San Francisco Jewish Film Festival Announces New Executive Director

Oct 24, 2011

Press release: The San Francisco Jewish Film Festival announced its new Executive Director: Lexi Leban, who begins working with the festival November 7, 2011. A longtime member of the Bay Area film community, Lexi has worked in all aspects of film, from production to distribution. She’s also worked with numerous film festivals, including the Mill Valley Film Festival, the San Francisco International Film Festival, and the Global Social Change Film Festival in Bali. Lexi is currently Academic Director of the Digital Filmmaking & Video Production Program at the Art Institute of California, where she built the department from its inception. Her most recent feature documentary, Girl Trouble, which follows young girls in San Francisco’s juvenile justice system, aired on PBS’s acclaimed series Independent Lens in January of 2006, and won Best Bay Area Documentary at the San Francisco International Film Festival. More at sfjff.org.

Guy Maddin: Ann Savage and the Osmonds

Johnny Ray Huston
Sep 23, 2011

Guy Maddin talks about movies, writing, himself—and the allure of the Osmonds, re-published on the occasion of Fandor's Maddin blogathon.

Guy Maddin: Ann Savage and the Osmonds

Johnny Ray Huston
Sep 23, 2011

Guy Maddin talks about movies, writing, himself—and the allure of the Osmonds, re-published on the occasion of Fandor's Maddin blogathon.

Guy Maddin: Ann Savage and the Osmonds

Johnny Ray Huston
Sep 23, 2011

Guy Maddin talks about movies, writing, himself—and the allure of the Osmonds, re-published on the occasion of Fandor's Maddin blogathon.

Guy Maddin: Ann Savage and the Osmonds

Johnny Ray Huston
Sep 23, 2011

Guy Maddin talks about movies, writing, himself—and the allure of the Osmonds, re-published on the occasion of Fandor's Maddin blogathon.

Graham Leggat: Filmmakers, Writers, Fans Remember

Susan Gerhard
Aug 30, 2011

When news of San Francisco Executive Director Graham Leggat’s passing hit the web, responses were heartfelt and immediate. SF360 collects a few of those thoughts.

Graham Leggat: Filmmakers, Writers, Fans Remember

Susan Gerhard
Aug 30, 2011

When news of San Francisco Executive Director Graham Leggat’s passing hit the web, responses were heartfelt and immediate. SF360 collects a few of those thoughts.

Graham Leggat: Filmmakers, Writers, Fans Remember

Susan Gerhard
Aug 30, 2011

When news of San Francisco Executive Director Graham Leggat’s passing hit the web, responses were heartfelt and immediate. SF360 collects a few of those thoughts.

Graham Leggat and a Film Society Transformed

Susan Gerhard
Aug 26, 2011

Leggat’s eventful six-year tenure with the San Francisco Film Society changed an institution as well as the filmmaking landscape in the Bay Area and beyond.

Graham Leggat and a Film Society Transformed

Susan Gerhard
Aug 26, 2011

Leggat’s eventful six-year tenure with the San Francisco Film Society changed an institution as well as the filmmaking landscape in the Bay Area and beyond.

Graham Leggat and a Film Society Transformed

Susan Gerhard
Aug 26, 2011

Leggat’s eventful six-year tenure with the San Francisco Film Society changed an institution as well as the filmmaking landscape in the Bay Area and beyond.

Graham Leggat, 1960-2011

Susan Gerhard
Aug 25, 2011

Graham Leggat (b. March 12, 1960), executive director of the San Francisco Film Society, died at his San Francisco home on August 25, 2011, after an 18-month battle with cancer. He was 51.

Graham Leggat, 1960-2011

Susan Gerhard
Aug 25, 2011

Graham Leggat (b. March 12, 1960), executive director of the San Francisco Film Society, died at his San Francisco home on August 25, 2011, after an 18-month battle with cancer. He was 51.

Graham Leggat, 1960-2011

Susan Gerhard
Aug 25, 2011

Graham Leggat (b. March 12, 1960), executive director of the San Francisco Film Society, died at his San Francisco home on August 25, 2011, after an 18-month battle with cancer. He was 51.

Miranda July Throws Cautionary Tale to the Wind with ‘The Future’

Sean Uyehara
Aug 8, 2011

The filmmaker talks about time, life, storytelling and her new film, ‘The Future.’

Miranda July Throws Cautionary Tale to the Wind with ‘The Future’

Sean Uyehara
Aug 8, 2011

The filmmaker talks about time, life, storytelling and her new film, ‘The Future.’

