Watch ice sculptors at Freezefest, taste Chilly Cookoff samples, watch films this weekend

Celebrate winter at Freezefest this weekend where sculptors will carve figures out of blocks of ice and families can do winter-themed activities. Rather stay warm? The Chili Cookoff will be Saturday at The Mill. Films include a new take on a Stephen King mini-series and a documentary and talk with the woman conductor who created her own orchestra. A restart of the Hand Picked Music series will be Friday when quartet Hawktail performs.

'Timekeepers of Eternity' showing Thursday at Orbit Room

In a new edit of a Stephen King's TV mini-series, a torn, photocopied piece of paper transforms into a living collage and a paper nightmare in "The Timekeepers of Eternity," which will be shown at 7:30 and 10 p.m. Thursday at the Orbit Room, 107 N. College Ave. Tickets for the age 18-plus show are $5.

'Playing with Fire' at IU Cinema

"Playing with Fire" gives a behind-the-scenes look of Grammy-winning conductor Jeannette Sorrell, who formed her own baroque orchestra, Apollo's Fire, after being told by Juilliard and Cleveland Orchestra that no one would hire a woman conductor. Sorrell will be present and have a Q&A with the audience after the screening, which begins at 7 p.m. Thursday at IU Cinema, 1213 E. Seventh St. The film is free but is ticketed. For more and tickets, go to https://bit.ly/3XgZdML.

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Hawktail performs Friday as part of Hand Picked Music series

Bloomington Roots has partnered with FAR Center for Contemporary Arts to launch the Hand Picked Music series at the 505 Theater, 505 W. Fourth St. Acoustic quartet Hawktail will kick off the series in 2023 with a performance at 7:30 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 day of the show. Visit bloomingtonroots.com for tickets and more information. Hawktail's members are fiddler Brittany Haas, bassist Paul Kowert, guitarist Jordan Tice and mandolinist Dominick Leslie, playing all original music.

Chill out Friday, Saturday at Freezefest

The third annual Freezefest, Bloomington's winter festival, will be 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday.

Friday events, staged from Rogers to Madison streets near The Mill, include internationally recognized sculptors carving ice figures and outdoor activities for kids and families. Food trucks will be selling food. From 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, Upland Brewing Co., 350 W. 11th St., will have an outside ice bar on the patio ahead of the B-Town Ice Battle. The battle will be on Upland's outdoor stage where ice sculptors vie for the Golden Chain Saw award.

Saturday events include more ice carving, activities for kids and family and food trucks at The Mill from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. From 3 to 5 p.m. the activities move to Switchyard Park, 1601 S. Rogers St., for Winter Palooza, which costs $5 per person or $20 per family. This event includes winter-themed crafts and activities. If there's no snow falling from the sky, people can create their own.

Chilly Cook-Off Saturday at The Mill

The Chilly Cook-Off, which is part of Freezefest, will be 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday inside The Mill, 642 N. Madison St. Tickets are available at www.monroeunitedway.org/cookoff for $12 per person; free for kids age 10 and younger. All proceeds go to United Way of Monroe County.

Seven professional chefs and 17 home chefs will share samples of their special chili with participants, who can also enjoy a scooped ice cream dessert by Chocolate Moose. Attendees can vote for the People's Choice Award. People can also enter the "Some Like It Hot" chili eating contest at 12:30 p.m. Space is limited.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Things to do in Bloomington, IN: Freezefest, Chilly Cook-off, Hawktail