THB #753: Another Ebert Goodbye

I couldn’t have been much sadder than to receive word of the end of what has come to be known as Ebertfest, an annual film festival in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, Roger Ebert’s hometown and home of his alma mater, The University of Illinois.

The event started in 1999 as The Overlooked Film Festival, as Roger wanted to bring attention to films and formats Roger felt were overlooked. Gene Siskel had just died 2 months before the festival. But Roger’s commitment to cinema was always a focus and this was an opportunity to honor films he felt deserved more attention and to raise money to renovate the Virginia Theater that he had loved since he was child.

The first festival had 10 films over 3 days, starting on Thursday afternoon and closing on Saturday night. I had seen only 3 of the 10 films that were being show in the Virginia Theater, handled by the Chicago projection legend, James Bond (no relation).

The opener was an Aussie film about and starring Heather Rose, who had cerebral palsy …