Miranda July Throws Cautionary Tale to the Wind with ‘The Future’

Sean Uyehara
Aug 8, 2011

The filmmaker talks about time, life, storytelling and her new film, ‘The Future.’

Yoav Potash Takes 'Crime's' Case to Larger Audience

Judy Stone
Aug 1, 2011

Deborah Peagler's case in 'Crime After Crime' gets its time in court and on screen, with moving results.

Yoav Potash Takes 'Crime's' Case to Larger Audience

Judy Stone
Aug 1, 2011

Deborah Peagler's case in 'Crime After Crime' gets its time in court and on screen, with moving results.

Yoav Potash Takes 'Crime's' Case to Larger Audience

Judy Stone
Aug 1, 2011

Deborah Peagler's case in 'Crime After Crime' gets its time in court and on screen, with moving results.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Fassbinder's Funky Futurism Speaks to the Moment

Dennis Harvey
Jul 26, 2011

Fassbinder's retro-chic, thought-provoking 'World on a Wire' finds the 'future' is now.

Graham Leggat Steps Down as Executive Director of San Francisco Film Society

Jul 5, 2011

Film Society’s leader for more than five years resigns due to health issues.

Graham Leggat Steps Down as Executive Director of San Francisco Film Society

Jul 5, 2011

Film Society’s leader for more than five years resigns due to health issues.

Graham Leggat Steps Down as Executive Director of San Francisco Film Society

Jul 5, 2011

Film Society’s leader for more than five years resigns due to health issues.

Graham Leggat Steps Down as Executive Director of San Francisco Film Society

Jul 5, 2011

Film Society’s leader for more than five years resigns due to health issues.

Graham Leggat Steps Down as Executive Director of San Francisco Film Society

Jul 5, 2011

Film Society’s leader for more than five years resigns due to health issues.

Graham Leggat Steps Down as Executive Director of San Francisco Film Society

Jul 5, 2011

Film Society’s leader for more than five years resigns due to health issues.

Hong Takes New Tack with 'Oki's Movie'

Adam Hartzell
Jun 24, 2011

Hong Sang-soo's latest leaves us with an awkward ambivalence that resonates long after the film is finished.

Hong Takes New Tack with 'Oki's Movie'

Adam Hartzell
Jun 24, 2011

Hong Sang-soo's latest leaves us with an awkward ambivalence that resonates long after the film is finished.

Hong Takes New Tack with 'Oki's Movie'

Adam Hartzell
Jun 24, 2011

Hong Sang-soo's latest leaves us with an awkward ambivalence that resonates long after the film is finished.

SF Film Society Signs Lease on New Theatrical Home

Jun 23, 2011

SFFS to offer daily, year-round programming, classes and events in dedicated state-of-the-art theater for the first time in its 54-year history. The San Francisco Film Society and New People today announced significant news for Bay Area filmgoers: the signing of a lease that brings the Film Society’s exhibition, education and filmmaker services programs and events to one primary theater on a daily, year-round basis, beginning in September. The San Francisco Film Society | New People Cinema opens its doors in September in the state-of-the art...

SF Film Society Signs Lease on New Theatrical Home

Jun 23, 2011

SFFS to offer daily, year-round programming, classes and events in dedicated state-of-the-art theater for the first time in its 54-year history. The San Francisco Film Society and New People today announced significant news for Bay Area filmgoers: the signing of a lease that brings the Film Society’s exhibition, education and filmmaker services programs and events to one primary theater on a daily, year-round basis, beginning in September. The San Francisco Film Society | New People Cinema opens its doors in September in the state-of-the art...

SF Film Society Signs Lease on New Theatrical Home

Jun 23, 2011

SFFS to offer daily, year-round programming, classes and events in dedicated state-of-the-art theater for the first time in its 54-year history. The San Francisco Film Society and New People today announced significant news for Bay Area filmgoers: the signing of a lease that brings the Film Society’s exhibition, education and filmmaker services programs and events to one primary theater on a daily, year-round basis, beginning in September. The San Francisco Film Society | New People Cinema opens its doors in September in the state-of-the art...

Park Jung-bum Offers Notes on his Unique POV

Adam Hartzell
May 16, 2011

The director of South Korean film 'The Journals of Musan,' a prize winner at SFIFF54, speaks about bringing cinematic light to social darkness.

