CHICAGO– Last week, one of the most diverse film festivals of the year in Chicago opened with the Swedish film “The Paradise Suite.” The 19th Annual Chicago European Union Film Fest will be at the Gene Siskel Film Center on State Street. With countries ranging from Austria to Slovakia, European cinema voices will be available to the Chicagoland area through March 31st, 2016.
’Family Member’ (Cyprus) Screens March 11th, 2016, at the Chicago European Union Film Festival
Photo credit: Gene Siskel Film Center
Countries represented in the festival are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden and the United Kingdom, with diverse films and documentaries throughout the festival run. Also as part of the festival there will be a focus on Spain, with a five film overview of new Spanish cinema.
Special guests are also plentiful – including Irish screenwriter and actor Mark O’Halloran appears with “Viva” on March 13th. Lithuanian American director Aldona Watts will discuss her documentary “Land of Songs” on March 19th and 21st. Writer/executive producer Briona Nic Dhiarmada and executive producer Christopher Fox will conduct a Q&A at the March 21 screening of “1916: The Irish Rebellion.”
 | By PATRICK McDONALD |