Manual Cinema

Manual Cinema MANUAL CINEMA is a performance collective, design studio, and film/ video production company based in

Say his name… if you dare. 🔪 Candyman (2021) is coming to Coolidge Corner, paired with 4 short films by Manual Cinema! ✨...
09/10/2025

Say his name… if you dare. 🔪 Candyman (2021) is coming to Coolidge Corner, paired with 4 short films by Manual Cinema! ✨️

Join us Wednesday, October 29 @ 7:30pm at Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline, MA for this exclusive screening, featuring:

• Future Feeling (8 min, dir. Ben Kauffman) - A haunted-house mystery meets climate fiction on a Nantucket beach.
• Chicagoland (11 min, dir. Ben Kauffman) - A lone urban coyote braves the Chicago landscape for her pups.
• Three WWI Poems (9 min, dir. Drew Dir) - War poetry brought to life with puppetry and animation.
• Candyman Short (3 min, dirs. Drew Dir & Nia DaCosta) - Featuring our signature shadow puppetry.
• Candyman (2021, dir. Nia DaCosta, co-written/produced by Jordan Peele) - A chilling new chapter in the urban legend.

Stick around after the screening for a post-show discussion with Manual Cinema's Co-Artistic Directors! Bring your questions, and we’ll bring answers.

Tickets + More Info 🎟️: https://coolidge.org/events/candyman-manual-cinema

We hope to see you there!

Ghosts, puppets, and holiday magic! 👻🎄 We're thrilled to announce that Manual Cinema’s Christmas Carol is returning to t...
09/09/2025

Ghosts, puppets, and holiday magic! 👻🎄

We're thrilled to announce that Manual Cinema’s Christmas Carol is returning to the historic Studebaker Theater from Dec. 12–28, 2025!

Featuring hundreds of handmade puppets, live music, and cinematic storytelling, this reimagining of Dickens’ classic story is unlike anything you’ve seen before.

🎟 Mark your calendars because tickets go on sale Oct. 1!
fineartsbuilding.com/christmascarol

Don’t miss Chicago’s one-of-a-kind holiday classic! See you there! 🤩

08/29/2025

We’re thrilled to share the OFFICIAL TRAILER for The 4th Witch, Manual Cinema’s newest production! 🎉🤩

Reimagining Macbeth through shadows, silhouettes, and haunting live music, The 4th Witch follows a young girl orphaned by war, rescued by a witch, and drawn into a nightmarish quest for vengeance. 🩸🗡️👑

✨ The 4th Witch is going on tour this fall! Check out the tour dates below and be sure to purchase tickets before they sell out!

Oct. 17 – @ Wisconsin Union Theater (Madison, WI)
Oct. 25 – @ Pittsburgh Cultural Trust (Pittsburgh, PA)
Oct. 30 – Nov. 9 – @ ArtsEmerson (Boston, MA)
Nov. 12 – @ Seattle Theatre Group (Seattle, WA)
Nov. 15 – @ Texas Performing Arts (Austin, TX)
Nov. 20 – @ Chico Performances (Chico, CA)
Nov. 22 – @ Cal Performances (Berkeley, CA)

🎟️ Tickets available now at manualcinema.com/calendar

🍂✨ Full Fall Tour List! ✨🍂This fall, we’re hitting the road with three incredible shows: Leonardo!, The Magic City, and ...
08/20/2025

🍂✨ Full Fall Tour List! ✨🍂

This fall, we’re hitting the road with three incredible shows: Leonardo!, The Magic City, and The 4th Witch 🤩 We’re looking forward to being back on tour and can’t wait to share the magic with you!

Tickets 🎟️: manualcinema.com/calendar

Here’s where you can find us:

Leonardo!
Oct 03 – Academy of Music (Northampton, MA)
Oct 05 – Quick Center for the Arts (Fairfield, CT)
Oct 09–19 – Wheelock Family Theatre (Boston, MA)
Oct 26 – Portland Ovations (Portland, ME)

The Magic City
Oct 11 – Ware Center for the Arts (Lancaster, PA)

The 4th Witch
Oct 17 – Wisconsin Union Theater (Madison, WI)
Oct 25 – Pittsburgh Cultural Trust (Pittsburgh, PA)
Oct 30–Nov 09 – ArtsEmerson (Boston, MA)
Nov 12 – Seattle Theatre Group (Seattle, WA)
Nov 15 – Texas Performing Arts (Austin, TX)
Nov 20 – Chico Performances (Chico, CA)
Nov 22 – Cal Performances (Berkeley, CA)

We hope to see you there!

