Movie helps convince new chicken owner

It's always nice when we get email feedback on the film and especially when it's like this:

"Just wanted to say how much I enjoy your film Mad City Chickens. I first saw it at the 2008 WI Film Fest; then a few months ago at the Monona Library. Until I saw your film, I never owned an animal, nor wanted to. Now I have four! We’re looking forward to our first eggs in about 4-6 weeks." -Katherine

Thanks Katherine!

Read her entire blog post.

Mad City Chickens write-up in Davis newspaper

The upcoming premiere of Mad City Chickens in Davis, California was recently written about in the Davis Enterprise. The screening is being sponsored by the Davis Natural Food Co-op and Slow Food Yolo to benefit the Davis Farm To School Connection.

Saturday August 8th, 6:30pm Reception with the filmmakers in attendance followed by the screening at 8:00 pm. Richard Brunelle Performing Arts Theater, 315 E. 14th St., Davis, CA

California screenings tour set for MCC

~August 6th San Anselmo *
~August 7th Sacramento *
~August 8th Davis *
~August 9th San Francisco *
~August 9th Sacramento
~August 12th San Luis Obispo
~August 25th Santa Barbara

* filmmakers will be in attendance

Mad City Chickens Premieres in Portland and Ojai Today!

Mad City Chickens premieres in both Ojai, CA and Portland, OR today!

-Ojai screening sponsored by the Ojai Valley Green Coalition - 4:30pm Ojai Theater, 145 E. Ojai Ave., Garm Beall, founder of backyardchickens.com and Karen Kaminsky, chicken owner will be present.

-Portland screening sponsored by Growing Gardens - 8:00pm :vendetta, 4306 N. Williams, follows the Tour de Coops.

Chicken enthusiast Liz Perry in LA Times

Chicken enthusiast Liz Perry and the story of her rescued hen Consuela are featured throughout our Mad City Chickens film. You can read about Liz, Consuela, and the Nutzy Mutz & Crazy Catz pet supply shop in the recent LA Times write-up!

Mad City Chickens: Australian premiere today!

July 18th, 2009 - Public Screening presented by Friends of the Earth in Adelaide - 4:00pm The Box Factory, 59 Regent St. South, Adelaide, South Australia.

Mad City Chickens: Idaho premiere tonight!

Public screening tonight in Moscow, Idaho: Good Food Film Series presented by the Moscow Natural Food Co-op - 7:00pm Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre.

Chickens Come Home to Roost in Baraboo!

The city council voted 7 to 2 in favor of allowing backyard chickens in Baraboo, WI! Congratulations to Maia (14) and Lydia (13) who started the whole process and saw it through to the end, even after being rejected more than once.

Radio Interview in South Australia

We just finished being interviewed for an upcoming episode of Gastronaut, a food program hosted by Bruce Guerin on Radio Adelaide, 101.5 FM in South Australia. The topic: Mad City Chickens.

Show airs Wednesday at 9:00 pm (Adelaide time).

Mad City Chickens on TV tonight!

9:30 pm - Interview with the filmmakers on the Director's Cut.
10:00 pm - Television premiere of Mad City Chickens documentary.

Wisconsin Public Television (central time zone)

Talking Chicken on Wisconsin Public Radio

We appeared this morning on The Joy Cardin Show, a Wisconsin Public Radio program. The topic? Mad City Chickens and the backyard chicken movement.

Listen to the entire program here. (Program#: 090710A)

Television Premiere of Mad City Chickens!

Mad City Chickens will be making its television premiere on Wisconsin Public Television this Saturday, July 11th at 10:00 pm (central time).

Tune in a half hour early at 9:30 pm to see an interview we did last year on the Director's Cut, an independent film program. If you are outside the WPT viewing area, you won't be able to see the film, but you can still catch the interview here.

88 year-old Ojai woman loves Mad City Chickens

We're sometimes asked if our Mad City Chickens documentary was influenced by other chicken films. There aren't a lot of other chicken films out there, but we did watch what we could find. Yet surprisingly, what influenced us the most was a film on big wave surfing. Riding Giants is a documentary directed by Stacy Peralta. We aren’t surfers, and yet we loved this film. Why? Because of the way the piece was told. Keep it moving, keep it fun, and touch the audience with a story worth telling.

So we became inspired to make a chicken film that would appeal not only to the urban sustainability audience, but to a wider uninitiated crowd as well. And it seems to have worked. We’ve gotten a number of emails similar to this one from a fan in Ojai, California:

I showed MCC to my 88-year old mother and 92-year old goddess-mother last week (neither of whom give a hoot about chickens or gardening) and they absolutely loved the film. The ghoulish Twilight Zone narrator is one of my favorite elements of the film...and the sci-fi monster bit was priceless. 

Mad City Chickens Australian Premiere set for July 18th!

Mad City Chickens will make its Australian premiere on July 18th as part of the Feast of Films, a series of film screenings where all proceeds go to support From Plains to Plate, a not-for-profit community group that works on issues of food and agriculture in Adelaide, South Australia. More details to come.

Chickens are like dogs: Iowa City Press

At our recent screening of Mad City Chickens in Iowa City, among the viewers in the audience was a reporter from the Cedar Rapids Gazette. Columnist Jennifer Hemmingsen wrote an article in the Gazette entitled, Chickens like the dog next door.

Also in the audience was IC council member Amy Correia. “I wasn’t really sure before going, but the movie made me think it’s a definite possibility,” Correia later said. She’ll be bringing up the idea to the council.

Tashai appears again on the Chicken Whisperer radio program

Atlanta-based Andy Schneider is the Chicken Whisperer. His program, Backyard Poultry with the Chicken Whisperer™ is a nationally broadcast radio show all about keeping backyard chickens. Each week he welcomes special guests to talk about keeping backyard poultry and living a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

Tashai and Robert were guests for a show back on May 2nd, and today, Tashai is back with more info on the Mad City Chickens documentary and the phenomenon that is the backyard chicken movement.



Listen to the mp3 file of today's episode.