Annette Elliot is a Chicago-based writer and director whose work sits at the intersection of cinema, art history, and architecture. Drawing consciously from painting, sculpture, and the built environment, her films explore how aesthetic traditions shape—and obscure—cultural meaning. Her latest short film, “The Museum” (2024), which premiered at the Oscar-qualifying Atlanta Film Festival, turns its gaze toward the Art Institute of Chicago, examining the museum not only as an architectural landmark but as a racial, cultural, and political space. Through a series of intersecting narratives—featuring artists, curators, historians, conservators, security guards, and janitors—Elliot challenges long-held assumptions about museums as “white spaces” and interrogates the historical erasure embedded in ideals of beauty and classical art. A faculty member at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Elliot brings both an artist’s and an educator’s perspective to her work, inviting audiences to reconsider who belongs in museums and how we see ourselves reflected within them.
The short film was featured as part of a special screening of the Midwest Film Festival this year.
What sparked the inspiration of this project?
I teach at the School of the Art Institute, and we’ve always had a partnership with the museum so I can take my students into the galleries. Because I was there so often, I started, probably like you, getting to know the security guards, the janitors — the people there every day. I began imagining a “day in the life” of the museum and the different people it brings together. The security guards, the curators, the artists — all these worlds collide in the same space.
So the original idea was to follow different people whose lives briefly touch inside the galleries.
I love your two main characters. Charín Álvarez, who plays the art historian, I’ve seen her in so many Chicago productions. She’s in one of my favorite films, Saint Frances. Can you talk about your casting process?
I see a lot of Chicago theater. I saw Charín in Pedro Páramo at the Goodman. I look for a certain quality in actors, and she has a very expressive face — a kind of underlying sadness. Her eyes really struck me. I contacted someone who knew her, and I was delighted when she agreed.
The other actor, who played the artist, James Vincent Meredith, is also from the Goodman. I’m a big fan. He was in the show Boss with Kelsey Grammer — did you ever see it?
Yes! That was a really good show. I was so sad when they canceled it. Probably because it was too true, and close to home (laughing).
Some of the people in the film are non-actors — the security guards are actual museum security guards, and some of the janitors, too.
The cinematography was amazing. Can you speak to the look you were going for and your collaboration with your DP?
The aesthetics were very important. I was inspired by classical paintings and painterly compositions. I often went to the galleries to take reference photos and created a lot of storyboards. I wanted some shots to look almost like a Delacroix (Eugène Delacroix) or other classic works. That’s why we shot on 16mm film — it has depth, texture, grain.
16mm film can be more cumbersome these days. You can’t process film in Chicago, so it has to be sent out, and you have to wait. But I think the slower process worked. Shooting in the museum was complicated — they have many restrictions. Film needs more light, and setting up lights in the galleries required a lot of conversations with curators, especially in the ancient Greek galleries. They’re very particular about light temperature and what can be used near the art. It took a lot of work to get the shots we wanted.
It was gorgeous. You could tell it was inspired by the art.
What do you hope people see in your film? And what have you heard from audiences?
It’s been interesting. I’ve shown it in different places, and reactions vary. People in the art world — painters, curators — connect deeply with how the film portrays museum spaces and the idea of who gets included. The artist character isn’t based on one person but is an amalgam of artists who fought to be seen by institutions.
For example, there’s an Elizabeth Catlett exhibition at the museum now. She created sculptures and later prints when she had children. Her draftsmanship is incredibly detailed and beautiful. She’s one of the artists in my thoughts when creating this character.
Also, the Greek art — originally painted in color — but people prefer the pristine white version. I liked drawing parallels between the stories: how we look at art, how our relationships with it differ. The conservator has a tactile, intimate relationship with the object. The teacher has a more intellectual relationship. The security guards live with the art — a familiar, close connection. I wanted to explore how perspective shifts based on one’s position.
Yes! When I was at the Art Institute last, they had sculpture in the Modern Wing and everything was white. I’m sure they weren’t originally white. They even had blue pieces marking missing fragments — it looked more interesting with color.
Watch the Film above!
Annette Elliot’s next feature film project “On the Water’s Edge” will be part of the 2025-2026 CIX Lab. She will begin shooting the film next year and present it as part of the Chicago International Film Festival The Pitch. Learn more: https://www.chicagofilmfestival.com/industry/lab/projects2026/
