Join us for the Twin Cities Film Fest 2024!
Schedule Of Events:
A Decent House
1:15pm
87 Minutes
A Decent Home Addresses Urgent Issues Of Class And Economic (Im)Mobility Through The Lives Of Mobile Home Park Residents Who Can't Afford Housing Anywhere Else. They Are Fighting For Their Dreams -- And Their Lives -- As Private Equity Firms And Wealthy Investors Buy Up Parks, Making Sky-High Returns On Their Investments While Squeezing Every Last Penny Out Of The Mobile Home Owners Who Must Pay Rent For The Land They Live On.
A Light Touch (Comedy Shorts Block)
5:15pm
90 Minutes
In A Light Touch, Tcff Brings Together Nine Short Films That Will Make You Laugh For All The Wrong Reasons. A Perfectionist High Schooler Desperately Tries To Get His Play To Start On Time As The Cast Falls To Pieces Behind The Scenes. A Physical Therapy Class For Couples Takes A Spicy Turn. A Robot Wife Commits Homicide And A Man's Life Passes In Front Of His Eyes At A Dead-End Job. You Never Know What Will Happen Next In A Light Touch: Relationships Flounder And Friendships Change, Human Bodies Grow Crab Claws And Mermaid Tails. We Never Said A Light Touch Was A Gentle Touch, Did We?
A School Grows In Watts
3:15pm
78 Minutes
In One Of The Most Notoriously Underserved Cities In The Country, A Unique Charter Elementary School Works Toward A Reimagined Future Through A Community-Based Approach To Education. Weaving Together The Personal Narratives Of Educators, Families, Students And Community Members Involved With The Overachieving Watts Learning Center, A School Grows In Watts Paints A Lyrical, Immersive Portrait Of A Vibrant Yet Misunderstood Community And The Ongoing Work Of A Mighty School With Humble Beginnings.
Band On The Run
5:00pm
88 Minutes
In Band On The Run, It's 1999, And Jesse Grant, A Frustrated Musician From Suburban Detroit, Is Stuck In A Dead-End Advertising Job And A Crumbling Home Life. His Only Solace Is His Band, Hot Freaks, With Dreams Of Making It Big At The South By Southwest Music (Sxsw) Festival. When His Rival Band, Bull Roar, Gets An Invite To Sxsw, Jesse Is Incensed. But Just As He's About To Give Up, Jesse Discovers His Band Also Received An Invitation, Hidden By His Ailing Father, Thomas. Determined To Seize The Opportunity, Jesse Takes Thomas On A Road Trip To Texas, With His Bandmates. The Journey Is Fraught With Hilarious Clashes With Bull Roar And Poignant Moments Between Father And Son. As They Bond Over Missed Chances And Shared Dreams, Thomas' Health Worsens, Putting Their Plans In Jeopardy. At Sxsw, After A Chaotic Showdown With Bull Roar, Jesse's Band Delivers A Powerful Performance, Capturing The Attention Of Industry Insiders. The Film Ends With Jesse Abandoning His Job, Embracing The Uncertain But Thrilling Life Of A Musician On The Road, With His Band And Father By His Side, Ready For The Next Adventure.
Black Outside
2:00pm
80 Minutes
Follow The Transformative Journey Of Gary Wilkerson, Jr., As He Defies Cultural Norms And Embarks On The Adventure Of A Lifetime: Hiking 2,600 Miles From Mexico To Canada On The Pacific Crest Trail. As He Struggles To Navigate The Breathtaking Wilderness And Treacherous Terrain, We Follow His Profound Path To Self-Discovery, Forming Unexpected Bonds With Fellow Hikers And Confronting Deep-Rooted Generational Fears Of What Happens To Black People In The Woods.
Black Table
4:00pm
93 Minutes
In 1993, Elite U.S. Universities Saw A Surge In Admissions Of Students Of Color, Including One Of The Largest Classes Of Black Students At Yale. This Coincided With A Pivotal Moment In America's Culture Wars, Marked By A Waning Civil Rights Movement And Higher Education Grappling With Chilling Legislation.
