Crundwell documentary receives Beloit film festival award

DIXON – The documentary detailing former city Comptroller Rita Crundwell’s historic embezzlement continues to receive accolades during its tour across the nation.

“All the Queen’s Horses” recently won the Golden Laurels Award at the Beloit (Wisconsin) International Film Festival.

The film originally had two screenings scheduled at the festival; that number was extended to seven showings, and all but one were sold out.

According to a BIFF statement:

“The award this year goes to a film that took us completely by surprise. Because of its local interest we knew it would be popular and we suspected we might have to schedule additional screenings, but we were not prepared for just how popular it was going to be.

Words like smash hit, blockbuster, phenomenon just don’t seem adequate to describe it. Honestly, in the history of BIFF, we have never seen anything like it.”

The 71-minute film, directed by Kelly Richmond Pope, an accounting professor at DePaul University, returned to Dixon last weekend for four free showings at the Historic Dixon Theatre.

The documentary features interviews with forensic accountants, equestrians, attorneys, and local government officials and residents.

Plans are in the works to have the film streamed online, broadcast on TV and available on demand in the future, possibly later this year.