The Illionis Parables

Synopsis

An experimental documentary comprised of regional vignettes about faith, force, technology and exodus. Eleven parables relay histories of settlement, removal, technological breakthrough, violence, messianism and resistance, all occurring somewhere in the state of Illinois. The state is a convenient structural ruse, allowing its histories to become allegories that explore how we’re shaped by conviction and ideology.

Director Biography

Artist and filmmaker Deborah Startman makes work that investigates power, control, and belief in consideration with how places, ideas, and society are intertwined. Her recent projects have addressed freedom, surveillance, sinkholes, comets, exodus, and faith. She lives in Chicago and teaches at the University of Illinois.