Ebertfest hosts a number of academic panel discussions, bringing together filmmakers, critics, scholars, and students to discuss and educate the festival community on relevant trends and current industry cultural topics.  These panels are yet another way for us to dialogue and promote film as an art form.

2017 panels will be held at the Hyatt Place Hotel (217 N. Neil Street, Champaign, Illinois) and will be part of our livestream.  All panels are free and open to the public.  

2017 Panel Schedule: 

Thursday, April 20

9:00 am
Empathy and Compassion and the Arts
Moderated by Chaz Ebert
Panelists:  members of the Ebert Fellows
Hyatt Place Hotel, 217 N. Neil Street, Champaign

10:15 am
Two Hours in Somone Else's Shoes
Moderated by Nate Kohn, Director, Roger Ebert's Film Festival
Panelists:  Tanya Wexler, Hugh Dancy, Michael Phillips, Michael Hausman, Michael Butler, Charles Burnett, Sheila O’Malley, Richard Neupert
Hyatt Place Hotel, 217 N. Neil Street, Champaign

 

Friday, April 21

9:00 am
Why Documentaries Matter
Moderated by Simon Kilmurry, IDA Executive Director
Panelists:  Ben Lear, Sasha Alpert, Rick Goldsmith, Jay Rosenstein, Matt Zoller Seitz, Nell Minow, Brian Tallerico, Robert Townsend, Richard Leskosky
Hyatt Place Hotel, 217 N. Neil Street, Champaign

10:15 am
Empathy for the Universe
Moderated by Brand Fortner, Professor, North Carolina State University
Panelists: Donna Cox, Ed Seidel, Robert Patterson, Bill Gropp, Julie Turnock, Veronica Paredes, Nate Kohn, Chaz Ebert
Hyatt Place Hotel, 217 N. Neil Street, Champaign

 

Saturday, April 22

9:30 am
Workshop:  The Ethics of Film Preservation and Restoration
Barry Allen, film archivist
Hyatt Place Hotel, 217 N. Neil Street, Champaign

12:00 pm
Challenging Stigma Through the Arts
Moderated by Eric Pierson
Panelists: Rick Goldsmith, Carla Hunter, Juli Kartel, Joseph Omo-Osagie, Chamique Holdsclaw (via Skype)
Virginia Theatre, 203 W. Park Ave., Champaign
*Please note this panel is only available with a festival pass or individual ticket to the screening of "Mind/Game:  The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw"