Matt Fagerholm

2026 Films, Berlinale, Coming of Age, Directing, Drama, Indie Films, LGBTQ+, Queer Stories, reviews, Screenwriting

4 min read

Berlinale 2026: “Mouse” Destined to be Hailed Among the Year’s Best Films

by Matt Fagerholm

February 13, 2026

There is no filmmaking duo whose work I await with greater anticipation than Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson. In 2019, Thompson made his debut feature, “Saint Frances,” written by and

Coming of Age, Directing, Documentaries, Drama, Film Festivals, Horror, Indie Films, LGBTQ+, Queer Stories, reviews, Screenwriting, Sundance

16 min read

Sundancing on My Own: My Four Extraordinary Days in Park City

by Matt Fagerholm

January 28, 2026

Sundance has always been a festival I had admired at a distance. How Robert Redford had gone about using his platform to launch the careers of countless filmmakers for over

Chicago, composer, Holiday, Horror, Indie Films, Interviews

17 min read

Being Fully Present: Alicia Witt on David Lynch, “Longlegs,” Her New Concert Tour and More

by Matt Fagerholm

December 5, 2025

A longtime holiday wish of mine will be granted this month when I finally get to see one of my favorite actors perform in person. As part of her “Spending

2025 Films, Chicago International Film Festival, Comedy, Directing, Film Festivals, Indie Films, Interviews, Now Playing

13 min read

A Call for Peace and Human Connection: Hikari on “Rental Family”

by Matt Fagerholm

November 17, 2025

As I sat in my favorite movie palace, the Music Box Theatre, waiting for my wife—Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin—to arrive for that evening’s eagerly awaited Chicago International Film Festival

2025 Films, Drama, Interviews, LGBTQ+, Queer Stories

14 min read

Look for the Signs: Christy Salters Martin and Lisa Holewyne on “Christy”

by Matt Fagerholm

November 4, 2025

I went into David Michôd’s biopic “Christy” knowing nothing about its titular boxer. I knew I would be interviewing the film’s real-life subject, Christy Salters Martin, the following morning, and

2025 Films, Chicago International Film Festival, Directing, Drama, International Films, Interviews

14 min read

Kick Out the Conventions: Agnieszka Holland on “Franz,” “The Secret Garden” and More

by Matt Fagerholm

October 25, 2025

With the 61st Chicago International Film Festival nearly in the rearview mirror, there are so many memories from the past several days that I know I will be cherishing for

2025 Films, Chicago, Comedy, Documentaries

6 min read

On Borrowed Time: The Beauty of “John Candy: I Like Me”

by Matt Fagerholm

October 8, 2025

“I remember John Candy’s presence much more clearly than that of John Hughes,” Gaby Hoffmann told me during our interview in 2012, after I asked her about her memories of

2025 Films, Awards, Coming of Age, Cult Classic, Directing, Drama, Horror, Indie Films, International Films, Interviews, Now Playing

11 min read

Attracted to Abstraction: Lucile Hadžihalilović on “The Ice Tower”

by Matt Fagerholm

September 30, 2025

“If you can’t play with the language, you are not reinventing the language.” This is what Argentine director Gaspar Noé told me when I interviewed him fifteen years ago about

2025 Films, Cinematographer, Coming of Age, Directing, Drama, Film Editing, Indie Films, Interviews, Now Playing, Screenwriting

12 min read

It Was All a Miracle: Embeth Davidtz on “Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight”

by Matt Fagerholm

July 8, 2025

I was ten years old when Danny DeVito’s euphoric screen adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1988 novel Matilda arrived in theaters. I had read the book so many times that the

2025 Films, Awards, Comedy, composer, Directing, Drama, Film Editing, Indie Films, Interviews, Now Playing, producer, Queer Stories, Screenwriting, Sexual Assault Awareness, Sundance

14 min read

A Profound Experience of Rewriting: Eva Victor on “Sorry, Baby”

by Matt Fagerholm

June 24, 2025

As annoyed as I was about Barry Jenkins, one of the greatest filmmakers working today, recently helming a prequel to the worst Disney remake in history, the Oscar-winning director of

Cult Classic, Directing, Film Editing, Indie Films, Interviews, producer, Television, TV

41 min read

He Believed in Me: Sabrina S. Sutherland on Her Favorite Person, David Lynch

by Matt Fagerholm

May 23, 2025

It’s difficult to put into words the gratitude I have for Sabrina S. Sutherland. The collaborations she forged with filmmaker David Lynch, particularly over the last decade, have transformed my

composer, Film Editing, Interviews, Television

40 min read

An Editor’s Dream: Lori Eschler and Scott Ryan on “Always Music in the Air: The Sounds of Twin Peaks”

by Matt Fagerholm

May 19, 2025

In April of 2022, I attended the most euphoric moviegoing marathon of my life when curator Daniel Knox hosted “David Lynch: A Complete Retrospective—The Return” at Chicago’s own Club Silencio,

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