CUFF It! The Chicago Underground Film Festival Returns for 30th Anniversary

The festival will have 50 screenings in total and host four post-screening events and after parties.

The official poster for the 30th Annual Chicago Underground Film Festival, running September 13 until September 17 (Poster Artwork: Corinne Halbert)

The Chicago Underground Film Festival, known for their screenings of original films and video, will take place Sept. 13 until Sept. 17 for its 30th anniversary.

Opening night of the festival will take place at Gene Siskel Film Center in the Loop with the remaining screenings happening at The Harper Theater in Hyde Park. The festival opens with a screening of Soda Jerk’s Hello Dankness and ends with the screening of Sean P. Fahey’s For Kicks. The festival also features screenings, panels and nightly after parties.

One of those post-screening events will take place on the festival’s first night. The event will have Another VU, a Velvet Underground tribute band, as the entertainment. The band will perform two sets at Bottom Lounge in the West Loop. Doors will open at 9 p.m. with music starting an hour later.

The following day, on Sept. 14, Experimental Filmmaker Karaoke will take place at Miyagi Records, a record store near Washington Park. The event began as a tradition made by the 2008 Portland Documentary and Experimental Film Festival (PDX). The festival later shut down in 2009, though its organizers, Matt McCormick and Gretche Hogue, are bringing the event to this year’s Chicago Underground Film Festival.

Another event, taking place at The Promontory on Sept. 15, will highlight Chicago’s Footworking and experimental film. It will serve as an audio-visual experience with music from DJ Spinn, Jana Rush and RP Boo. The event will also feature films from Wills Glasspiegel.

The final post-screening event, dubbed “Clusterf—k,” will serve as a collaborative and creative moment amongst artists. It will celebrate all art forms and artists outside of traditional art forms. Artists, vendors, DJs and those who enjoy a party will come together at the Kulture Museum to “create the ultimate collision of creativity,” read the press release.

The schedule as well as tickets and festival passes are available on the festival’s website.