20 Nominees Vie For Top Honors, Including “The Imitation Game,” “Wild,” Eliza Coupe and Keira Knightley

 

St. Louis Park, Minnesota (October 23, 2014) – Organizers at the Twin Cities Film Fest today announced 20 finalists for its coveted slate of awards. The festival, which continues to screen films through Saturday evening at the Showplace ICON Theatres, will announce its nine award winners at a Closing Night Gala following the Saturday evening screenings of “Wild,” the critically acclaimed drama starring Reese Witherspoon, and “Time Lapse,” the festival’s official closing night selection that TCFF Artistic Director Steve Snyder hails as “one of the most ingeniously plotted thrillers in recent memory.” Rush line tickets remain available for both screenings.

The 2014 awards finalists include the “The Imitation Game,” a World War II thriller starring Benedict Cumberbatch that was a big winner at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and is widely considered to be a frontrunner for the year-end awards race; “Wild,” the heartfelt Reese Witherspoon drama, adapted from the bestselling memoir by Cheryl Strayed; “The Last Time You Had Fun,” the hit comedy now touring the festival circuit starring Demetri Martin and Eliza Coupe; and “Stray Dog,” the award-winning war veteran documentary directed by “Winter’s Bone” filmmaker Debra Granik.

Previously announced by festival organizers, the winner of the 2014 TCFF North Star Award for Excellence is actress Keira Knightley, for the quality, complexity and dynamic range of her performances in two festival titles: “The Imitation Game” and “Laggies,” the new Lynn Shelton dramedy set to screen at TCFF Saturday afternoon.

The finalists for the 2014 TCFF Best Feature Film Award include: “The Heart Machine” (showing Friday), “The Imitation Game” (showing Friday), “Ink & Steel” (showing Saturday) and “Wild” (showing Saturday)

Finalists for the 2014 TCFF Indie Vision: Breakthrough Film Award include “BFFs,” “The Last Time You Had Fun” (showing Friday), “Old Fashioned” and “Time Lapse” (showing Saturday)

Finalists for the 2014 TCFF Indie Vision: Breakthrough Performance Award include Maria Isa (Actress, “Strike One”), Haley Lu Richardson (Actress, “The Well” and “The Young Kieslowski”), Alec Schwandt (Director and Cinematographer, “North,” “Sad Clown,” “Rosie” and “To Say Goodbye”) and Eliza Coupe (“The Last Time You Had Fun”).

Finalists for the 2014 TCFF Best Short Film Award include “Destroyer” (directed by Andrew Kightlinger, showing Friday), “My Last Breath” (directed by Cy Dodson), “One Armed Man” (directed by Tim Guinee) and “Rediscovering John Berryman” (directed by Al Milgrom).

Finalists for the 2014 TCFF Best Documentary Award include “Flying Paper,” “The Immortalists,” “Scouts Honor: Inside The Marching Brotherhood” (showing Saturday) and “Stray Dog.”

The festival will announce three additional awards Saturday evening: Two 2014 TCFF Audience Awards (Feature Film and Short Film) and the 2014 TCFF Changemaker Award.

TCFF tickets are now on-sale, and rush lines are offered each evening at official Festival Office, located next to the Showplace ICON Theatres. Prices are as follows: General Admission $10; Opening/Closing Gala $20; Centerpiece Gala $20; Sneak Preview Galas $20. Festival Passes can also be purchased: Silver $50 for 6 films; Gold $70 for 10 films; or Platinum $120 for 12 films + 2 tickets to Opening, Closing or Gala. (Silver and Gold Packages do not include Opening, Closing or Gala Tickets). For more information and to purchase tickets visit www.twincitiesfilmfest.org.

ABOUT TWIN CITIES FILM FEST
Twin Cities Film Fest (TCFF), a Minneapolis–based 501(c) 3 non–profit arts organization, is an annual mainstream film festival that caters to the general public with one simple goal: To offer audiences access to the best films the global industry has to offer, to stimulate economic activity in the Twin Cities and to offer filmmakers a premiere venue at which to premiere their work. This year’s 10-day festival will continue through this Saturday, Oct. 25.

ABOUT Kerasotes ShowPlace ICON Theatres at The Shops at West End with ICON•X
Founded in 1909 with a single storefront nickelodeon, Chicago-based Kerasotes ShowPlace Theatres introduced a “new era of moviegoing” in the Twin Cities with its Kerasotes ShowPlace ICON Theatres at The Shops at West End with ICON•X. At ShowPlace ICON you’re not only watching a movie, you’re redefining how movies should be watched, now featuring Dolby® Atmos™ for select performances. www.showplaceicon.com