One Of The Largest Classes Of Black Students In Yale University's History Arrived In 1993, Just As The Country Entered A Period Now Known As The Great American Divide: The Unofficial Beginning Of Today's Culture Wars. Together These Students Created For Each Other An Education That Challenged The Official Curriculum, Whose Central Texts Were The Stories
They Share With - And The Experiences They Bring To - A University Dining Hall Table As Old As The 20th Century Itself.
The Sense Of Promise Is Diminished By Warnings From The Class Of 1994 Who, Only Years Before The Class Of 1997 Settled Into Their Dorms, Were Involved In A Racially Motivated Incident On Campus. Eight Black Students From The Class Of 1994 Are Thrown Out Of Naples Pizzeria After An Argument Between The Students And A Naples Employee. The Naples ‘Black Boycott' Was A Pivotal Moment That Forced Yale's Black Student Body To Question Its Place On Campus.
Crab Claw
5:15pm
9 Minutes
Cathy And Dale Attend A Couple's Therapy Session To Address Their Strained Relationship.Dale Laments Cathy's Poor Communication Skills And Lack Of Support, Growing
Increasingly Frustrated With Her Perceived Shortcomings. However, Cathy Reveals The True Source Of Their Problems: Her Right Hand Has Mutated Into A Crab Claw. The
Therapist Struggles To Mediate The Escalating Tension While Attempting To Understand The Bizarre Reality Of Their Situation.
Ghost From The Machine
7:45pm
87 Minutes
Twin Cities Film Fest Celebrates The 15th Anniversary Of Ghost From The Machine! The First Mn Sell Out At The Inaugural Tcff!
His Name Is Ray
3:00pm
81 Minutes
His Name Is Ray Puts A Face On The Growing Homelessness And Opioid Crises.
Ray Once Had Everything. A Job That He Loved With The Coast Guard. The Father To A Family. But His Addiction Took It All Away. Now, The Former Sailor Lives On The Streets Of Toronto With An Entire Population That Seems To Have Just Fallen Through The Cracks.
With A Remarkably Compassionate And Intimate Lens, The Audience Follows Ray On His Precarious Journey To Get Off The Streets And Back On The Water, Where—In The Ultimate Achievement Of The Oblivion He Craves—He Could Just Sail Away From It All.
Mermaid, *****
5:15pm
12 Minutes
Lily And Ruby Are Pals, Best Buds Since Childhood, Practically Sisters. They're Now Adults, Technically, Though They're Still Living Their Best Lives Believing In Their Dreams -- Forming A Rock Band To Entertain People And Make The World A Better Place, And Living In The Moment. Tensions Have Crept In Between Them As The Band Is In A Rough Patch, And The Codependency Of The Friendship Is Challenged. To Make Things Weirder, Lily Wakes Up After A Night Of Performing And Tarot Card Readings Transformed Into A Mermaid. Like, An Actual Mermaid.
My Town – Part 2
7:30pm
108 Minutes
Growing Up In A Small Town, All Cory Hepola Ever Thought About Was Moving To A Big City To Chase His Dreams. Now, A 40-Something Husband With Three Little Kids, Cory Wonders What Would It Be Like To Move Back? Traveling To Seven Communities Across Four States, Cory Learns Why People Choose To Live In Their Rural Towns And Discovers He Had It All Wrong All These Years.
Physical Therapy
5:15pm
6 Minutes
Several Couples Attend A Low-Cost Community Ed Class Hoping To Spice Up Their Love Lives, But They Soon Realize That The Only Thing More Unconventional Than The Coursework Is Their Teacher.