Park Jung-bum Offers Notes on his Unique POV

Adam Hartzell
May 16, 2011

The director of South Korean film 'The Journals of Musan,' a prize winner at SFIFF54, speaks about bringing cinematic light to social darkness.

Park Jung-bum Offers Notes on his Unique POV

Adam Hartzell
May 16, 2011

The director of South Korean film 'The Journals of Musan,' a prize winner at SFIFF54, speaks about bringing cinematic light to social darkness.

Park Jung-bum Offers Notes on his Unique POV

Adam Hartzell
May 16, 2011

The director of South Korean film 'The Journals of Musan,' a prize winner at SFIFF54, speaks about bringing cinematic light to social darkness.

Park Jung-bum Offers Notes on his Unique POV

Adam Hartzell
May 16, 2011

The director of South Korean film 'The Journals of Musan,' a prize winner at SFIFF54, speaks about bringing cinematic light to social darkness.

Park Jung-bum Offers Notes on his Unique POV

Adam Hartzell
May 16, 2011

The director of South Korean film 'The Journals of Musan,' a prize winner at SFIFF54, speaks about bringing cinematic light to social darkness.

'Meek's Cutoff' a Minimalist Masterpiece

Michael Read
May 7, 2011

Kelly Reichardt creates a moving meditation on open space with 'Meek's Cutoff.'

'Meek's Cutoff' a Minimalist Masterpiece

Michael Read
May 7, 2011

Kelly Reichardt creates a moving meditation on open space with 'Meek's Cutoff.'

'Meek's Cutoff' a Minimalist Masterpiece

Michael Read
May 7, 2011

Kelly Reichardt creates a moving meditation on open space with 'Meek's Cutoff.'

SFIFF54 Golden Gate Award Winners Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2011

Cash prizes, recognition showered on the winning filmmakers of 2011 San Francisco International. The San Francisco International Film Festival presented its 2011 Golden Gate Awards to filmmakers Wednesday night at Temple Nightclub/Prana Restaurant. Kelly Duane de la Vega and Katie Galloway's Better This World won both Documentary Feature and Bay Area Documentary awards. Yoav Potash's Crime After Crime received the Investigative Documentary prize. Park Jung-bum's The Journals of Musan won the New Directors award. A complete list...

SFIFF54 Golden Gate Award Winners Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2011

Cash prizes, recognition showered on the winning filmmakers of 2011 San Francisco International. The San Francisco International Film Festival presented its 2011 Golden Gate Awards to filmmakers Wednesday night at Temple Nightclub/Prana Restaurant. Kelly Duane de la Vega and Katie Galloway's Better This World won both Documentary Feature and Bay Area Documentary awards. Yoav Potash's Crime After Crime received the Investigative Documentary prize. Park Jung-bum's The Journals of Musan won the New Directors award. A complete list...

SFIFF54 Golden Gate Award Winners Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2011

Cash prizes, recognition showered on the winning filmmakers of 2011 San Francisco International. The San Francisco International Film Festival presented its 2011 Golden Gate Awards to filmmakers Wednesday night at Temple Nightclub/Prana Restaurant. Kelly Duane de la Vega and Katie Galloway's Better This World won both Documentary Feature and Bay Area Documentary awards. Yoav Potash's Crime After Crime received the Investigative Documentary prize. Park Jung-bum's The Journals of Musan won the New Directors award. A complete list...

SFIFF54 Golden Gate Award Winners Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2011

Cash prizes, recognition showered on the winning filmmakers of 2011 San Francisco International. The San Francisco International Film Festival presented its 2011 Golden Gate Awards to filmmakers Wednesday night at Temple Nightclub/Prana Restaurant. Kelly Duane de la Vega and Katie Galloway's Better This World won both Documentary Feature and Bay Area Documentary awards. Yoav Potash's Crime After Crime received the Investigative Documentary prize. Park Jung-bum's The Journals of Musan won the New Directors award. A complete list...

SFIFF Brings in Burlesque as Closer

Stephanie Rosenbaum
May 4, 2011

Cabaret New Burlesque gets the French art-house treatment with ‘On Tour.’

SFIFF Brings in Burlesque as Closer

Stephanie Rosenbaum
May 4, 2011

Cabaret New Burlesque gets the French art-house treatment with ‘On Tour.’

SFIFF Brings in Burlesque as Closer

Stephanie Rosenbaum
May 4, 2011

Cabaret New Burlesque gets the French art-house treatment with ‘On Tour.’

