More than 600 films from 58 countries were submitted to Pine City’s 2014 Highway 61 Film Festival, and 18 judges from around Minnesota helped pick the winners. Now, come see some of the best independent short and feature films in the world Friday, Oct. 3rd through Sunday, Oct. 5! Tickets $5 for 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. film sessions at Pine Technical & Community College. “All-Access Weekend Pass” $20. Pizza Pub sessions start 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday – no charge!
To download a PDF of the full festival program with more film details, click here: Program Final 1
Want the list of festival competition winners? Click here.
Friday, Oct. 3 • 6 p.m.
Pine Technical & Community College
(MILD LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE)
Mousse Comedy Short • 1ST PLACE WINNER! • Sweden • 40 min • During the horse race, a betting center looks like fast cash for Mousse, a man of principles living as a second-class citizen.
Community Acupuncture Documentary Short • USA • 35 min • A small group of loudmouthed, underemployed activists and a massive group of ordinary people with average incomes revolutionize health care.
Int. Café – Night Drama Short • 2ND PLACE WINNER! • India • 13min • Two stories come together inside a café.
A Brand New You Comedy Feature • 1ST PLACE WINNER! • Canada • 1 hr 23 min • A depressed young widower convinces his landlord and roommate to help him clone his dead wife.
Friday, Oct. 3 • 10 p.m.
Pizza Pub • Pine City
(ACTION, HORROR, 18+ COMEDY)
Timothy Action/Horror Short – 1ST PLACE WINNER! • Spain • 10 min • Simon has to deal with his nasty babysitter Sonia. But then Simon receives a visitor – the main character of his favorite show.
Heavy Metal Recollections Animation Short – 2014 Semifinalist • New York • 3 min • Two buddies remember the simpler times.
10K Action/Horror Short – 2014 Finalist • California •16 min • A couple relocates to a country farmhouse. But a peaceful run on the back roads turns into terror.
Sleeping with the Dead Action/Horror Short – 2014 Finalist • Canada • 20 min • Bumbling ghost-busters sleep overnight in haunted houses for a reality TV show.
Insane Action/Horror Short – 2014 Finalist • Canada • 19 min • A young director in an abandoned psychiatric hospital inadvertently awakens a tormented soul.
The Border Drama Short – 2014 Finalist • Texas • 27 min • After Miguel learns his daughter needs surgery his only choice is to work in the U.S.A. A smuggler takes him into the perilous Texas wilderness where they come across a grisly car accident … with survivors.
Profile of a Killer Action/Horror Feature • 1ST PLACE WINNER! • Minnesota • 1 hr 58 min • A retired FBI profiler comes to Minnesota and is kidnapped by the “Highway 61 Killer.” Now he must profile this undetectable serial killer while directly within his psychotic grasp.
Saturday, Oct. 4 • 2 p.m.
Pine Technical & Community College
(DOCUMENTARIES AND DRAMAS)
The Organic Life Documentary Feature – 2014 Finalist • California • 60 min • A yearlong chronicle of organic farmer Austin Blair. It’s a story filled with sweat, blisters, sun, and rain as well as a passion for life, food and the earth.
Wallflower Animation Short – 2014 Finalist • Virginia • 4 min • An exploration of nature in the city with over 1,900 hand-cut paper figures, paint and murals.
Not Anymore: A Story of Revolution Documentary Short – 2ND PLACE WINNER! • Syria • 15 min • The story of the Syrian revolution as told through the experiences of two young Syrians.
Father Drama Short – 2014 Finalist • Russia • 24 min • An alcoholic father visits his son to borrow money. The son decides to see his father home, but will this trip end in regret?
Wicker Kittens Documentary Feature • 2ND PLACE WINNER! • Wrenshall, MN • 52 min • Every January, the country’s largest jigsaw puzzle contest is held in St. Paul. Choose your favorite team and watch them try to put the pieces back together.
Saturday, Oct. 4 • 6 p.m.
Pine Technical & Community College
(MILD LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE)
“Saturday” Comedy Short • 2014 Finalist • United Kingdom • 14 min • A behind-the-scenes look at the creation.
Amulet of the Dragon Action/Horror Short – 2014 Finalist • Brazil • 17 min • The clash for a stolen amulet reveals a secret guarded for centuries.
Redeploy Drama Short • 2014 Finalist • New York • 15 min • A soldier returns home in search of the peace he lost.
Let’s Try This Again Student Short – 2014 Finalist • Indiana • 16 min • A short film about dating in a small town and why that isn’t a good idea.
Straight Up: Tennessee Whiskey Documentary Short • 1ST PLACE WINNER! • Nashville, Tennessee • 37 min •Tennessee has a long history of producing some of the world’s finest liquor, and new distilleries have revived that tradition.
The First Date Comedy Short • 2014 Finalist • Minnesota • 33 min • Destined to be soul mates, Jack and Rachel must have the worst first date of their lives…over and over again.
Pint Comedy Short • 2014 Finalist • Australia • 9 min • A wedding guest goes to work on the open bar. Then it goes to work on him.
Derby Fever Director: Dell Gross • Documentary Short • Pine City • 32 min • Experience the thrills of the Pine County Fair Derby – the greatest in Minnesota. Meet the legendary drivers and get a taste of their passion for their sport.
Saturday, Oct. 4 • 10 p.m.
