“To say that Consuming Sprits—a meticulously constructed animated feature set in small-town Appalachia written, directed, edited, and produced by the talented Chris Sullivan—is depressing is not a value judgment so much as a fact.” - Jonathan Robbins, Film Comment
"Entirely original. . .an inquiry into the darkest zones of the human heart. . .Weaves a complicated, intoxicating spell…a wonder." - A.O. Scott, New York Times
“A monstrous visual achievement... one of the most uniquely humanistic animated features of all time." - Joseph Jon Lanthier, Slant
Monday, June 15, 6:00 p.m. | CONSUMING SPIRITS is a hand-made independent feature animation shot frame-by-frame using paper cutouts, models, and tracing paper cell animation. Its story chronicles the lives of three characters who live in a rust belt town called Magguson, and work at its local newspaper The Daily Suggester. Gentian Violet, Victor Blue, and Earl Gray first appear to be acquaintances, but as the film unfolds, we find they have a long diabolical history, revolving around social service intervention, foster care, romance, and hatred. Each character has family secrets to hide, and family secrets to discover. An auto accident one dark and inebriated night causes a crack in the memory vault of these intimate strangers. By the film’s end all parties walk from the woods, both healed and wounded.
Awards & Nominations
Winner - Chicago Award, 2012 Chicago International Film Festival
Free for Siskel Film Center Members!
Limited capacity. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Not a member and want to attend this free screening and others like it? Click here to join our community of film lovers and support the nonprofit Gene Siskel Film Center with a membership.
Bleak Week (Animated!) | June 12–17, 2026
In partnership with the American Cinematheque and Music Box Theatre, we are thrilled to participate in Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair. Given animation’s limitless potential to inscribe the darkest of worlds, the Siskel's iteration of Bleak Week focuses on animated films. Join us for this very special showcase of six movies from around the globe featuring a broad range of animation techniques for a communal (and hopefully cathartic) movie-watching experience like no other.
The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu