9th Annual Chicago Comedy Film Festival Brings a Smile to Your Face


From April 5-7, the 9th Annual Chicago Comedy Film Festival (CCFF) debuted over 85 short comedies.  The festival showcases films that range from low budget to studio quality, championing strong voices in comedic storytelling.  CCFF’s mission is to support comedy as a vital and influential art form.  For nearly a decade, CCFF strives to provide a vibrant platform for creatives from around the globe to network, share ideas and inspiration, collaborate and more. Through the years, several films that have played this festival have gone on to distribution, Netflix, or other platforms.

Throughout the festival, venues were packed with filmmakers, friends, fans, and supporters of indie films.  There were Q&A sessions with the filmmakers at the end of each session.  In between showings, viewers discussed their favorites prior to casting their votes for the audience choice awards. 

I came to the festival to see The Great Chicago Fire by student filmmaker, Bethany Berg.  The 12-minute comedy did not disappoint.  I met the filmmaker at the recent Chicago Comic and Entertainment Convention (C2E2) while I was shooting some video coverage of the expo.  Her film follows a young detective as he strives to find the hidden truth behind the biggest catastrophe Chicago has ever experienced.  Berg’s black and white noir film was awarded Best Student Film for this year’s festival.

Another highlight was Myrtle and Willoughby, a comedy mini-series about two Bushwick cops working in Brooklyn’s “Millennial Crimes Unit”.  When a 20-something is found dead in a Bushwick gallery, Detectives Myrtle and Willoughby risk their jobs, their lives, and even their brunch plans to pursue the truth.  This clever mini-series was conceived and shot in Brooklyn by comedy writers Jorja Hudson and Brittany Tomkin.  Winner of Best Web Series at the Orlando Film Festival, the mini-series is scheduled to be released for streaming later this month. (myrtleandwilloughby.com)

Beginning in 2011, CCFF gives an award to the top female filmmaker in the festival.  The award is meant to encourage women to continue creating their own opportunities to write and act in roles that inspire them.  The 2019 Top Female Filmmaker Award went to Shaina Feinberg for her film, Senior Escort Service. Other awards included Audience Choice Award – Best Feature, 5th of July, and Audience Choice Awards – Best Short (shorts, web series, or pilot), The Bettles.

I found CCFF to be fun while providing opportunities for filmmakers to showcase their work.  Submissions for the 10th Annual CCFF opens May 1, 2019.  For more information, including a list of all the festival award winners,  visit www.chicagocomedyfilmfestival.com. 

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