Pizza Pub • Pine City
(ACTION, HORROR, 18+ COMEDY)
Run Action/Horror Short• 2014 Finalist • Minnesota • 8 min • A woman pieces together her memories and comes to a deadly conclusion.
Melon Head Comedy Short • 2ND PLACE WINNER! • New York • 14 min • Timid Gordon comes up with the perfect plan for a first date: a late night trip into the woods where cannibalistic creatures are rumored to live.
Death Bed Comedy Short • Minnesota • 10 min • Bob and Linda didn’t have the best marriage but they were about to find out just how bad love stinks.
Serve and Protect Comedy Short – 2014 Finalist • New Zealand • 13 min • Suspicious crates are discovered in a small town and Darryl Kitchen must solve the case.
Go Home • Drama Short • Minnesota • 13 min • Annie, 16, finds herself to be a stranger in her own home.
The Wall People Action/Horror Feature – 2014 Finalist • St. Paul • 50 min • A man’s son goes missing, and his search for the boy takes him across the solar system – and deep into his own mind.
Two Oranges and a Lemon Comedy Short – 2014 Semifinalist • California • 2 min • Two angry women kidnap the wrong guy – or is it the “right guy?”
The Story of M. Drama Short – 2014 Finalist • Russia • 22 min • A woman’s obsession with a Hollywood icon leads to a crushing confrontation with reality.
Finding Jimmy Comedy Short • Minnesota • 40 min • Jimmy’s walk to visit gamer friends takes a wild detour.
FAITH AND FAMILY FRIENDLY!
Sunday, Oct. 5 • 2 p.m.
Pine Technical & Community College
Enlightenment Animation Short • 2014 Finalist • Russia • 1 min • The secret of the universe has finally been revealed.
Tiki Hot Animation Short • 2014 Semifinalist • Ohio • 2 min • A tiki tries to find a way to heat things up.
Sled Drama Short • Morocco • 12 min • After the death of their parents, 8-year-old Ismail’s sister insists on him continuing his education. However, he starts to live his life the way he wants to.
The Goat Comedy Short – 2014 Finalist • United Kingdom • 2 min • Dan’s patience is tested when his housemate brings home a goat. Yes, a goat.
My Heart Drama Short • Iran • 2 min • Students make a gift for their sick teacher.
I Need My Monster Animation Short – 2014 Finalist • Colorado • 12 min • Ethan just can’t get to sleep without the help of his monster. Based on the children’s book by Amanda Noll.
Something Important Animation Short • 2014 Semifinalist • New York • 10 min • The artist shares his life experiences filtered through time and remembrance.
Amongst Laughter and Tears Drama Short • 2014 Finalist • Brazil • 8 min • On a lonely landscape, clowns of all kinds gather in sadness, until a female clown takes them by surprise.
Humanexus Animation Short – 2014 Finalist • Indiana • 14 min • The human race has long searched for meaningful connections. We must always ask: “Is this what we want? What do we want?”
Redemption of the Commons Drama Feature • 2ND PLACE WINNER! • South Carolina • 90 min • Victor discovers that he must deal with his volatile past before he can move toward his life’s purpose.
Sunday, Oct. 5 • 6 p.m.
Pine Technical & Community College
(MILD LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE)
AL MILGROM PRESENTS! Rediscovering John Berryman • Documentary Short • 26 min • Pine City native Al Milgrom presents a preview of his new film.
87 Topaz Documentary Short • St. Paul, Minnesota • 8 min • A late grandfather’s diary ends abruptly, but his memory lives on through an elegy of excerpts, photographs, and musings on cars.
Gifts Student Short • 1ST PLACE WINNER! • Canada • 10 min • At age six, Jan was miraculously retrieved from a frozen river. Now, after a lifetime of experiencing visions of others’ pain and suffering, the teenager hopes to prevent a murder.
Little Things Drama Short • 2014 Finalist • United Arab Emirates • 15 min • Sophie realizes that her loving relationship with her husband has turned distant and decides to take action.
Disaffection Action/Horror Short • 2ND PLACE WINNER! • France • 18 min • In the future, a team of doctors find a patient affected by a feared emotional disease.
To Edgar Animation Short • 2014 Finalist • Poland • 6 min • Edgar Allen Poe struggles with his creative process and his inner demons.
Never Stop Cycling Animation Short – 2014 Finalist • Canada • 4 min • In order to maintain his routine life, a creature must journey into a strange living world
How to Catch a Bird Director: Vera van Wolferen • Animation Short – 2014 Finalist • Netherlands • 5 min • A fishing trip leads a young woman into a dreamlike world of beauty and pain.
What Remains Animation Short • FIRST PLACE WINNER! • Germany • 5 min • A living room in the 1940s, abandoned. What is left are photographs on the wall, memories that come to life and tell the tragic story of a love which must not be.
Two Ghosts Animation Short • 2ND PLACE WINNER! • California • 10 min • A haunting, wordless journey through love, loneliness, and ultimately acceptance of the universe.
The Late Bird Comedy Short • 2014 Finalist • Germany • 20 min • A crashed astronaut opens to 71-year-old Thea the possibility to exchange her little village with the endless wideness of space.
216 Months Drama Short • FIRST PLACE WINNER! • France • 25 min • Maureen has found great success as a “ventriloquist singer.” But the voice from her huge belly has a name: Charles. He will soon be 18 and has one sole goal in life: to be born.