She's A Doll
5:15pm
8 Minutes
Gary, Once Unlucky In Love, Has Married His Dream Girl. Doris Couldn't Be More Perfect For Him - After All, She Was Built To His Specifications. Gary Thought His Android Bride Would Give Him An Easy Life, Until Sparks Fly Between Them In The Wrong Way.
Doris Needs Repairs, But Despite Gary's Best Effort, She Proves Too Difficult To Fix. Gary Must Decide If The Damage Is Too Much To Handle, Or If He Can Love His Perfectly Imperfect Wife For Who She Is.
Smorgasbord
5:15pm
7 Minutes
One Man Realizes Just How Quickly Time Can Get Away From You After Starting A Dead End Job Working In Corporate America.
Someone Lives Here
1:00pm
75 Minutes
In October 2020, A Carpenter Named Khaleel Seivwright Drove To A Remote Area Of A Toronto Park To Build A Small, Insulated Shelter. On The Front Of The Shelter, He Posted Two Signs: "Anyone Is Welcome," And The Details Of A Gofundme Page Dedicated To Raising Money To Build More. His Idea Is Simple: To Provide Unhoused People Outside In The Winter With Tiny, Insulated Shelter That Would Keep Them Safe And Warm.
The Project Soon Attracted International Attention. With Toronto's Homeless Population Rising, And A Long Winter Approaching, Many Deem His Shelters A Life-Saving Measure. Donations To The Gofundme Surged. Before Long, City Officials Take Issue, And Send Khaleel A Cease And Desist Letter. Undeterred, Khaleel Continues Building And Does His Best To Convince The World That His Shelters Are A Viable Interim Measure For People Living Outside In The Cold.
Someone Lives Here Follows The Story Of Khaleel, His Tiny Shelters, And Their Residents, Over The Course Of One Brutal Toronto Winter. Featuring A Diverse Cast Of Characters – Including Government Officials, City Staff, Former Toronto Mayor John Tory, Tiny Shelter Residents, And Community Advocates.
Narrated By Taka, A Woman Living In One Of Khaleel's Tiny Shelters In Toronto's Alexandra Park, Someone Lives Here Captures An Important Chapter In The Battle For The Soul Of A City.
Spotlight Event: A Conversation With Josh Duhamel
6:00pm
60 Minutes
Tcff Spotlight Event: Tcff Sits Down With Actor Josh Duhamel To Discuss His Film Career, His Passion For Storytelling, His Midwest Roots, And His Thoughts On Receiving The Tcff Northstar Award.
The Girls At The Painted Bird
5:15pm
13 Minutes
It's Kitty's First Day Working At The Painted Bird, A "Specialty House" Where "Men Get What They Can't Get Elsewhere". Kitty Learns That The Job Is Not What She Expected And That A Lot Of Men Just Need A Good Cry. A Poignant, Funny And Feminist Take On A Wild West That Might Have Been
The Grievance
5:15pm
8 Minutes
After Five Months Of The Writer's Strike, Comes An Idea That Hatched On The Picket Line! What If Ai Filed A Complaint To Hr About Harassment In A Comedy Writers Room On A Sitcom? Starring Rosie O'donnell & Kevin Pollak, Written By Carol Leifer (Hacks, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld) & Andy Gordon (Big Bang Theory, Modern Family) & Directed By Richie Keen (Always Sunny In Philadelphia)
The Name Of The Film Is Untitled
5:15pm
14 Minutes
The Name Of The Film Is Untitled Is A Comedy About Cal, A Depressed 24- Year-Old Stoner And Writer, Who Learns To Not Take Life So Seriously When She Meets A New Friend With A Bizarre Profession. This Film Is A Love Letter To Weed And The Girls Who Smoke It.
The Shakespeare Mash-Up
5:15pm
13 Minutes
Clarence Henderson Is Known For His Self-Written, Self-Directed High School Plays. When His Latest Production, "The Shakespeare Mashup," Begins To Fall Apart Minutes Before It Starts, Clarence Tries To Fix It All - But Can He?
