Ivory Tower - Chilly Gonzales

The Feature Film, an existentialist sports comedy about chess and success

Directed by Adam Traynor
Written by Chilly Gonzales and Celine Sciamma
Starring Chilly Gonzales, Tiga and Peaches

IVORY TOWER is the story of Hershell and Thadeus, two chess-playing brothers and their unhealthy rivalry over both the chessboard and a woman. Hershell is a chess purist, the prodigal son. Thadeus grew to be a disciplined, fierce and ruthless competitor.

After their father's death, Hershell went to Europe and spent 4 nomadic years in quixotic pursuit of a theory he named "Jazz Chess": chess for chess' sake, reduced to pure movement without the element of competition - and best played alone. There is no winner, no loser, only beautiful positions.

He returns home to find that his brother Thadeus has become the Canadian Chess Champion. Successful but arrogant, Thadeus supports their sick mother, has a rising media profile and is engaged to marry Marsha, Hershell's former sweetheart.

Further, Hershall finds that Jazz Chess doesn't attract the acclaim or investors he was hoping for; even kids playing chess in the park don't seem to understand "chess without checkmate". Discouraged by his prospects, and wanting Marsha back, Hershell finds himself drawn toward the competitive addiction he had run away from. He decides to challenge Thadeus for the upcoming Canadian Chess Championship.

The gauntlet is thrown down and the two brothers undergo rigorous training, each according to their vision if the game. During the final match, Thadeus takes the lead during the endgame, but he is flustered by Hershell's Zen-like demeanor. Thadeus blunders out of frustration and sets himself up for certain defeat at the hands of his brother in just one deadly move. But instead, Hershell uses the principle of Jazz Chess ("it's not about winning but about beauty") to force a draw. The match finishes as a tie.

Marsha admires Herhsell's selfless move, but she doesn't want to be a trophy for either of the brothers. She leaves after the match. The brothers have lost everything but each other, but at least they are finally equals. They begin a game of Jazz Chess at a table in the park where they first learned the game.