Laurels.
Despite the obvious, and probably deserved, likelihood of drawing unkind comparisons to the cliché opener of just about every motivational speech ever given, I would like to begin with a question – of any place on earth, which one’s general population would you imagine constitutes the perfect blend of artistic perspicacity, deliciously playful dementia, and stone cold balls necessary to be the first to (rightly) decide that Chicago Rot needs to be given the attention afforded by a festival exhibition?
The obvious guess, based on the criteria given, is Japan.
The answer, it turns out… is Utah.
I know – we were shocked as well. Not that we have the empirical evidence necessary to draw any sweeping generalizations about Utahites (that, like most sweeping generalizations, would probably be grossly inaccurate anyway), but… experientially bereft as I may be, I am prepared to say that Utahites are generally not the “stab your way through the city” types. And I mean that in the best possible way, Utah.
Regardless of their feelings on stabbing and its relationship to urban momentum though, the fine folks of Salt Lake City have invited us to have our OFFICIAL WORLD PREMIERE OF CHICAGO ROT AT FILMQUEST! You can see our gorgeous, Lovecraftian laurels up above – works of art in their own right while also being an aesthetically sound addition to our existing palette – that I would argue are proof positive that we are in league with men and women of demonstrable quality. The festival takes place from June 17th – 25th, and while the competition looks formidable, I think we have a damn good chance of coming home with enough three pound Cthulhu trophies to make mincemeat of the maximum load on even the most absurdly named trophy case that IKEA sells. Next week brings the announcement of the award nominations, so stay tuned to see how thorough our domination of this festival has the potential to be.
And in all seriousness, we are extraordinarily proud to be a part of this young-but-ambitious festival, which has made nothing short of miraculous strides in terms of growth and influence in its first two years of operation. It is our sincere belief that the inclusion of Chicago Rot in the 3rd edition of FilmQuest will serve to continue that improbable trend. They have been an extraordinary pleasure to work with so far, and with this level of willing, engaged collaboration coming from both parties, our screening being an enormous success seems like a foregone conclusion.
We have many, many more submissions that are still in consideration for fests throughout the year, so expect this to be only the first in a long line of announcements that will take us from Chicago, to Salt Lake City, to the rest of the country, the rest of the world, and eventually land us on the sandy beaches of a distribution deal. No matter where this leg of the Rot journey carves its path, this festival marks the first brick in that road, and it is about as fine a brick as any person could hope for.