SFIFF Brings in Burlesque as Closer

Stephanie Rosenbaum
May 4, 2011

Cabaret New Burlesque gets the French art-house treatment with ‘On Tour.’

SFIFF Brings in Burlesque as Closer

Stephanie Rosenbaum
May 4, 2011

Cabaret New Burlesque gets the French art-house treatment with ‘On Tour.’

SFIFF Brings in Burlesque as Closer

Stephanie Rosenbaum
May 4, 2011

Cabaret New Burlesque gets the French art-house treatment with ‘On Tour.’

Frank Pierson, 'These Amazing Shadows' Offer Inspiration

Michael Fox
May 3, 2011

Screenwriter Frank Pierson talks production at SFIFF54; Bay Area-made 'These Amazing Shadows' screens after the Festival closes.

Frank Pierson, 'These Amazing Shadows' Offer Inspiration

Michael Fox
May 3, 2011

Screenwriter Frank Pierson talks production at SFIFF54; Bay Area-made 'These Amazing Shadows' screens after the Festival closes.

Frank Pierson, 'These Amazing Shadows' Offer Inspiration

Michael Fox
May 3, 2011

Screenwriter Frank Pierson talks production at SFIFF54; Bay Area-made 'These Amazing Shadows' screens after the Festival closes.

Unrestrained at SFIFF54, Barney Offers Live Insight

Robert Avila
May 2, 2011

Matthew Barney talks art, sports and spectacle at the Sundance Kabuki.

Unrestrained at SFIFF54, Barney Offers Live Insight

Robert Avila
May 2, 2011

Matthew Barney talks art, sports and spectacle at the Sundance Kabuki.

Unrestrained at SFIFF54, Barney Offers Live Insight

Robert Avila
May 2, 2011

Matthew Barney talks art, sports and spectacle at the Sundance Kabuki.

Snapshots Reveal Personal Side of SFIFF54

Michael Read, editor
May 1, 2011

Writers for the Festival’s daily ‘Scoop’ capture live director-audience interactions.

Snapshots Reveal Personal Side of SFIFF54

Michael Read, editor
May 1, 2011

Writers for the Festival’s daily ‘Scoop’ capture live director-audience interactions.

Snapshots Reveal Personal Side of SFIFF54

Michael Read, editor
May 1, 2011

Writers for the Festival’s daily ‘Scoop’ capture live director-audience interactions.

SFIFF54 Embraces Barney's Unique POV

Carmen Winant
Apr 30, 2011

In a quarter century of filmmaking feats, persistence and vision are defining qualities for Matthew Barney.

SFIFF54 Embraces Barney's Unique POV

Carmen Winant
Apr 30, 2011

In a quarter century of filmmaking feats, persistence and vision are defining qualities for Matthew Barney.

SFIFF54 Embraces Barney's Unique POV

Carmen Winant
Apr 30, 2011

In a quarter century of filmmaking feats, persistence and vision are defining qualities for Matthew Barney.

SFIFF Centerpiece: ‘Terri’

Apr 30, 2011

San Francisco International Film Festival’s 2011 Centerpiece selection, ‘Terri,’ featuring John C. Reilly as a vice principle who befriends an insecure junior high student, plays at Sundance Kabuki Cinemas with director Azazel Jacobs and actor Jacob Wysocki in attendance. The evening’s after party is at Clift's Velvet Room. More at fest11.sffs.org.

SFIFF54 Embraces Barney's Unique POV

Carmen Winant
Apr 30, 2011

In a quarter century of filmmaking feats, persistence and vision are defining qualities for Matthew Barney.

SFIFF54 Embraces Barney's Unique POV

Carmen Winant
Apr 30, 2011

In a quarter century of filmmaking feats, persistence and vision are defining qualities for Matthew Barney.

SFIFF54 Embraces Barney's Unique POV

Carmen Winant
Apr 30, 2011

In a quarter century of filmmaking feats, persistence and vision are defining qualities for Matthew Barney.

Film Society Awards Night Shines Light on ’70s, City

Susan Gerhard
Apr 29, 2011

Beginnings, endings and the dazzling cinema in between honored in SFFS's annual awards show.

Film Society Awards Night Shines Light on ’70s, City

Susan Gerhard
Apr 29, 2011

Beginnings, endings and the dazzling cinema in between honored in SFFS's annual awards show.

