Chalk was nominated for the John Cassavetes Award from the Independent Spirit Awards in 2006. It also won Outstanding Performance by Ensemble Cast (Narrative Competition) at the 2006 Los Angeles film festival. Background The film is based on both Chris Mass' and Mike Akel's own experiences in public education and even used their former students as extras. The cast is made up entirely of unknowns and was produced on a very low budget. The performers were allowed plenty of room to ad-lib but the film still had to be structured. Over 60 hours of footage was filmed while improvisation was used through the entire process from writing, production, and post-production until the final version was made. Credited cast Kaytea Brock Dan Eggleston Jeff Guerrero as Mr. G Shannon Haragan as Mrs. Reddell Jerry Jarmon Glen Lewis Chris Mass as Mr. Stroope Janelle Schremmer as Coach Webb Troy Schremmer as Mr. Lowrey Jacqueline Seaborn Jeffrey Travis as a math teacher References External links Chalk at Movies.com 2006 films American independent films 2006 comedy films American mockumentary films Films about educators Films set in schools 2000s English-language films 2000s American films