The Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF) is an annual springtime film festival in the U.S. state of Minnesota that has been held since 1981. It began as the Rivertown Film Festival of Pine City and eventually grew to become the largest film event in the Upper Midwest, with an annual attendance that exceeds 40,000.
Historically lauded for being one of the world's finest showcases of Scandinavian films, the festival features an eclectic lineup of films from more than 70 countries and cultures around the world. Locally produced material is also highlighted through a series called Minnesota Made, or MN Made.
Organization The Festival is organized by the MSP Film Society, a 501(c)(3) non-profit film exhibition organization that also operates The Main Cinema along the Mississippi River on historic Main Street across from downtown Minneapolis. Several other venues around the Twin Cities also participate in the film festival.
In addition to film screenings, the festival also hosts a number of panels and discussions. Some of these panels relate to a specific film included within the festival lineup, with others pertaining to general industry topics.
History In 2023, MSPIFF screened Cue the Strings: a Film about Low, a documentary about the Minnesota band Low directed by Twin Cities filmmaker Philip Harder.
In 2024, two-time Academy Award winning cinematographer Roger Deakins, a frequent collaborator of Minnesota filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, attended MSPIFF and took part in an industry night event, book signing, and screening of Fargo followed by a Q&A.
Reception In December 2014, the Film Society attracted national attention when it became one of the few distributors in the country to exhibit the controversial film The Interview after Sony Pictures reinstated the film's theatrical release after scrapping it amidst threats from hackers purportedly associated with the North Korean government.
Awards +Year Emerging FilmmakerDocumentaryAnimated ShortsDocumentary shortsFiction shortsAudience Choice Awards2024Winner: Girls Will Be Girls, dir. Shuchi Talati, India/France/USA/Norway, 2024
Special Jury Award: Foremost by Night, dir. Victor Iriarte, Spain/Portugal/France, 2023Winner: Sugarcane, dir. Julian Brave NoiseCat & Emily Kassie, Canada/USA, 2024
Special Jury Award for Innovation: Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted, dir. Isaac Gale & Ryan Olson, USA, 2024
Special Jury Award for Directing: Porcelain War, dir. Brendan Bellomo & Slava Leontyev, Ukraine/USA/Australia, 2024Winner: Tennis, Oranges, dir. Sean Pecknold, USA, 2024Honorable Mention: Bluebird in the Wind, dir. Ellis Kayin Chan, Hong Kong, 2023Winner: The Only Girl in the Orchestra, dir. Molly O'Brien, USA, 2023
Special Jury Award: Through the Storm, dir. Fritz Bitsole & Charles Frank, USA, 2023
Artistic Merit Award: Salone Love, dir. Tajana B Williams, USA/Sierra Leone, 2023Winner: Muna, dir. Warda Mohamed, UK, 2023
Honorable Mention: Layaway, dir. Kaitlyn T. Busbee, USA, 2023Fiction Feature: Bonjour Switzerland, dir. Peter Luisi, Switzerland, 2023
Documentary Feature: Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted, dir. Isaac Gale & Ryan Olson, USA, 2024
Fiction Short: Mis-Alignment, dir. Pablo Riesgo Almonacid, USA, 2023
Documentary Short: Uncle Bully's Surf Skool, dir. Leah Warshowski, USA, 2023
Animated Short: Luki and the Lights, dir. Toni Cochran, Netherlands, 20232026Winner: Cotton Queen, directed by Suzannah MirghaniWinner: To Hold a Mountain, directed by Biljana Tutorov and Petar GlomazicWinner: 113 Words for You Today, directed by Bo Qing Tang and Xiao Lan ZengWinner: Correct Me If I'm Wrong, directed by Hao ZhouWinner: Nervous Energy, directed by Eve LiuWinners: Uncle Roy, directed by Keri Pickett (Documentary feature) Colors of Time, directed by Cédric Klapisch (Fiction feature)
References
External links MSPIFF and Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival website