Nov. 6, 2009

CHICAGO — Hannah Free, an independent film shot in Chicago last year, will make a return engagement to the Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago after numerous sold-out shows during its recent Chicago theatrical run. The film, which stars Sharon Gless, ( Queer as Folk, Burn Notice, Cagney & Lacey ) , will play Nov. 27-Dec. 3.

The film is playing in dozens of cities worldwide this fall, including a one-week theatrical run in New York City ( Dec. 11-17, at The Quad in the Village ) . See www.hannahfree.com for a full listing. Hannah Free has won audience awards for Best Feature in Philadelphia, Austin and Montreal, and is nominated for five Midwest independent Film festival Awards, to be named Dec. 1. The film is also nominated for five Out Music Awards, to be named in New York City Dec. 8.

Sharon Gless and a cast of Chicago stage veterans star in the passionate lesbian drama Hannah Free, a film about a lifelong love affair between an independent spirit and the woman she calls home. The film also stars Taylor Miller ( All My Children ) , Maureen Gallagher, Ann Hagemann, Kelli Strickland and Jacqui Jackson. Hannah Free is directed by Wendy Jo Carlton and written by Claudia Allen ( based on her acclaimed stage play ) .

The Chicago Tribune gave the film three stars, and the Huffington Post says Gless "delivers a stellar performance that is gritty, poignant and real." The San Francisco Chronicle said that Gless "commands the screen." The Web site Notes from Hollywood called the film "achingly beautiful."

The Los Angeles Times said: "Hannah Free affords a terrific role for Sharon Gless, who runs with it gloriously, playing a salty, blunt elderly lesbian. ... Claudia Allen has skillfully adapted her play to the screen, opening it up without destroying its intimacy and cohesiveness. Wendy Jo Carlton has directed "Hannah Free" with a simplicity and cinematic fluidity that serves Allen's often tart, amusing dialogue well."

Executive Producers of Hannah Free are Tracy Baim, Claudia Allen and Sharon Zurek ( also the film's editor, from Black Cat Films ) . The producers are Sharon Gless, Martie Marro ( also the film's Music Composer ) and Wendy Jo Carlton. Director of Photography was Gretchen Warthen.

Tickets are now on sale. Tickets to each screening are $10/general admission. Other ticket prices are $7/student and $5/Film Center members. All tickets may be purchased at the Film Center Box Office, 164 N. State St. Both general admission and Film Center member tickets are available through Ticketmaster, 800-982-2787, www.ticketmaster.com , and all Ticketmaster outlets. The Film Center and its Box Office are open 5-9 p.m., Monday-Friday; 2-9 p.m., Saturday; and 2-6 p.m., Sunday. For more information about the Film Center, call 312-846-2800 ( 24-hour movie hotline ) or 312-846-2600 ( general information, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday ) , or visit www.siskelfilmcenter.org .

Discounted parking is available for $14 for nine hours at the InterPark SELF-PARK at 20 E. Randolph St. A rebate ticket can be obtained from the Film Center Box Office.

Screen dates and show times:

Friday, Nov. 27

5 p.m.

7:45 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 28

8 p.m.

Sunday, Nov. 29

4:15 p.m.

Monday, Nov. 30

8:15 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 3

8:15 p.m.

ABOUT HANNAH FREE

Hannah ( Sharon Gless ) and Rachel ( Maureen Gallagher ) grew up as little girls in the same small Midwest town, where traditional gender expectations eventually challenge their deep love for one another. Hannah becomes an adventurous, unapologetic lesbian and Rachel a strong but quiet homemaker. Weaving back and forth between past and present, with different actors playing the characters from age 10 through late in life, the film reveals how the women maintained their love affair despite a marriage, a world war, infidelities, and family denial.

The film was shot on the South Side of Chicago and in Beecher, Ill., November, 2008, in 18 days.

ABOUT THE GENE SISKEL FILM CENTER

The Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago celebrates over 35 years of presenting cutting edge programs, independent and international cinema, premieres, retrospectives, and classic films. Internationally recognized for its original film programming, the Film Center is a vibrant cultural destination in Chicago that attracts a diverse and creative audience of 70,000 annually.

TRAILER: http:// www.hannahfree.com