Film Society Awards Night Shines Light on ’70s, City

Susan Gerhard
Apr 29, 2011

Beginnings, endings and the dazzling cinema in between honored in SFFS's annual awards show.

Stone not Cold in Castro Conversation

Dennis Harvey
Apr 28, 2011

Oliver Stone reflects on his own heated past, and the world’s, as he accepts the Founder’s Directing Award onstage at the Castro Theatre during SFIFF54.

Stone not Cold in Castro Conversation

Dennis Harvey
Apr 28, 2011

Oliver Stone reflects on his own heated past, and the world’s, as he accepts the Founder’s Directing Award onstage at the Castro Theatre during SFIFF54.

Stone not Cold in Castro Conversation

Dennis Harvey
Apr 28, 2011

Oliver Stone reflects on his own heated past, and the world’s, as he accepts the Founder’s Directing Award onstage at the Castro Theatre during SFIFF54.

Stone not Cold in Castro Conversation

Dennis Harvey
Apr 28, 2011

Oliver Stone reflects on his own heated past, and the world’s, as he accepts the Founder’s Directing Award onstage at the Castro Theatre during SFIFF54.

Stone not Cold in Castro Conversation

Dennis Harvey
Apr 28, 2011

Oliver Stone reflects on his own heated past, and the world’s, as he accepts the Founder’s Directing Award onstage at the Castro Theatre during SFIFF54.

Stone not Cold in Castro Conversation

Dennis Harvey
Apr 28, 2011

Oliver Stone reflects on his own heated past, and the world’s, as he accepts the Founder’s Directing Award onstage at the Castro Theatre during SFIFF54.

Bay Area Doc-makers of SFIFF54 Map Future

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2011

The region's nonfiction filmmakers consider next steps after their SFIFF debuts.

Bay Area Doc-makers of SFIFF54 Map Future

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2011

The region's nonfiction filmmakers consider next steps after their SFIFF debuts.

Bay Area Doc-makers of SFIFF54 Map Future

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2011

The region's nonfiction filmmakers consider next steps after their SFIFF debuts.

Bay Area Doc-makers of SFIFF54 Map Future

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2011

The region's nonfiction filmmakers consider next steps after their SFIFF debuts.

Bay Area Doc-makers of SFIFF54 Map Future

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2011

The region's nonfiction filmmakers consider next steps after their SFIFF debuts.

Bay Area Doc-makers of SFIFF54 Map Future

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2011

The region's nonfiction filmmakers consider next steps after their SFIFF debuts.

SFIFF Joins Festival Scope

Apr 25, 2011

Press release: The San Francisco International Film Festival (April 21 - May 5) announced that the Festival has been invited to join Festival Scope, a new Internet platform that allows programming of selected film festivals to be viewed online by film professionals around the world. More at sffs.org.

Terence Stamp Honored with Owens Award

Dennis Harvey
Apr 25, 2011

Terence Stamp has treated acting not as a job, but as a restless quest for new frontiers.

Terence Stamp Honored with Owens Award

Dennis Harvey
Apr 25, 2011

Terence Stamp has treated acting not as a job, but as a restless quest for new frontiers.

Terence Stamp Honored with Owens Award

Dennis Harvey
Apr 25, 2011

Terence Stamp has treated acting not as a job, but as a restless quest for new frontiers.

Explosive Actors, Anecdotes Light Up SFIFF54’s Midnight Awards

Kim Nunley
Apr 24, 2011

Zoe Saldana and Clifton Collins, Jr., share candid thoughts with a raucous audience.

Explosive Actors, Anecdotes Light Up SFIFF54’s Midnight Awards

Kim Nunley
Apr 24, 2011

Zoe Saldana and Clifton Collins, Jr., share candid thoughts with a raucous audience.

Explosive Actors, Anecdotes Light Up SFIFF54’s Midnight Awards

Kim Nunley
Apr 24, 2011

Zoe Saldana and Clifton Collins, Jr., share candid thoughts with a raucous audience.

Explosive Actors, Anecdotes Light Up SFIFF54’s Midnight Awards

Kim Nunley
Apr 24, 2011

Zoe Saldana and Clifton Collins, Jr., share candid thoughts with a raucous audience.

Explosive Actors, Anecdotes Light Up SFIFF54’s Midnight Awards

Kim Nunley
Apr 24, 2011

Zoe Saldana and Clifton Collins, Jr., share candid thoughts with a raucous audience.

