The Minnesota Historical Society Announces Winners of the State's Most Rewarding Film Competition

The Minnesota Historical Society Announces Winners of the State's Most Rewarding Film Competition

$10,500 in cash awarded to the filmmakers of five winning films about the life and legacy of Minnesota's Greatest Generation; Encore screenings at the Minnesota History Center on Oct. 23

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The drama unfolded at the historic Riverview Theater in Minneapolis on Sunday night as the Minnesota Historical Society announced the five winning films in the Minnesota's Greatest Generation Moving Pictures Film Competition. More than 400 filmmakers and event-goers walked past the searchlights for red-carpet arrivals in "old Hollywood" style in anticipation of the winning results:

* Matt Ehling of St. Paul won Best Film ($5,000) for his film "Coming
Home";
* Gayle Knutson of Marine on St. Croix, Minn., won Best Depiction of
"Coming of Age in the 1940s" ($2,500) for her film "Prisoner 32,232";
* Paul Creager of Minneapolis won Best Emerging Filmmaker ($1,000) for
his film "Resonance";
* Rita Nagan and Jeremy Wilker both of Golden Valley, Minn., won Best
Collaborative Effort ($1,000) for their film "Skating the Pacific to
Europe"; and,
* Kevin McKeever of St. Paul won the Legacy award ($1,000) for his film
"Marianne Hamilton: A Voice of Peace."

The five winning films were selected from 60 films submitted by amateur and professional filmmakers across the state of Minnesota. Each of the 10-minute documentary films focus on the life and legacy of Minnesota's Greatest Generation -- the men and women who came of age during the Depression and World War II.

"I continue to be amazed by the quality of the films and the rich stories of Minnesota's Greatest Generation brought into a new light through the outstanding work of so many filmmakers," said Randal Dietrich, Moving Pictures Festival Director. "Moving Pictures helps preserve these stories through the dynamic medium of film, while linking a new generation with a generation that has had a tremendous impact on how we lead our lives today."

Encore Screenings, Minnesota History Center, Oct. 23

Encore screenings of the winning films will take place at the Minnesota History Center on Tuesday, Oct. 23, from 7-9 p.m. as part of the Past Forward Tuesday night series. The screenings will include an exclusive talk-back session with the filmmakers about how they documented the compelling and deeply personal stories of Minnesotans who came of age during the Depression and World War II. Tickets are: $8 for adults; $6 for members, seniors and college students; and, $4 for children ages 14 and up.

In an effort to preserve these films and slices of Minnesota history, the films become part of the permanent collections of the Minnesota Historical Society and receive continuing visibility at public venues across the state, at http://www.mnhs.org/mggfilm and on television.

Select submissions will be showcased in a statewide tour through the fall including public screenings at libraries, historic sites and schools. The tour kicks off with an 11-city public library tour starting with Minneapolis Central Library on Saturday, Oct. 27, at 1 p.m. Complete tour dates and times are available at http://www.mnhs.org/mggfilm and at http://www.melsa.org/.

Filmmakers Tell Compelling Stories of War Veterans, GI Wives, Prisoners and More

Matt Ehling's Best Film winner, "Coming Home," tells the story of Bill Ehling, a World War II combat veteran who fought in the European theater. Through family photos, historical footage, and glimpses of his hometown, the film relates Bill's memories of war, struggle and, finally, coming home. Footage of their family farm abstractly represents how Matt, as a boy, internalized his grandfather's war stories.

Gayle Knutson's winning film for "Coming of Age in the 1940s," "Prisoner 32,232" recalls the story of longtime Minnesota college professor Reidar Dittmann. The Nazi invasion of his native Norway led to his involvement in the Norwegian Resistance and a 15-month incarceration in the notorious Buchenwald concentration camp at the age of 20.

Winning film "Resonance" by Paul Creager tells the story of Duluth Mayor George D. Johnson as he and the city were faced with a difficult decision: to keep a Buddhist temple bell as a war trophy from the USS Duluth or return it.

Rita Nagan's and Jeremy Wilkers's winning film "Skating the Pacific to Europe" tells the story of Art Seaman who began his skating career in Longfellow Park and literally skated and danced his way from Minnesota to the Pacific to the 1948 Olympics and back again.

Kevin McKeever's Legacy winning film, "Marianne Hamilton: A Voice of Peace," is about a woman who exemplifies Minnesota's activist spirit in the 20th century. Marianne Hamilton recounts her amazing struggles including leading the GI Wives Club during World War II, venturing to Hanoi for peace during the Vietnam War and ultimately, co-creating the Women Against Military Madness in defiance of the Cold War.

About Minnesota's Greatest Generation Project

From the heroic to the tragic and the dramatic to the ordinary, Minnesota's Greatest Generation lived it all. After a childhood overshadowed by the Great Depression, a Second World War rushed these young men and women into adulthood and propelled the ingenuity and boom that followed. Sadly, with each passing day, many of the artifacts from this generation are being lost to history and the witnesses to these stories are falling silent.

This year marks the second year that the Historical Society is organizing and hosting the Moving Pictures Film Competition. A third competition is planned for 2008. Moving Pictures is an initiative launched by the Minnesota Historical Society in August 2005, during the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, to explore the life and legacy of Minnesota's Greatest Generation. The privately funded initiative is simply known as Minnesota's Greatest Generation.

About the Minnesota Historical Society

The Minnesota Historical Society is a non-profit educational and cultural institution established in 1849 to preserve and share Minnesota history. The Society collects, preserves and tells the story of Minnesota's past through museum exhibits, libraries and collections, historic sites, educational programs and book publishing. More information can be found at http://www.mnhs.org/.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:
Web site:

http://www.mnhs.org.

http://www.melsa.org

Source: Minnesota Historical Society

CONTACT: Suzanne Fedoruk of Fedoruk & Associates, Inc., +1-612-861-7807,
+1-612-247-3079, sfedoruk@comcast.net, for Minnesota Historical Society

-------
Profile: intent