Curious about what lurks behind the shadows? 👀🤩Step inside the world of Manual Cinema with an exclusive Virtual Q&A on P...
08/19/2025

Curious about what lurks behind the shadows? 👀🤩

Step inside the world of Manual Cinema with an exclusive Virtual Q&A on Patreon! Ask us about our puppets, our process, our projectors, our stories, or anything you’ve always wanted to know.

WHEN: Friday, Aug 22 @ 12 PM CST
WHERE: Patreon.com/ManualCinema

We can't wait to see you there!

Exciting news! 🎉✨ The 4th Witch is going on tour this fall and we can’t wait to share it with audiences nationwide for t...
08/19/2025

Exciting news! 🎉✨ The 4th Witch is going on tour this fall and we can’t wait to share it with audiences nationwide for the very first time!

Told through shadow puppetry, live actors in silhouette, and an original score performed live by 3 musicians, The 4th Witch, an inversion of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, explores themes of grief, war, generational conflict, and cycles of violence through the collateral damage left behind on the battleground.

If we're coming to a city near you, we'd love for you to join us in the shadows 🗡️🩸👑

🎟️ Tickets: www.manualcinema.com/calendar

Fall 2025 Tour Dates:

Oct 17 – Wisconsin Union Theater (Madison, WI)
Oct 25 – The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust (Pittsburgh, PA)
Oct 30 - Nov 9 – ArtsEmerson (Boston, MA)
Nov 12 – Seattle Theatre Group(Seattle, WA)
Nov 15 – Texas Performing Arts (Austin, TX)
Nov 20 – Chico Performances (Chico, CA)
Nov 22 – Cal Performances (Berkeley, CA)

We’re going LIVE! 🎥🎉Join us for a Patreon-exclusive behind-the-scenes Virtual Q&A! Ask us anything about puppets, camera...
08/14/2025

We’re going LIVE! 🎥🎉

Join us for a Patreon-exclusive behind-the-scenes Virtual Q&A! Ask us anything about puppets, cameras, shadows, sound, or whatever sparks your curiosity.

WHEN: Friday, Aug 22 @ 12 PM CST
WHERE: Patreon.com/ManualCinema

Not subscribed to our Patreon yet? This is the perfect time to join the fun! See you soon 🤩

07/31/2025

Hi friends! Our latest behind-the-scenes video is now live on Patreon! 🎉

Ben takes us along to Nantucket for the premiere of our self-produced short film, Future Feeling, at the Nantucket Film Festival 🌊🐚🎬 Plus, you’ll get an exclusive look at an excerpt from the film!

Sign up for our Patreon to watch the full video! 🎥🔗
www.patreon.com/manualcinema

Hey Boston! 🎉 We are so excited to announce that The 4th Witch is coming to ArtsEmerson on October 30 at the Emerson Par...
07/30/2025

Hey Boston! 🎉 We are so excited to announce that The 4th Witch is coming to ArtsEmerson on October 30 at the Emerson Paramount Center!

Tickets for the show just went live via Season Packages and can be purchased at artsemerson.org/packages-offers/packages/.

We can’t wait to see you at the theater soon! 🩸🗡️👑

SEATTLE! SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES. 🗡️🩸Manual Cinema’s The 4th Witch is heading your way this November!This haunti...
07/22/2025

SEATTLE! SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES. 🗡️🩸

Manual Cinema’s The 4th Witch is heading your way this November!
This haunting inversion of Macbeth features shadow puppetry, actors in silhouette, and an original score performed live by three musicians. We can't wait to share it with our incredible Seattle fans. 🎉

🗓️ SHOW TIME: November 12 @ 7:30 PM
📍 VENUE: The Moore Theatre
🎟️ Tickets: https://www.stgpresents.org/events/manual-cinema/

Thanks to Seattle Theatre Group for having us back. We can't wait!

07/17/2025

🎧 Have you checked out our most recent Sound of the Month yet?

A few weeks back, Ben broke down the vocal techniques behind The 4th Witch and gave us an exclusive look at an excerpt from the show! 🩸🗡️👀

🎥 Join us on Patreon to watch the full video and gain access to other BTS content! www.patreon.com/manualcinema

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2203 W 21st Street
Chicago, IL
60608

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Manual Cinema

MANUAL CINEMA is a performance collective, design studio, and film/ video production company founded in 2010 by Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller, and Kyle Vegter. Manual Cinema combines handmade shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques, and innovative sound and music to create immersive visual stories for stage and screen.