Homegrown Classic: Sweet Land Comes to the Walker for 20th-Anniversary Celebration
Join Filmmaker Ali Selim and Actor Alan Cumming for a Special Screening and In-Depth Conversation on the Legacy of Minnesota’s Definitive Immigrant Story
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of the theatrical release of Sweet Land, the Walker Art Center will host a special screening and live conversation honoring the beloved, homegrown independent film that captured the beauty, complexity, and quiet resilience of the American Midwest.
The anniversary program will feature a rare reunion with filmmaker Ali Selim, actors Alan Cumming and Tim Guinee, and Will Weaver, author of the original short story A Gravestone Made of Wheat, which inspired the film. Following the screening, the guests will participate in an in-depth conversation reflecting on the making of the film, its enduring resonance, and its place in Minnesota’s cultural imagination.
Set against the backdrop of rural Minnesota, Sweet Land tells a story that is both distinctly local and powerfully universal. Adapted from Weaver’s acclaimed short story, the film follows an immigrant woman whose arrival in a small farming community stirs suspicion, tenderness, and transformation. Twenty years after its release, the film’s portrait of identity, perseverance, and the struggle to preserve one’s roots in a changing world remains as timely as ever.
Filmed on location across southern Minnesota, Sweet Land is widely regarded as a cinematic love letter to the state’s farming communities, expansive landscapes, and immigrant heritage. With its painterly visuals and deeply human storytelling, the film explores the intimate intersection of migration, family legacy, land, and belonging.
Copresented with FilmNorth.
Ali Selim, Sweet Land, 2005. Image courtesy the artist.
TICKETS
Ordering tickets is easy: visit walkerart.org/tickets or call 612-375-7600. Box office is open Wednesday–Sunday and one hour before performances.
ACCESSIBILITY
For more information about accessibility, visit our accessibility page. For questions on accessibility or to request additional accommodations, call 612-375-7564 or email access@walkerart.org.
About the Walker Art Center
The Walker Art Center is a renowned multidisciplinary arts institution that presents, collects, and supports the creation of groundbreaking work across the visual and performing arts, moving image, and design. Guided by the belief that art has the power to bring joy and solace and the ability to unite people through dialogue and shared experiences, the Walker engages communities through a dynamic array of exhibitions, performances, events, and initiatives. Its multiacre campus includes 65,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space, the state-of-the-art McGuire Theater and Walker Cinema, and ample green space that connects with the adjoining Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. The Garden, a partnership with the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board, is one of the first urban sculpture parks of its kind in the United States and home to the beloved Twin Cities landmark Spoonbridge and Cherry by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. Recognized for its ambitious program and growing collection of more than 16,000 works, the Walker embraces emerging art forms and amplifies the work of artists from the Twin Cities and from across the country and the globe. Its broad spectrum of offerings makes it a lively and welcoming hub for artistic expression, creative innovation, and community connection.