Writing Experience
I am an award-winning journalist, critic, and commentator. My writing spans various formats, including capsule and full-length reviews, essays, reported features, and scripts.
I primarily write about movies and the film industry, but my work broadly spans arts and culture. For example, in 2025 I reported on federal funding cuts to the National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities. The 4,000+ word piece (“Lowering the Curtain”) was a finalist for a 2026 Peter Lisagor Award and won the 2026 AAN Award for Best Long Form Arts Feature. I was awarded the 2025 Chicago Film Critics Association (CFCA)/Rotten Tomatoes Emerging Critics Grant and was accepted as a member of the CFCA in 2026.
My writing has been featured in various online and print publications, including the Chicago Reader, Indiewire, In Review Online, RogerEbert.com, Autostraddle, Slate, and The Boston Globe.
As seen in…
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Spotlight
Chicago Reader: Lowering the curtain
Trump’s brutal cuts to federal arts funding demonstrate the vulnerability of a culture sector tied to state ideology. How will Chicago artists and presenters rebuild? July 16, 2025
Award Recognition:
2026 Peter Lisagor Award Finalist - Best Arts and Entertainment Reporting (small or medium print/online)
2026 AAN Award Finalist - Arts Feature (Long Form)
“The idea of a ‘nonprofit industrial complex’ may sound like a metaphor, but the Trump administration seems hell-bent on making it bluntly literal. The Revolution Will Not Be Funded warned of the danger of getting in bed with the feds precisely because they can do what they’re trying to do right now. The slashing of federal budgets is explicitly intended to force nonprofits to conform to the administration’s ideology if they don’t want to risk losing the funds they need to survive.”
Reported Features
Palacios Para La Gente | Chicago Reader | Cover Story
Most of Chicago’s dedicated Spanish-language movie theaters have disappeared, but the histories and cultures that they encompassed are worth remembering. (June 20, 2024)
“While former movie palaces have often been the center of architectural preservation efforts in Chicago, initiatives to preserve the memories that occupy each theater are scarcer.”
Zoe Saldaña’s ‘Emilia Pérez’ Defense at the Oscars Raises Key Questions About Mexican Cinema: Hear from Those Fighting to Save It | Indiewire
IndieWire speaks to Latin American programmers, curators, and filmmakers about the restoration efforts redefining Mexico's past cinema — and paving its future for films like "Sujo," rejected at the Oscars. (March 5, 2024)
Coming soon—to a theater near you? | Chicago Reader
Both chain and indie theaters are limited by accessibility and distribution, but the local scene is ready to adapt. (December 1, 2023)
“It is sometimes said that every map of Chicago is the same map. The reverberations of redlining and segregation in the city inevitably display themselves in most reported metrics, including income levels, pollution, access to public transportation, housing, and even voting patterns. Movie theaters may not be an issue as detrimental as the inequalities that divide Chicago’s communities, but the waning of their presence mirrors larger issues of economic opportunity in the city, community investment, and access to recreation and culture throughout Chicago.”
Read “Coming Soon—To a Theater Near You?” at the Chicago Reader.
Explore a century of follies and film at the Elmhurst History Museum | Chicago Reader | Cover Story
A new exhibit on movie theater history and local industry runs through January 5. (October 2, 2024)
“Travel west of Chicago, though, and there are a few places that have withstood time: movie theaters. In fact, Oak Park’s Lake Theatre, Downers Grove’s Tivoli Theatre, and Elmhurst’s York Theatre are three of the oldest operating cinemas in the Chicagoland region, and they have a total of 284 years in operation between them. The York—the oldest of these three—celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.”
Read the Elmhurst History Museum piece at the Chicago Reader.
Celebrate one hundred years of Black History Month with local film programming | Chicago Reader
Through February, the Music Box Theatre, Facets, and other institutions will host special screenings that feature Black filmmakers and culture. (February 9, 2026)
“This Black History Month, Chicago-based film programmer and curator Tyler Michael Balentine is ensuring that Chicago’s rich but underappreciated community of Black filmmakers receives the spotlight.”
Read about Black History Month film programming at the Chicago Reader.
Celebrate community with Cariño Festival de Cine | Chicago Reader
The third annual film festival will continue to honor the legacy of its namesake by supporting local emerging filmmakers. (November 12, 2024)
“This year’s program features ten short films that exhibit an impressive range of talent and imagination through a mix of narrative and experimental approaches.”
Read about the Cariño Festival de Cine at the Chicago Reader.
