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Experimental Tuesdays: The Dells by Nellie Kluz
September 24 | 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
| Date & Time | Location |
|---|---|
| September 24, 2024 (7–9 p.m.) | UWM Union Cinema |
Join filmmaker Nellie Kluz in-person for a Q&A after the screening of The Dells. This film observes the clash between fantasy and reality faced by international student workers newly arrived in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin – the self-described “Waterpark Capital of the World.” Coming from countries like Turkey, Romania, Jamaica, Thailand, and the Dominican Republic, these students land in the American Midwest via the State Department’s Summer Work Travel program. Issued temporary J-1 visas, they work low-paying jobs as lifeguards, housekeepers, and servers, living in dormitories tucked behind a glut of tourist attractions.
The film follows the rhythms of an ensemble cast of “J-1s” as they work, party, and cruise around town in taxis. Students weather the myriad headaches of making ends meet in the US – car troubles, job losses, long work hours – thanks to their friendships and youthful optimism. We see their hopes for a summer of American luck and prosperity rub up against their actual experiences, which are by turns disappointing, funny, and transcendent.
Nellie Kluz makes nonfiction films about collective rituals and the infrastructures that support them. She also works as a cinematographer and camera operator for others’ projects, most recently the HBO show How to With John Wilson. Her films have screened at venues including Camden International Film Festival, Chicago Underground Film Festival, European Media Art Festival, International Film Festival Rotterdam, Maryland Film Festival, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, the UnionDocs Center for Documentary Art, and others. She received an MFA in Moving Image from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 Faces of Independent Film” for 2017. She has taught filmmaking at the California Institute of the Arts and at the University of Iowa.
Experimental Tuesdays is a weekly screening series that features the most celebrated work of contemporary and historical artist-made film and video. The series seeks to present films and artists that explore the creative and critical potential of moving images. This series amplifies marginalized voices by hosting artists that represent diverse populations, such as LGBT, Native American, Black and Latinx artists. Hosted by the Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres, and presented in partnership with UWM’s Union Cinema, this series is a bedrock of the Milwaukee arts landscape. Experimental Tuesdays has recently hosted the work of Silvia das Fadas, Courtney Stephens, Simon Liu, Helena Wittman, Jessica Bardsley, Suneil Sanzgiri, Mary Helena Clark, Angelo Madsen Minax, and Rhayne Vermette to name a few. This screening series is free and open to the public.