Star Tribune Movie Critic Colin Covert, MSPIFF Programming Director Jesse Bishop and MSPIFF Programmers Craig Laurence Rice and Kathie Smith, along with Executive Director Susan Smoluchowski sit down for an exclusive conversation that will pull back the curtain on what goes into planning the largest film festival in the region. Hear first-hand what films each of these three are most excited about in the 2018 festival lineup, ask your burning film fest questions, get the insider tips on how to navigate the festival’s lineup and more, at this special one-night event. Join us at the Aster River Room for appetizers and a cash bar, and following the conversation, guests will be treated to a screening of Love and Friendship (Whit Stillman, 2016).
Film Synopsis
Whit Stillman is on top form directing his own adaptation of Jane Austen’s early novella concerning the sensational Lady Susan Vernon. An exquisite comedy of matchmaking and heart-breaking. Set in the 1790s this film follows the deliciously scheming and manipulative Lady Susan Vernon (Kate Beckinsale), who is on a mission to find a husband for herself and her long-suffering daughter Frederica, aided and abetted by her loyal friend Alicia Johnson (Chloe Sevigny). Two young men, handsome Reginald DeCourcy (Xavier Samuel) and wealthy Sir James Martin (Tom Bennett), severely complicate their plans.Director Biography
Stillman is famous for his comedies of manners Metropolitan, Barcelona and The Last Days Of Disco. His last film was Damsels In Distress which closed the Venice Film Festival in 2011. He received an Oscar nomination for his Metropolitan screenplay in 1990.