YFF Open Cinema launched

Al Capone is coming back to Yorkton.

Okay, there is considerable controversy over whether the notorious 1920s Chicago gangster ever actually visited Saskatchewan, much less Yorkton, but the province’s, and Yorkton’s link to Al’s illegal booze enterprise is pretty well-established.

To launch its 2016-2017 Open Cinema season, the Yorkton Film Festival (YFF) is screening the documentary Finding Al by Regina filmmaker Kelly-Anne Riess on October 11 at 7 p.m. at the Godfrey Dean Cultural Centre.

The film is a fascinating exploration of Sakatchewan’s and Manitoba’s link to the prohibition-era cross-border whiskey trade.

It features Yorkton locales and people including City of Yorkton historian Terri Lefebvre-Prince and Arliss Dellow, who will be on hand for a post-screening discussion.

Following Al, the YFF plans monthly screenings, except December, leading up to next May’s festival.

The selections include: Liberation of Holland (November 8), Human Library Stories (January 10), My Heart Attack and Thirst for Life (February 14) and Seven Minutes (March 7). There will also be a special screening April 19 for the Canadian National Day of Film featuring a yet-to-be-disclosed movie. This year the YFF featured Cas & Dylan, the 2013 comedy by Jason Priestly starring Richard Dreyfuss and Saskatchewan’s Tatiana Maslany, who just won an Emmy award for her role in the hit Canadian TV drama Orphan Black.

“Open Cinema has attracted a very strong local following,” said Randy Goulden, Yorkton Film Festival executive director. “People are very interested in seeing the films that we put on throughout the program, and we’re very delighted that the community comes out to show their support for great Canadian films.”

Entry to the screenings is free, as is the popcorn.