Since 1988, University of Chicago students have organized an annual four-day conference at the historic Palmer House hotel providing thousands of high school students the opportunity to participate in educational simulations of the United Nations and other international affairs-themed bodies. Find out more about MUNUC (Model United Nations at the University of Chicago) at munuc.org, and about Model UN culture at bestdelegate.com.
Catherine Sullivan, an artist working in film, video installation and live theatre, contributed to this project. Sullivan has exhibited at venues including the Whitney Museum, UCLA Hammer Museum and Tate Modern.
An examination of how The Plant -- Chicago's vertical farm and food business incubator -- has been represented in the media. Learn more at plantchicago.com.
The Grid co-creators Ben Kolak and David Nagel have been documenting The Plant since 2009. More information about their work towards a feature-length documentary is available at vimeo.com/plantchicago.
Snagging fish is allowed seasonally in a few spots on Lake Michigan. Find out more from the Chicago Reader.
Joe Riina-Ferrie and Mel Gonzalez, who teach filmmaking to high schoolers on Chicago's South and West Side through Community TV Network, contributed to this project.
Move-Tastic!, "Chicago's premiere athletic moving force," wows customers and employs over 40 Chicagoans on their way to careers in other fields. Read more about Move-Tastic! at Chicago magazine and WBEZ.
Nonprofit arts organization Threewalls is connecting artists and collectors by adapting a model better known for supporting local farmers.
Textile Discount Outlet, located at 2121 w. 21st Street, has helped sustain Chicago's creative classes with discounted fabrics and inspiration for over 30 years.
The Congress Parkway congestion is meditated upon at nearby Cal's Liquors/Bar, where astromusicologists El is a Sound of Joy take cinematic cues from traffic conductors.
Market Fisheries, located at 7129 S. State Street, has been owned and operated by the Brody Family since 1957. For more information about the store, see this Chicago Tribune article from 2009.
About The Grid
The Grid is a series profiling Chicago businesses, subcultures and landscapes. These short, lyrical documentaries aspire to be art cinema, ethnographies and experiments in form. Ben Kolak and Brian Ashby's directorial debut, Scrappers, won Best Documentary at the 2010 Chicago Underground Film Festival and made Roger Ebert's top 10 list of documentary films for that year. Editor Dave Nagel is a recent University of Chicago graduate. Graphic designer Akemi Hong is a recent graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Grid is funded in part by the Chicago Instructional Technology Foundation Digital Media Production Fund.