Explosive Actors, Anecdotes Light Up SFIFF54’s Midnight Awards

Kim Nunley
Apr 24, 2011

Zoe Saldana and Clifton Collins, Jr., share candid thoughts with a raucous audience.

SFIFF54's 'Beginners' Brings Surprises

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2011

Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor lit up the Castro on San Francisco International's opening night.

SFIFF54's 'Beginners' Brings Surprises

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2011

Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor lit up the Castro on San Francisco International's opening night.

SFIFF54's 'Beginners' Brings Surprises

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2011

Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor lit up the Castro on San Francisco International's opening night.

SFIFF54's 'Beginners' Brings Surprises

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2011

Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor lit up the Castro on San Francisco International's opening night.

SFIFF54's 'Beginners' Brings Surprises

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2011

Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor lit up the Castro on San Francisco International's opening night.

SFIFF54's 'Beginners' Brings Surprises

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2011

Mike Mills and Ewan McGregor lit up the Castro on San Francisco International's opening night.

Terence Stamp to Receive Peter J. Owens Award at 54th San Francisco International Film Festival

Apr 22, 2011

Press release: The San Francisco Film Society announced today that Terence Stamp will be the recipient of the Peter J. Owens Award at the 54th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 21–May 5). The Owens Award, named for the longtime San Francisco benefactor of arts and charitable organizations and Film Society board member, honors an actor whose work exemplifies brilliance, independence and integrity. The award will be presented to Stamp at Film Society Awards Night, Thursday, April 28 at Bimbo’s 365 Club. More at fest11.sffs.org.

SFIFF54 Finds Life Among the Ruins

Matt Sussman
Apr 21, 2011

As the San Francisco International Film Festival opens, key films consider the value of place.

SFIFF54 Finds Life Among the Ruins

Matt Sussman
Apr 21, 2011

As the San Francisco International Film Festival opens, key films consider the value of place.

SFIFF54 Finds Life Among the Ruins

Matt Sussman
Apr 21, 2011

As the San Francisco International Film Festival opens, key films consider the value of place.

San Francisco International Opens

Apr 21, 2011

The 54th San Francisco International Film Festival opens with a film about fresh starts, in the form of a 75-year-old living life romantically, possibly for the first time, in Mike Mills' 'Beginners.' One can't go wrong with a cast featuring Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer and Melanie Laurent. Better: Mills and McGregor are present. A party follows at Terra Gallery. More at fest.sffs.org.

SFIFF54 Finds Life Among the Ruins

Matt Sussman
Apr 21, 2011

As the San Francisco International Film Festival opens, key films consider the value of place.

SFIFF54 Finds Life Among the Ruins

Matt Sussman
Apr 21, 2011

As the San Francisco International Film Festival opens, key films consider the value of place.

SFIFF54 Finds Life Among the Ruins

Matt Sussman
Apr 21, 2011

As the San Francisco International Film Festival opens, key films consider the value of place.

Looking for the Moral with Bill Nichols

Michael Fox
Apr 20, 2011

Social-justice filmmaking gets discussed in a Bill Nichols'-moderated salon during SFIFF.

Looking for the Moral with Bill Nichols

Michael Fox
Apr 20, 2011

Social-justice filmmaking gets discussed in a Bill Nichols'-moderated salon during SFIFF.

Looking for the Moral with Bill Nichols

Michael Fox
Apr 20, 2011

Social-justice filmmaking gets discussed in a Bill Nichols'-moderated salon during SFIFF.

Production Values: Debbie Brubaker

Adrianne Anderson
Apr 19, 2011

A veteran producer talks about the art, craft and industry behind her work.

Production Values: Debbie Brubaker

Adrianne Anderson
Apr 19, 2011

A veteran producer talks about the art, craft and industry behind her work.

Production Values: Debbie Brubaker

Adrianne Anderson
Apr 19, 2011

A veteran producer talks about the art, craft and industry behind her work.

On Producing Killer Films

Dennis Harvey
Apr 18, 2011

Christine Vachon examines her varied indie successes while offering notes on the world of change engulfing cinema.

On Producing Killer Films

Dennis Harvey
Apr 18, 2011

Christine Vachon examines her varied indie successes while offering notes on the world of change engulfing cinema.

On Producing Killer Films

Dennis Harvey
Apr 18, 2011

Christine Vachon examines her varied indie successes while offering notes on the world of change engulfing cinema.

Afterimage: The Films of Patricio Guzmán

Apr 16, 2011

Pacific Film Archive's Patricio Guzmán series continues with ