The theme behind the fourth annual Minnesota Film Festival might not seem obvious when looking through the lineup. The selections represent a variety of genres and were submitted and scouted from local, national and international filmmakers. Still, there’s a certain something that connects them.

“The goal, to put it simply, is to inspire difficult conversations and find that common ground between groups of people, where they may not have realized there is that common ground,” said Vera Bianchini, the festival’s director.

Duluth nonprofit Zeitgeist is the organization behind the event, which runs March 19-23 with an array of films that highlight humanity and intimate relationships through engaging characters. Additional events include a pitch competition, improv show, table read, happy hour and dance party.

Screening locations are Zeitgeist Zinema and Teatro, the Dr. Robert Powless Cultural Center and the St. Louis County Depot.

The opening night showing on Wednesday is Mississippi Speed Record, a documentary film about four paddlers beating the world record for paddling the Mississippi River. Directors Alex Maier and Amy Robin-Maier will attend the screening, as will the paddlers and crew.

Mississippi Speed Record follows paddlers Wally Werderich (left), Scott Miller (right), Judson Steinback and Paul Cox. Image courtesy zeitgeistarts.com.

The film is an adrenaline ride, following paddlers throughout all of their highest and lowest moments. The documentary crew followed the paddlers on a support boat and onshore, trying to be in all places at once. “We never really left their side,” said Robin-Maier.

Despite the film being about a physical journey, it’s also about the relationships between the cast and crew members.

“Although this movie is about the paddlers, everybody on this journey came together as one,” Robin-Maier said. “We see nature and adventures in nature as a good way to learn how to live life. So there’s a lot of life lessons that come out of this movie and the paddlers are pretty good at explaining those things.”

The 2003 documentary Venus of Mars shows on Thursday. It follows Duluth native Venus de Mars, leader of the glam punk band All the Pretty Horses, and her journey of transitioning genders, as well as her relationship with her partner. Director Emily Goldberg and film subjects Venus de Mars and Lynette Reini-Grandell will attend.

Venus of Mars documents Venus de Mars’ (right) gender transition and her relationship with her partner Lynette Reini-Grandell (left). Image courtesy zeitgeistarts.com.

“Venus was convinced it was a story about the band, and she was super excited about that, but I kept saying, ‘Yes the band is part of this, but the key part of this story, is you, your transition, and your love story with Lynette and how you’ve navigated gender identity change throughout a relationship,’” Goldberg said.

Though the film came out two decades ago, its message remains relevant.

“I feel like that is the lasting legacy of the film for me, is how it connected people who might not otherwise not be connected, and open the world up for people who hadn’t had the experience of knowing what a trans life is like,” Goldberg said.

“I’m really happy it’s being seen again by a new generation because I feel like it still has a lot to say.”

Afterward, Venus de Mars gives an acoustic performance in the Zeitgeist Teatro and then the party moves to Flame Nightclub with karaoke and dancing.

Showing on Saturday is Ultimate Citizens, a documentary about Jamshid Khajavi, an Iranian-American immigrant who is a counselor at an inner-city school in Seattle. The students are facing various challenges and Jamshid brings them together through ultimate frisbee.

Jamshid Khajavi (left) couches ultimate frisbee in the documentary film Ultimate Citizens. Image courtesy zeitgeistarts.com.

“He uses ultimate frisbee like group therapy. He facilitates it. Things are always happening, there’s always some kind of movement and some kind of growth happening in the game,” director Francine Strickwerda said.

“It’s an underdog story, and people love an underdog, they want to root for the underdog. And Jamshid is an underdog. He shares in common with these families an experience of leaving his own country and finding a new way to live, and people don’t necessarily want to do that … It’s hard, it’s really hard.”

The students start the year with their “elbows out,” and Jamshid manages to rally them together.

“I think everybody has felt left out, so I was looking for these universal truths, and I think I found a way to shape a story that’s also a satisfying story,” Strickwerda said.

Ultimate Citizens has won 20 awards so far, and a campaign is in the works to reach students across the country through screenings and guest speakers.

The short film Expanding Sanctuary accompanies Ultimate Citizens, playing directly before it. It follows Linda Hernandez, an immigrant mother who becomes a community leader during the fight to end Philadelphia police’s data-sharing with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Expanding Sanctuary stars Linda Hernandez (left) and her activism to end Philadelphia police’s data-sharing with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Image courtesy zeitgeistarts.com.

“I thought that this film wouldn’t be relevant anymore, after we finished it in 2023. Unfortunately, just a few years later it’s just as relevant if not even more relevant as a cautionary tale, and also as a roadmap toward success trying to change legislation locally,” director Kristal Sotomayer said.

At the heart of the story is the relationship between activist Linda Hernandez and her daughters.

“We get a really beautiful glimpse into her life, and we see how this policy has affected her deeply. But yet she’s found a lot of love through it and she’s built a beautiful family through it, too,” Sotomayer said.

“I think there’s a lot of sad stories about immigration out there, but I think this is one that is more centered around joy.”

Boundary Waters screens on both Saturday and Sunday. The film is a coming of age story about a boy whose mother experiences abuse, and how he navigates understanding it. Producer Erin Miller and actor Allison Miller will attend the Saturday showing.

Starring Etienne Kellici (left), Boundary Waters captures a young boy’s coming of age story. Image courtesy zeitgeistarts.com.

“We really have not seen the specific experience of a young boy with his mother being harmed, and the misunderstandings he has on the way to understanding,” director and writer Tessa Blake said. “You can grow through things, you can’t ever go back to something. And that’s the essence of the coming of age story, that’s the essence of going through the threshold of childhood to adulthood, is that moment.”

The film has garnered many positive reactions, especially from male viewers.

“There is a lot of beautiful masculine emotion in this movie that makes it extremely relatable to men,” producer Erin Miller said.

Dispersed throughout the weekend are horror shorts, animated short films, an improv show, happy hour and more.

“Everybody is welcome, but I’m especially like ‘you should be involved, you should be a storyteller, you should be a filmmaker, you should be a storyteller in some way’ because this is your opportunity to have a voice and have people listen to you … So you’ll see a lot of those themes in our program, it’s a lot of those challenging conversations followed by inspirational calls to action,” Bianchini said.

General all access passes to the Minnesota Film Festival are $95, with tickets to singular showings costing $15 to $20.