Essays
Who Will Remember You?: “The Secret Agent” and the Humanities as Resistance | RogerEbert.com
“‘The Secret Agent,’ more pointedly, is a movie about authoritarianism’s methodic persecution of the humanities as a field that documents, preserves, and deciphers collective memory.” (March 6, 2026)
Wool Over Our Eyes: The Enduring Relevance of Michael Mann’s The Insider | In Review Online
“If there is anything The Insider could foresee, it wasn’t the age-old story of Titans of Industry wielding power against whistleblowers, but the troubling limitations of journalism — and quite possibly all American systems allegedly designed to do good — to do no more than run by Industry’s playbook in order to sell information as a product.” (September 30, 2025)
An ode to the Onscreen Handjob | Chicago Reader
“Much fuss has been made about the state of the sex scene; undoubtedly, sex, eroticism, and sensuality have declined in cinema. What is lost is more than titillation, but crucial information about character, relationship, and theme that can’t—and shouldn’t—always be limited to words.” (August 20, 2025)
‘Kiki’s Delivery Service’ Is a Rebuke to the Miyazaki AI Trend | Autostraddle
“Kiki’s journey is one navigating the relationship between creativity and labor.” (April 17, 2025)
The Best Theatre Films of 2024 Weren’t Musicals | Autostraddle
“For all these flashy celebrations of theatre on the screen, the resulting products are often empty sketches that are more interested in capitalizing on Theatre Kid Energy than understanding why the art form has persisted for centuries. These films view theatre as an artifact to improve upon rather than embrace.” (December 27, 2024)
Cheese-en-scène | Chicago Reader
“Moonlight (2016) director Barry Jenkins once said in an interview with Bon Appétit, “When you cook for someone, this is a deliberate act of nurturing. This very simple thing is the currency of genuine intimacy.” I’ve been thinking about this lately, not just in regard to the sensitive closing act in Jenkins’s film, but in how I share and express love through the act of personal curation—from baking an improvised summer solstice quiche for me and my husband to carefully putting together movie recommendation lists for my friends.” (July 24, 2024)
Film and TV Reviews
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The Condor Daughter | Dir. Álvaro Olmos Torrico | In Review Online
“The familiar familial plot is merely a metaphor for understanding the belief system represented by Pachamama: nature, reciprocity, and cosmic connectivity.” (September 16, 2026) Read The Condor Daughter review here.This is Buzz | Dir. Mark Pellington | In Review Online
“This is Buzz, Pellington’s new documentary covering the rise and fall of the experimental show [Buzz], simultaneously — and perhaps unintentionally — is a totemic text essential to culturally defining Generation X, an epoch inspired by the revolutionary aesthetics of the preceding era but dominated by creators with few material ties to the circumstances that precipitate revolution.” (September 11, 2026) Read the This is Buzz review here.Don’t Say Good Luck | Dir. Julia Hart | In Review Online
“The inclusion of Waitress may just be set dressing (and it’s even more of a stretch to say Hart is directly invoking the original movie), but Don’t Say Good Luck ultimately operates in the same understated, fragile territory as Shelly’s longing film.” (August 17, 2026) Read the Don’t Say Good Luck review here.One Night Only | Dir. Will Gluck | In Review Online
“One Night Only wants to prove to you that it is aware of what’s going on in the world, and that inevitably makes its flimsy observations about the ills of modern dating all the more baffling.” (August 6, 2026) Read the One Night Only review here.Blue Film | Dir. Elliot Tuttle | Chicago Reader
“How does our understanding of BDSM as a controlled means to obtain or relinquish control change when those participating in the exercise are ethically dubious, if not altogether deplorable? How can universal, life-affirming themes such as the desire to be known be applied in the most alienating of circumstances?” (August 6, 2026) Read the Blue Film review here.WTO/99 | Dir. Ian Bell | Chicago Reader
“In toto, WTO/99 is the closest a contemporary audience can get to experiencing those four days as they occurred (and as they were portrayed) in real time.” (August 5, 2026) Read the WTO/99 review here.Hadestown: The Musical | Dir. Brett Sullivan | In Review Online
“Though one hesitates to publicly write too fondly of Hamilton, one of the successes of its pro-shot is how the camera effortlessly fits into the show’s choreography. That is not the case in Hadestown: The Musical, and the effect is almost as disorienting as an MCU fight scene.” (July 24, 2026) Read the Hadestown: The Musical review here.Everybody to Kenmure Street | Dir. Felipe Bustos Sierra | Chicago Reader
“Most remarkable is Bustos Sierra’s choice to begin the film with a six-minute-and-15-second dialogue-free montage that suggests the history of Glasgow is defined by protest. Kenmure Street was not a single, extraordinary action, but a demonstration consistent with every movement since industrialization to fight for the good of the people.” (July 22, 2026) Read the Everybody to Kenmure Street review here.American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez | Dir. David Alvardo | In Review Online
“If American Pachuco is an interrogation of Mexican-American identity and the ever-present issue of assimilation, the documentary’s gradual shift from the collective to the individual, from agitating against the status quo to achieving mainstream acceptance, is an accurate, if somewhat cynical, retelling of the cultural shifts from the 1940s through the 1980s.” (July 17, 2026) Read the American Pachuco review here.Nuestra Tierra (Our Land) | Dir. Lucrecia Martel | Chicago Reader
