From late August through mid-September, the fall film festival season reaches its apex of influence with the overlapping of the Venice International Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.
Dozens of A-list movie stars and auteurs debut their newest projects, walking the red carpet and shaking hands to attract as much attention as possible. It’s all a game, with the victor being showered with praise in the form of box office earnings and industry awards.
While those headlining festivals are mostly exclusive events, a democratization of this process begins in October with the blitz of the regional festivals. All across the country and the world, smaller festivals gather a collection of the best that world cinema has to offer, curating for local tastes and building narratives that carry on throughout the rest of the year.
Notable festivals that take place during this time include the New York Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, Philadelphia Film Festival and AFI Fest. Also a part of that mix is the Twin Cities Film Fest (TCFF), now celebrating its “Sweet 16” anniversary with a lineup of blockbusters and headliners October 16-25.
Distributor Focus Features retains its opening night slot for the third year in a row after “The Holdovers” and “Conclave,” respectively. At previous TCFFs, both of those films placed for the Best Feature Film Award. That is something that this year’s opening night selection, “Hamnet,” could very likely do, considering its rave reviews and its People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Tissues will be needed for the audience of this tear-jerker, which features Oscar-worthy performances by Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal. It will then be released in theaters around the Thanksgiving holiday.
Also from Focus Features is “Bugonia,” the newest collaboration between director Yorgos Lanthimos and star Emma Stone, whose previous works include “The Favourite,” “Poor Things” and “Kinds of Kindness.” Stone plays a CEO who is kidnapped by two conspiracy-obsessed young men who believe she is an alien that has been sent to destroy the planet.
Amazon MGM Studios will bring “Hedda,” writer/director Nia DaCosta’s reimagining of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play, starring Tessa Thompson. Aziz Ansari, Seth Rogen and Keanu Reeves headline Ansari’s directorial debut, “Good Fortune,” which will play at the Edina Mann 4 Theatre. Searchlight Pictures will be pulling double duty during the festival’s final days with the dramedies “Rental Family” and “Is This Thing On?”
In the lineup press release, Executive Director Jatin Setia said he wanted to “put a brighter spotlight on the independent spirit.” That sentiment is illustrated by the selection of “The Floaters” as the Spotlight Centerpiece. Marking its Minnesota Premiere at the festival, the indie dramedy features an eclectic cast of performers like Jackie Tohn, Seth Green, Aya Cash and Steve Guttenberg. Director Rachel Israel and producer Shai Korman will conduct a Q&A following the screening.
The Closing Night Gala, “Lost & Found in Cleveland,” will also bring together its cast and crew, including directors Keith Gerchak and Marisa Guterman, as well as actors Santino Fontana and Benjamin Steinhauser.
The festival received a record number of submissions this year, with more than 150 films set to screen at the Marcus West End Cinema, Edina Mann 4 Theatre, or virtually via the TCFF streams platform. Information about scheduling and tickets is available at twincitiesfilmfest.org.
Eden Prairie resident Hunter Friesen is a film critic who owns and operates The Cinema Dispatch, a website where he writes reviews, essays, and more. He currently serves as president of the Minnesota Film Critics Association and travels the globe covering film festivals both big and small. To view his entire body of work, you can visit his website and Instagram.
