Born in El Centro, California in the early 1970's, Mark and Michael Polish, identical twin brothers collectively known as the Polish Brothers, have made three critically lauded and award winning independent feature films. Upon the 1999 release of their first film, Twin Falls Idaho, Roger Ebert hailed it as "one of the best films of the year." And Janet Maslin of the New York Times said, "Twin Falls Idaho has style, gravity and originality to spare." Winner of the 2001 Independent Spirit Award's John Cassavete's Best Independent Film Award, and the 2001 Seattle International Film Festival's New American Cinema Award, for their second film, Jackpot, the Polish Brothers have become key-figures in the independent film world. Their third film, Northfork, (starring James woods and Nick Nolte) was chosen as an early selection by the Sundance Film Festival and garnered rave critical reviews; Roger Ebert called it "a masterpiece."