences in the city as a young actor before his transformation to energy healer and intuitive life coach.
Richard is the author of “A Monk in the World” and currently working on a one-man autobiographical stage production based on the book and his life experiences.
Reno and Richard have known each other since their youth when they were members of the Jack & Jill Players theater for children and both appeared on stage in different productions with Carrie Snodgrass when she was a student at Goodman School of Drama .