Hello Dear Readers of The Land! My name is Mike Wendt, I am a filmmaker and I am also the production coordinator for the Greater Cleveland Film Commission! A few years ago, I started making a weekly post on my social media dubbed the Movie Nerd Report, in which I round up the week’s offerings in the movie theaters in Northeast Ohio, as coverage from some of the local media outlets started to dwindle. We are so fortunate to have so many offerings in our region and I want to use this platform to help get the word out and now I am glad to be writing about them right here! 

So for your Mother’s Day weekend, here is your Movie Nerd Report: 

This Saturday at the Atlas Cinemas Lakeshore 7 (22624 Lakeshore Blvd  Euclid, OH 44123) will be the “21 Days of Horror Screening and Awards Ceremony.” This annual event gives teams the opportunity to create a horror short film in 21 days, and now you get to see the results. Screening Group 1 is at 4:30 p.m. and Screening Group 2 is at 7:00 p.m., tickets are $15 for each screening group or $20 for a full day pass!

Over at the Cleveland Cinematheque (11610 Euclid Ave  Cleveland, OH 44118) :

Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and Saturday at 9 p.m. they will present the Japanese film “Bushido.” 

Thursday at 9 p.m. and Sunday at 6:40 p.m. they will present a 4K Restoration of another Japanese film in “The Taste of Tea.” 

Friday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. they will present the road trip drama featuring Akron native John Magaro in “Omaha.” The film will also be playing starting this Friday at The Nightlight Cinema in Akron. 

Friday at 8:45 p.m. and Saturday at 6 p.m. brings a double feature from acclaimed Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa in “Chime & Cure.” 

Sunday at 4:45 p.m. they will present a documentary about sculptor and woodcutter Jimmy Grashow in “Jimmy & The Demons,”

More information about the films and ticket prices are at: cinematheque.cia.edu

At the Nightlight Cinema (30 N High Street Akron, OH 44308): 

Thursday at 7:45pm and Saturday at 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., they will present a documentary about  the recent (and long overdue) inductees to the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, “Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition!”  

They will be opening a prison set drama from the executive producer of Netflix’s Adolescence in “Wasteman” with the talented actor David Jonsson. 

Friday through Sunday they will present the 25th Anniversary restoration of the award winning drama “Daughters of The Dust.” 

Just in time for Mother’s Day this Sunday and Wednesday,  they (and a handful of other theaters in the area) will also be showing 35^th Anniversary Screenings of “Fried Green Tomatoes,” so perhaps take your mom for a good cry. 

More information about the films and ticket prices are at nightlightcinema.com

This weekend there is a trio of new films opening in wide release: The first is the sequel to the 2021 original in “Mortal Kombat II.” The film is expected to do quite well, but as of this writing reviews have remained embargoed. 

Opening for families and featuring an all-star cast including Hugh Jackman is “The Sheep Detectives,” The plot revolves around a shepherd that is found dead and the group of sheep that aim to solve the mystery. It currently stands at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. 

Finally, a film that I got to see early is the unlikely pairing of James Cameron and Billie Eilish in “Billie Eilish-Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour 3D” While I cannot say I am a Billie Eilish expert, I did find this film to be a unique showcase for her talent and paired with James Cameron’s flair for visuals, this was pretty good! Plus it’s good to see Cameron make something other than Avatar films for once. 

So, I hope this has been a helpful guideline to all the offerings you could enjoy this upcoming week, stay tuned for more next week!

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – The Cleveland Division of Police asked for help locating a missing and endangered 14-year-old girl with autism.

Cleveland Police said that 14-year-old Arryel Johnson was safely located.

Nicole Sigurdson, a union organizer with the backing of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party, defeated two opponents in Tuesday’s primary. The Cleveland resident will face Republican Ed Hargate in November. 

The district includes Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood and all or portions of a string of eastern and southeastern suburbs, including Solon and Pepper Pike. 

Sigurdson, who works for SEIU District 1199, campaigned around workers’ rights, including increasing the minimum wage, protecting the environment and the need to be more “caring about people.”

She defeated Dionna M. Gore of Solon, who works for Medical Mutual and was backed by the district’s incumbent, Phillip Robinson Jr. of Solon, who is term-limited. Sigurdson also beat Cheryl Perez, a small business owner from Brecksville, who was endorsed by Cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer. 

During the campaign Sigurdson received criticism from some fellow party members and others for a comment she made on social media in 2025 about the Israel-Hamas war. Her comment – which she has since deleted – especially stood out because her district includes communities with sizable Jewish populations, including Solon and Pepper Pike. 

In the post, Sigurdson shared an image of the Palestinian flag that read, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” It’s a slogan used by pro-Palestinian activists as a call for freedom. Others, including many Jewish groups, view it as a call to eliminate the state of Israel. Some terrorist groups have used the slogan. Sigurdson posted a video earlier this year apologizing for the post.