Wenatchee Valley College at Omak presents 12th Annual Omak Film Festival

Media Contact: Livia Millard, WVC at Omak multicultural coordinator/academic adviser, 509.422.7814, or Libby Siebens, community relations executive director, 509.682.6436 (Mon. – Thurs.)

Wenatchee Valley College at Omak student government has partnered with the Omak and Mirage Theaters to present the 12th Annual Omak Film Festival from Feb. 19 to March 12. The films being featured include Boyhood, Whiplash, Theory of Everything, Selma, Birdman and The Imitation Game.

The goal of the partnership is to bring films that would not make it to the Okanogan—films that are riveting, captivating, educational and entertaining, said Livia Millard, WVC at Omak multicultural coordinator.

Boyhood (PG 13) will play Feb. 19 to Feb. 21. Filmed over 12 years with the same cast, Boyhood is a groundbreaking story of growing up as seen through the eyes of a child named Mason, who literally grows up on screen before our eyes. Boyhood charts the rocky terrain of childhood like no other film has before. The film received a Best Picture nomination and features Ellar Coltrane, Ethan Hawke (Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination) and Patricia Arquette (Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination).

Whiplash (R) will play Feb. 22 to Feb. 25. A promising young drummer enrolls at a cutthroat music conservatory where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will stop at nothing to realize a student's potential. The film has been nominated for a Best Picture Oscar award and features Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons and Melissa Benoist.

Theory of Everything (PG 13) will play Feb. 26 to Feb. 28. This is a story about the most brilliant and celebrated physicist of our time, Stephen Hawking, and Jane Wilde, the arts student he fell in love with while studying at Cambridge in the 1960s. The film is up for a Best Picture nomination and features Eddie Redmayne (Best Actor Oscar nomination), Felicity Jones (Best Actress Oscar nomination) and Tom Prior.

Selma (PG) will play March 1 to March 4. It is an unforgettable true story that chronicles the tumultuous three-month period in 1965, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The picture has received a Best Picture nomination and features David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo and Tim Roth.

Birdman (R) will play March 5 to March 7. It is about an actor, who once played an iconic superhero, battling his ego and attempts to recover his family, his career and himself in the days leading up to the opening of a Broadway play. The picture is up for a Best Picture nomination and features Michael Keaton (Best Actor Oscar nomination), Zach Galifianakis and Edward Norton (Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination).

The Imitation Game (PG 13) will play March 8 to March 12. Based on a real life story of Alan Turing, the film portrays the nail-biting race against time by Turing and his brilliant team of code-breakers at Britain's top-secret Government Code and Cypher School during the darkest day of World War II. The picture has received a Best Picture nomination and features Benedict Cumberbatch (Best Actor Oscar nomination), Keira Knightley (Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination) and Mathew Goode.

Admission is $9.00 for adults and $6.50 for children under 11. Discount matinees are $6.50 for all ages. WVC at Omak students with current student ID will be admitted free with one guest to these films.

To determine which theater the films will be shown in, visit www.omaktheater.com or call the Omak Theater, 509.826.0860 or the Mirage Theater, 509.826.1615.

The film festival is sponsored by the Omak and Mirage Theaters and the Associated Students of Wenatchee Valley College at Omak.