SHORTS FROM THE BLOCK: BLACK HARVEST’S CHICAGO STORIES

Tuesday, September 29, 6:00 p.m. | The Gene Siskel Film Center is honored to partner with Chicago Public Library to bring a program of selected shorts to the Elie Wiesel Auditorium at the Forum of the Obama Presidential Center. In celebration of the Siskel’s 32nd anniversary of the Black Harvest Film Festival (BHFF), the screening will be followed by a conversation with journalist and longtime BHFF colleague Sylvia Ewing. The 2026 edition of Black Harvest runs from November 6-15. 

REGISTRATION IS CURRENTLY FULL 

A same-day waitlist will open at the Obama Presidential Center at 5:30 p.m., 30 minutes before the program begins. Waitlist guests will be admitted beginning at 6:10 p.m., as space becomes available, in the order they arrived. Admission from the waitlist is not guaranteed. No additional guests will be admitted after 6:20 p.m.

Registered guests are encouraged to arrive early; unclaimed seats may be released to the waitlist beginning at 6:10 p.m.

TICKETS

This is a free program, but space is limited and registration is required for entry.

VENUE

Elie Wiesel Auditorium at the Obama Presidential Center, 6001 S. Stony Island Avenue

PROGRAM

90 DAYS
2017, Nathan Hale Williams, 19 min
An award-winning short that continues to challenge HIV stigma through an intimate story of love, vulnerability, and compassion.

TAKE 290
2025, Sandrel Nicole Young, 10 min
A lyrical West Side–South Side love story exploring the relationship between art, place, and community.

EVERYTHING IS EVERYTHING
2025, Kin Marie, 6 min
A conversational documentary reflecting on Juneteenth commemorations across Chicago and the ways collective memory is carried forward through community celebration.

FROM SCRATCH
2025, Somer Van Benton, Kate Wunderlich, 11 min
A portrait of Roseland's Old Fashioned Donuts and the enduring legacy of neighborhood institutions built through care, labor, and community.

FOR THE CRIB
2024, Lawrence Agyei, 5 min
Following the South Shore Drill Team's return to the Bud Billiken Parade, the film celebrates intergenerational leadership, neighborhood pride, and one of Chicago's most enduring cultural traditions.

ACCESSIBILITY

The Elie Wiesel Auditorium at the Obama Foundation offers fully integrated accessible seating, featuring the first three rows of seats designed to be adjustable to accommodate various mobility needs, alongside ADA-compliant campus service animal policies, accessible parking, and barrier-free entry in the Forum building.