Beloved actor Tom Skerritt gets a long-overdue leading role in S.J. Chiro’s adaptation of David Guterson’s best-selling novel
EAST OF THE MOUNTAINS will have its World Premiere April 8 at SIFF
Skerritt to be presented SIFF’s Outstanding
Achievement in Cinema Award April 15
Written and directed by S.J. Chiro
Starring: Tom Skerritt, Mira Sorvino, Annie Gonzalez, Wally Dalton
After decades of playing memorable supporting characters, beloved actor Tom Skeritt receives his first leading film role as Ben Givens, a retired heart surgeon and recent widower who learns he has terminal cancer. Determined to navigate his final days on his own terms, he shares the news with no one—not even his daughter (Mira Sorvino)—instead traveling back to his boyhood home in Eastern Washington with only his dog in tow. But the journey does not go as planned; the familiar landscape triggers memories and a connection with a kind stranger (Annie Gonzalez) inspires new insight. Based on David Guterson’s best-selling novel and unfolding against the scenic vistas of the Columbia Basin, this compelling character study offers a long-overdue showcase for one of cinema’s greatest treasures.
World Premiere: Seattle International Film Festival, April 8
Recipient: Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Award, Tom Skerritt, April 15
About Tom Skerritt
For over fifty years, Tom Skerritt has been captivating audiences worldwide. The acclaimed actor has left an indelible mark on the medium, having crafted some of film and television’s most memorable characters. Skerritt is known for iconic roles in films like M.A.S.H., Turning Point, Up In Smoke, The Dead Zone, Top Gun, Steel Magnolias, A River Runs Through It, Singles, The Rookie, Contact, Smoke Signals, and, of course, Ridley Scott’s Alien, which made its world premiere at the 4th annual Seattle International Film Festival in 1979. For his work in the 1993 -97 CBS series “Picket Fences,” he was recognized with the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.