Regarded as one of the most important documentarians of the last couple decades, Alex Gibney has focused his camera on con-artists and fallen heroes in films such as The Armstrong Lie, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief and The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley. His 2007 doc Taxi to the Dark Side […]
Nazis are bad, right? Right. Taiki Waititi assumes you already understand this if you’re sitting down to watch his latest film, Jojo Rabbit. If you know anything about this movie, it’s that it’s about a kid who has Adolf Hitler as an imaginary friend. Maybe you even heard that it’s directed by the Thor: Ragnarok guy. Oh, and it’s divisive as hell. […]
“Independent” used to mean something. Before it became the preferred way to describe any and all rock microgenres that don’t otherwise fit the classic rock ’n’ roll mold, it was a reference to process. It’s like the term “DIY” before Pinterest came around and co-opted it. To be independent, or indie, meant to be more aligned with the individuals […]
PromptPress ignores traditional boundaries with a quiet defiance. It began in 2014 with founding editor Jennifer Colville; her brother, Christopher Colville (photography editor); and Susan Goslee (poetry editor), creating an outlet for artists who wished to play at the boundaries. Jennifer did the bulk of the work until Kalmia Strong (book arts […]
Steve Semken founded Ice Cube Press in 1991, when he was living in Lawrence, Kansas. “I’d been working a series of jobs I hadn’t anticipated, like most of us need to do,” Semken said in an email, “and it was during a break at work that I wandered into the nearby Indie bookstore, picked up a copy of a Wendell Berry book […]
In April of 2018, right near its fifth anniversary, Family Folk Machine (FFM), which had by then already become an institution in the Iowa City community, achieved another milestone: it became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The intergenerational choir’s goals had always been focused on fostering and serving the community — “We seek to […]
There’s a classic axiom about judging a man by the company he keeps. Despite my years in this job, I am not IC-scene enough to have met Jeff Nehring (known for Los Marauders, the Rough Housers and the Day Glow Bomber Boys). But I feel like I know him, judging by the amazing array of people who have rallied around him. His support […]
Dan Padley (a member of Laranja and Elizabeth Moen’s band) is releasing a new EP of ambient guitar improvisations Nov. 1 to benefit the Emma Goldman Clinic. Padley is not wedded to a specific style of music. With Elizabeth Moen, he meshes with her rootsy singer-songwriter style; with Laranja, he explores modern jazz. On Druthers he probes the […]
As a fan of jazz — and especially of Nina Simone’s hauntingly beautiful songs — I am interested in seeing reputable artists do justice to her music. Putting that together with Counterfeit Madison becomes a dream come true. […]
Iowa City Community Theatre’s production of George Reinblatt’s Evil Dead: The Musical is both bizarre and wonderful — in spades. After seeing it Friday night, I went home and watched all three original movies: Evil Dead, Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness. After this surprisingly swift marathon I have come to the undeniable conclusion […]
Crucet’s work promises to illuminate the struggle of belonging, the power of paying attention and the necessity of beauty and art in portraying problems. I want to hear how a narrative about something I wrestle with is understood by someone from a very different life experience. […]
On Saturday, Nov. 2 at the Chauncey, FilmScene will award renowned director and screenwriter Charles Burnett with the prestigious Iowa City 2019 Cinema Savant award. The event will be followed by a reception honoring Burnett and his oeuvre. […]
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