THE LATEST
mckenzie receives artist grant from city of Chicago
McKenzie is a current recipient of an artist grant from Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs.
This award represents intial funding for her next short film Intermission, currently in development.
mckenzie directs world premiere “keerah” at definition theatre
McKenzie is honored to return to Chicago’s Definition Theatre to direct the world premiere of keerah by Netta Walker.
Called “intriguing,” “charming,” “and way-cooler-than-most” by the Chicago Tribune, keerah draws from Greek mythologies, cultural lore and mysticism, and the parallels between and Black American and Irish histories, and invites us into a whirlwind contemporary romance that seeks to understand love against a backdrop of social issues currently underpinning our everyday lives - among them race, class, gentrification, and migration - and the ways in which those forces shape our (mis)adventures.
Read the Chicago Tribune review HERE.
mckenzie among recipients of the 2023 SFFILM Rainin grant
McKenzie is thrilled to be a development recipient of the 2023 SFFILM Rainin Grant and year-long fellowship in with her feature film A REAL ONE. The SFFILM Rainin Grant program is the largest granting body for independent narrative feature films in the US, and supports films that address social justice issues—the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges—in a positive and meaningful way.
read more here.
A REAL ONE wins the gold hugo at the oscar-qualifying Chicago international, making film eligible for academy award consideration
mckenzie makes yale rep debut in world premiere the salvagers by hARRISON DAVID RIVERS
McKenzie made her Yale Repertory Theatre debut in the world premiere of The Salvagers by Harrison David Rivers in November, delivering a performance that the New York Times called “magnetic.”
Read the nyt review here.
sag-aftra + ifa chicago host table-read of feature in-development a real one BY mckenzie chinn
cast + supporters of a real one table read
SAG-AFTRA Chicago Local and IFA Chicago hosted a table-read of McKenzie Chinn’s feature in-development A Real One followed by a moderated feedback session with an invited audience in July.
The cast included Ireon Roach (The 4400), who played Keisha in the short version of the screenplay, Netta Walker (All American: Homecoming), and Steppenwolf ensemble member Alana Arenas (And David Makes Man) among others.
Read more about the table-read here.
