Split Pillow’s third annual fundraiser is a spooky affair
by Kevin Sparrow
You couldn’t ask for a gloomier night to enter a haunted house than this past Thursday. After weathering bracing winds and a deluge that had been ongoing all day, we rode to the top of 400 East Randolph to be greeted with the ominous message, “You’ll have to go through the haunted house first to get to the party.” Passing through an opaque fog, glimpsing a sink full of blood, being offered organs by a mad surgeon, and observing Abe Lincoln in a screening room rather than the Ford Theater were just a sample of the tableaux we witnessed. The haunted house tour ended with a meet-and-greet with Dr. Spalanzani and his son, Olympio, characters from non-profit production company Split Pillow’s upcoming feature Eye of the Sandman. For $50-$60 a ticket to benefit the organization’s new season, guests were treated to a wonderful spectacle of spookiness, previews of Split Pillow’s films and programs, a silent auction, and some very interesting yet tasty hors d’ouvres:
Founded by Jason Stephens, Split Pillow has been a Chicago staple for eight years, growing from a production company promoting collaborative projects with local filmmakers to working with the community to perpetuate media literacy. Board president Andrea de Fraga explains, “This organization tries to get new filmmakers’… messages across, [so] a lot of other voices can be heard.” This commitment to diversity is evident in the films produced. “The fifth feature we did was with all-gay filmmakers in 2007,” creative director Jeff McHale says of the film soulMaid. “It’s hard because you don’t want to be a ‘gay’ organization, but… there are a lot of straight people who… are getting exposed to something they aren’t aware of.”
The feature presentations Split Pillow develops are typically collaborations between various directors and depict people from a wide range of backgrounds. The same is true of the innovative Chicago360 documentary project, now preparing for production on its fifth volume, Aliens in the City. When it comes to showcasing diversity, “[w]ith Chicago360, it’s great because you’re already getting a great mix of people… Chicago is a character front and center,” says McHale. The city’s own cultural diversity is pivotal in the individual short docs that are chosen for presentation in Chicago360, combining into a rich feature-length mosaic.
Additionally, Split Pillow works with the local community to promote media literacy and keep Chicago a vibrant locale for filmmaking. Marketing director Brooke Blocki describes her outreach in spreading the word of MediaStart!, SP’s educational program: “I contact folks in the non-profit industry, and some people I know in Chicago schools. I go to connections I know, trying help other non-profits.” “After School Matters hosted [a program] at Center on Halsted,” says McHale. “We went… and worked with youth there on a daily basis for six weeks. We were able to develop kids’ skills much better than in other programs. We’re trying to cultivate youth, and [then] with Chicago360, seeing what they turn into as adults. ”
Split Pillow is currently preparing for the screening of Eye of the Sandman at the Gene Siskel Film Center on Friday, November 20. Tickets are $10; a second screening will be held on Monday, November 23. The documentary feature Life as Lincoln is another project about which Blocki is especially excited. “It’s dear to my heart because, growing up in Illinois, I knew a lot of Lincoln impersonators. We can go to a lot of educational organizations–[such as] the Chicago History Museum. We’re celebrating Lincoln’s bicentennial.” Life as Lincoln will premiere on President’s Day 2010. If you are interested in learning more about Split Pillow or purchasing DVDs of their films, check out their contact information here.
