MOVIES | Talking with Linda Blackaby, chief programmer of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival

The 28th annual Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF) is only a week away; it runs Thursday, April 15 through Friday, April 30. We'll be taking a closer look at not only the 140+ films screening from over 50 countries, but a few key staff members working behind the scenes. We started last week with an interview with festival coordinator Ryan Oestrich. The second of our three interviews is with Linda Blackaby, chief film programmer for MSPIFF this year.

Blackaby is an internationally respected film curator who most recently was the director of programming of the San Francisco Film Society and San Francisco International Film Festival from 2001-2009. Before San Francisco, Blackaby was also the founding director of the very successful Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema. This is Blackaby's first year as a programmer for MSPIFF, and she comes to the festival with more than 20 years of experience. The first half of this interview focuses on Linda's history and career as a film curator along with her work for MSPIFF this year; we then delve in to some specific films at this year's festival.

Press the play button below to hear the interview.

Erik McClanahan

Erik McClanahan is a freelance film journalist and critic in Minneapolis. He is also co-host of KFAI's Movie Talk.

Jim Brunzell III

Jim Brunzell III (djguamwins@yahoo.com) writes on film for the Daily Planet, programs Sound Unseen Music/Film/Art festival and hosts KFAI's Cinema Shanty, which airs Friday morning.