“Martel’s critical examination extends to the filmmaker’s position as a storyteller. There’s a heavy awareness of her and her camera’s presence throughout the events as fellow strangers mining a product from this land.” (July 8, 2026) Read the Nuestra Tierra review here. -
Hedda | Dir. Nia DaCosta | Chicago Reader
“DaCosta’s decision to swap the gender of the original play’s Løvborg is by far the most inspired feature of her adaptation. In lesser films, this would be the kind of cosmetic, representational update modern audiences have come to expect…. Making her a woman adds complexity to Hedda’s palpable repression while upping the stakes of what Hedda could lose by pursuing her.” (November 17, 2025) Read the Hedda review here.After the Hunt | Dir. Luca Guadagnino | Chicago Reader
“Considering the pressure cooker these characters are in, Guadagnino’s direction hardly suggests sweat. A consequence of the frigid direction is that the screenplay has nowhere to hide.” (October 9, 2025) Read the After the Hunt review here.Suspended Time | Dir. Olivier Assayas | Chicago Reader
“Suspended Time isn’t particularly novel, and it’s a touch too thin to successfully stretch into 105 minutes, but you could do for a worse late August hang than these couples.” (September 2, 2025) Read the Suspended Time review here.Women Wearing Shoulder Pads (TV Series) | Created by Gonzalo Cordova | Chicago Reader
“The season’s arc deftly weaves together themes like matriarchy, queer identity, and colonial greed across episodes both absurdly funny and deliciously melodramatic.” (August 21, 2025) Read the Women Wearing Shoulder Pads review here. -
Los Frikis | Dir. Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz | Chicago Reader
“Los Frikis is at its best when it embodies the punk music of Eskoria and the words of Papo la Bala, repeated by Paco: ‘When you don’t have any more doors to open, death is a door.’” (December 23, 2024) Read the Los Frikis review here.A Different Man | Dir. Aaron Schimberg | Chicago Reader
“A Different Man is an interesting, entertaining film that brings complexity to its character study—if not to complicate regressive attitudes about disability, then to challenge our feelings about the empty pursuit of performing change without looking inward.” (September 26, 2024) Read the A Different Man review here.Mother, Couch | Dir. Niclas Larsson | Chicago Reader
“Mother, Couch turns over many cushions in search of change, but it’s an ultimately unsatisfactory experience, even by the fruitlessness of closure standards.” (July 9, 2024) Read the Mother, Couch review here.
INTERVIEWS
The Ether of Not Belonging: An Interview with Colette Ghunim on Traces of Home | In Review Online
I spoke with Colette about the development of the film over time, creating visual identities for Mexico and Palestine, and how the act of documentation can be liberatory — and alienating. (September 18, 2026)
Activating the Archive: An Interview with Brydie O’Connor on Barbara Forever | In Review Online
As Barbara Forever hits U.S. theaters, I spoke with O’Connor about how Barbara Hammer inspired her to make her own films, the importance of engaging with history, and encouraging producers to take risks on films outside of the mainstream. (September 9, 2026)
I Hope Nobody Remembers Barney, But Everybody Will Remember Buddy: Devon Hawkes Ludlow on Buddy | In Review Online Substack
[Hawkes Ludlow’s] sense of humor and curious nature… reflects how Buddy balances visceral horror with genuine ideas about how kids can safely navigate the world. (September 2, 2026)
Read my interview with Devon Hawkes Ludlow. [Subscription Required]
Inheriting a Kind of Burning House: An Interview with Alex Ullom on It Ends | In Review Online
I talked to the filmmaker about evolving alongside the film, the importance of collaboration, and how he made an endless road in the woods capture the apathy and languor of doomscrolling. (August 21, 2026)
This Is a Wild Place and We Are Wild Animals: An Interview with Penny Lane on Wild Inside | In Review Online
Lane and I talked over Zoom about Flaco’s mesmerizing presence, Wild Inside’s deliberately communal approach, and the impossible question of squaring away our love for certain animals against our obligation to the ecosystem. (July 28, 2026)
‘I feel like we might be living in a turning point right now’: A Q&A with Happyend (2024) director Neo Sora | Chicago Reader
[Sora and I] talked about Japanese history, juvenile delinquent films, reflecting on broken friendships, and how near Happyend’s “near future” really is. (September 29, 2025)
Podcast & Radio
In 2025, I launched Hand Me the Mike, a podcast exploring the work and career of American actor Michael Shannon.
Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, YouTube Music, Podchaser, and more.
Daniella Mazzio joins us for 2015’s PHOENIX. (Podcast, August 2026)
Exiting Through the 2010s | Listen now
It’s Such a Beautiful Day with Daniella Mazzio
Culture writer Daniella Mazzio joins us to discuss the singular work of Don Hertzfeldt with the legacy of It's Such a Beautiful Day. (Podcast, July 2024)
Exiting Through the 2010s | Listen now
With Cinema Chatham shut down, only two movie theaters remain on the South Side
Even before Cinema Chatham unexpectedly closed last week, it was hard to find a movie theater on the South Side. (Radio, February 2024)
WBEZ Reset | Listen now
Barbenheimer? OppenBarbie? Whatever you call it, the double feature of the season has arrived
Local theaters are selling out, fans are dressing up and the internet is exploding over the movie event of the season. (Radio, July 2023)
WBEZ Reset | Listen now