Jatin Setia, Twin Cities Film Festival founder and executive director, on finding his smile and expanding opportunities for Minnesota filmmakers

Off the Record

Jatin Setia did not start in the business of film. The founder and executive director of Twin Cities Film Fest has always been a cinephile with an entrepreneurial bent, but early in his career, he worked in corporate America. It was a layoff during the Great Recession that gave him the opportunity to “find his smile,” as his wife put it.

“Growing up in India, one of my first-ever memories is going to a movie theatre with a thousand people (to) this big, Bollywood blockbuster,” Setia says in this fourth episode of Off the Record. “That to me was community. It didn’t matter what you did, we were all on this journey together for that three hours.” Setia was inspired by the idea of bringing community together, so he formed Twin Cities Film Fest in 2009.

In the episode, Setia speaks to MSPBJ Market President and Publisher Kathy Robideau and Platinum Bank President Dave Faust about how he built the Twin Cities Film Fest into what it is today — and what he learned along the way. Listen to learn more about:

• How Setia knew there was an appetite for a film fest in the Twin Cities.
• The process of curating a list of films from 800 submissions to 140 festival premieres.
• Ways the Twin Cities Film Fest gives access to Minnesota filmmakers and creators.
• Leaning into art and entertainment during the pandemic.
• The most successful or impactful Minnesota films.
• Where Setia might find his next “smile.”

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