2024 Chicago Film Critics Association & Rotten Tomatoes Emerging Critics Program Grant Recipients

Arieon Whittsey (they/them) is a creator based in Chicago, Illinois, and a City Bureau Spring '24 Fellow. With a foundation in poetry, Arieon writes towards the beauty of things make us cry, cringe, and crave. Their work is available here: https://arieonwhittsey.portfolio.site. Grant Recipient

Laya Tate (she/they) is a trans, bakla Filipina-American writer, living on unceded indigenous land of the council of three fires (Ojibwe, Odawa, Potawatomi, and many more) aka Chicago—where she grew up. She holds few credentials worth noting, beyond the raving word-of-mouth reviews from her friends and family who seem to really enjoy her ranting (or at least, who are nice enough to entertain it). When they aren't busy working to promote local Chicago indie projects, you can find them on Instagram (regrettably) at @laya.tate, on letterbox'd (enthusiastically!) at @laya_tate, and their work at badbvssy.substack.com. Grant Recipient

Jonathan Monovich (he/him) is a Chicagoland writer and Image Editor for Film International, where he regularly contributes. He is a current graduate student, and his writing has also been featured in Film Matters, Bright Lights Film Journal, and PopMatters. He has earned BAs with honors in both Film Studies and Economics from DePauw University and an MBA from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business. Special Honoree

Ben Kaye (they/he) is a cultural critic and multi-disciplinary artist based in Chicago. They have written theatre criticism and features for Newcity Stage, and their film coverage and director retrospectives have been featured in The Spool, the Chicago Parks District's "Chicago Onscreen" series, and Cine-File, Chicago's weekly guide to independent and underground cinema. Special Honoree

Myle Yan Tay (he/him) is from Singapore and likes to read books, watch movies, play video games, and write stuff. He received his MFA in Writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Special Honoree