Forget French spies ("OSS: Nest of Spies"), Japanese super-sized heroes ("Big Man Japan") or Scandinavian whimsy ("Waiter"). The real action on opening night of the 10th Annual Wisconsin Film Festival on Thursday was at Monona Terrace, which hosted the world premiere screening of the homegrown documentary "Mad City Chickens" before an enthusiastic sellout crowd.

(For some background on the Madison chicken-raising phenomenon, check out stories in the Capital Times by Katie Dean here and Susan Troller here. Both staffers made cameo appearances in the doc.)

It was so big, in fact, that the Bubbler has commissioned team coverage of the event (if only we had a cool, local-TV-news type graphic to use here, ideally with a big "woosh" sound). First, we'll hear from Cap Times assistant features editor Jane Burns, who gives a great recap of the event. Then we'll cut to Dean, the Cap Times city life reporter who will tell us about the experience of actually watching yourself on the big screen.

First, here's Jane Burns:We all know that chickens provide eggs. But who knew they provide such great stories?

That's the central delight of "Mad City Chickens," which screened at the packed Monona Terrace theater. The notion of chickens in the backyard is sort of goofy enough, and that's just the spirit in which Tashai Lovington and Robert Lughai made their film.

It's sort of a chicken-and-egg thing: Do people who choose to have chickens already have the same kind of approach to life that makes them good storytellers or does the experience of having chickens in one's life make one a good storyteller? Considering the driest part of the film is when scientists talk, suspicion lies with the first.

The audience was already primed for an unusual evening, as ticket-holders got boxes of Peeps and chocolate eggs while waiting in line. (Wouldn't this go against those strict Monona Terrace catering rules?) The film lived up to that goofy approach, using wry editing between storytellers and a few well-timed chicken appearances to create more than a few laughs. But "Mad City Chickens" is as informative as it is entertaining, and it wouldn't be surprising if more than a few audience members went home and started pricing chicks and coops.

Mostly, it comes down to the stories. Who knew a chicken could play the piano? Who knew a pack of chickens could work together like a street gang and get rid of an unwelcome rattlesnake? And who knew that a chicken named Consuela was such a survivor they could make a Lifetime movie about her life?

But wait. There might be more.

"We've got 40 hours of footage," Lughai said after the showing. "There's plenty leftover for the DVD extras."

Even more chicken stories? Eggs-ellent.

Now here's Dean's inside take on reporting about chicken culture, and then having a bit part of the film:

Susan and I considered wearing disguises to the premiere (chicken masks, of course) but I sucked it up and went sans mask. I was nervous, which felt silly because I wasn't sure how much of my rambling the filmmakers had included, if any.

Thankfully, my tiny part was at the beginning of the film, so I didn't have to wait long. The filmmakers interspersed my interview with footage of Liz Perry, owner of Nutzy Mutz and Crazy Catz, who started stocking chicken feed at her pet supply store after persistent inquiries from chicken owners. (I had interviewed her for my chicken story). She was one of the best interviews in the film, peppering her own chicken story with charm and humor.

The movie reminded me of how much fun it was to research and write about chickens and those who raise them -- they're a unique bunch (both the birds and their human friends). Seeing the enthusiastic response to the film from all the urban chicken farmers in the audience made me happy to be a (very, very small) part of this cute local production.

The filmmakers have submitted the movie to several film fests in chicken-friendly cities (they mentioned San Francisco, Seattle and Portland, OR last night), so the film may screen in other parts of the country. No doubt The Bubbler will note any future screenings, in Madison or elsewhere.