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The Siskel Premieres 2013’s Most Striking Documentaries in the Stranger Than Fiction Series

With Hollywood launching into awards-season mania, it’s easy to get lost in the spectacle of big studio films and stars striking poses on the red carpet. But while Oscar bait vies for the ever-shifting spotlight, the Gene Siskel Film Center (164 N. State St.) gives cinephiles something that’s more substance than shine. Starting on Saturday, January 4, the center’s Stranger Than Fiction film series will premiere 10 documentaries, most of which have been criminally overlooked by the mainstream media. The thoughtfully curated list touches on stories that range from raw to hysterical, delving into the life of avant-garde jazz musician Kahil El’Zabar, the gender dynamics of modern China, and the culture of propaganda in North Korea and the United States. Filmmakers will be on hand at each screening to answer questions and engage with the audience. Stranger Than Fiction runs through Thursday, February 6. View the schedule and purchase tickets here. Photo courtesy of An Honest Living’s Facebook.

The Image Is the Story: An Interview with Photographer Guillaume Simoneau

When he was in his early 20s, photographer Guillaume Simoneau did what any young man is liable to do: he fell in love. Her name was Caroline Annandale. She was a southern girl with a slight Georgian twang in her voice and a hint of naiveté in her hazel eyes. The two met in 2000, and they spent much of the next year traveling the world together. Then, in the turbulent years following September 11, 2001, Annandale joined the Army. With Annandale halfway around the world and in the midst of war, the couple grew apart. Eventually, she married another man. But, for Simoneau, the story doesn't end there. Over the course of eight years, Simoneau created a visual diary of the relationship, comprising everything from posed portraits to text messages. He titled the finished collection Love and War and chose to present its 34 images in a nonchronological order, making it difficult to construct a traditional narrative from their fragments. To experience Love and War is to be left with a very real, very messy picture of how people and relationships change over time. We contacted Simoneau at his home in Montreal. He still has much to say about Love and War, a portion of which appears in the Museum of Contemporary Photography's current exhibition, Backstory (July 19–October 6). This interview has been condensed and edited. GROUPON: What were the benefits of using photography to tell this story instead of film or prose? Is there something you were able to do with still images that you couldn't with another medium? GUILLAUME SIMONEAU: Photography is what I do. Since this project only came to life much later on, what you are looking at is literally the equivalent of my visual diary of that time period. I didn't set out to tell a story. The story told itself, in a way. G: The images aren't presented in chronological order. How did you decide which order to show them in? GS: I believe in mystery. … If you explain everything, it loses its appeal. The most interesting narratives often come in a nonchronological structure. It challenges your intellect and your curiosity in all the right ways. G: What compelled you to include images of text messages and emails? GS: It made a lot of sense, given the long-distance nature of the relationship. These were a big part of my diary and archive. G: Did Caroline's decision to join the Army affect your perception of war? What about your perception of the US military? GS: It mostly affected me in ways I didn’t expect. It allowed me to grow and change my opinion about many aspects of the military. If I go back and look at some of the writing I did shortly after Caroline announced she was enrolling, my stand was extremely judgmental toward the whole idea. Spending a considerable amount of time down South getting to know some of her colleagues … allowed me to understand where they came from [and] to contextualize the reasons behind their choices. Ultimately, her experience brought me a much clearer understanding of the differences between soldiers and decision makers. Today, I exercise great compassion toward military personnel—something I never thought I would do. G: This was an intensely emotional chapter in your life. How do you feel now when you look at the series as a whole? GS: I have removed myself from it. It is the past for me now. G: How do you feel about having viewers look at what is essentially a diary of your relationship with Caroline? GS: I feel great, and that is precisely why I did it. After seeing a Nan Goldin exhibit in Montreal in 2003, I understood the strength and power of bringing personal stories into the public sphere. This event greatly influenced my choice to publish this series years later. G: What do you hope viewers learn from your work? GS: I don't think I have anything in particular in mind. I just want to show another side of the coin. See Love and War at the Museum of Contemporary Photography's Backstory exhibition, which runs until Sunday, October 6. Admission is free with a suggested donation. Photo courtesy of the Museum of Contemporary Photography

Go Play Outside: The Best Chicago Bars for Live Music When the Sun’s Out

Most music and drinking in Chicago happens in warm, dark clubs that can easily be sealed off from the long winter. You won’t find a lot of permanent outdoor stages. A few bars, though, let you get some fresh air and listen to music without having to stand all day next to an insufferable porta-potty reviewer at a music festival. If you’ve taught your supercomputer everything except how to look cool: Three Aces (Little Italy | 1321 W. Taylor St.) There are probably thousands of gallons of tattoo ink displayed on various limbs at Three Aces on any sunny day. There’s also plenty of pomade, and the rockabilly bands playing on the sunny patio hidden by ranks of motorcycles seem right. It can be easy to get distracted from the people watching and music by a menu of pizzas served on warm slabs of wood and fries with bolognese sauce. When the opener is using the word “heart” way too many times in one song: Reggies (South Loop | 2105 S. State St.) You can’t really hear whoever’s playing inside when you’re at Reggies’ rooftop bar, and it is easy to let way too much time slip past on a stream of beers from Three Floyds and Solemn Oath. I’ve had the sound guy come looking for me there when I was supposed to be tuning up. I even missed seeing half of a set by Anvil, the frumpiest Canadian metal band in history. None of that is time I consider wasted among similarly unconcerned folks playing pool and bags with a view that’s nice, but not distractingly nice. When you want your cocktail’s ingredients to outnumber the people on the dance floor: The Whistler (Logan Square | 2421 N. Milwaukee Ave.) The Whistler feels sort of like a house party, but hosted by someone who makes all of their cocktails with egg whites and homemade bitters and says “sprig” a lot. That’s completed by an in-house music label with a selection of artists, from the Blue Ribbon Glee Club to The Hood Internet, that feels curated like a friend’s basement show. The space in front of the little stage will usually be crowded with other sweaty dancers, and you’ll definitely want to slip out to the patio, which has an appropriate backyard feel. When your arms are tired from carrying around large beer lists: Montrose Saloon (Albany Park | 2933 W. Montrose Ave.) This place is often full of neighborhood locals, but you probably won’t be able to offend them by picking the wrong thing from a diminutive selection of beers. A healthy attitude toward day drinking means that you’ll probably end up following the sounds of a banjo out to the grassy patio or tossing horseshoes together either way. When you want to see what Martha Stewart would do with a bunch of crazy paints and garbage: Weeds (Lincoln Park | 1555 N. Dayton St.) Owner Sergio Mayora told the Chicago Tribune pretty honestly how the aesthetic at Weeds came to be. “I went to my family for a loan and they said, ‘No way.’ So, I decorated the place, the only way I could afford, with garbage.” Live jazz, rock, and poetry readings are enhanced by a little scuzziness, but you can easily wander out through open doors to the sprawling patio if you get tired of hanging out beneath a clutter of old bras and Sharpie graffiti.

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The Siskel Premieres 2013’s Most Striking Documentaries in the Stranger Than Fiction Series

The Image Is the Story: An Interview with Photographer Guillaume Simoneau

Go Play Outside: The Best Chicago Bars for Live Music When the Sun’s Out

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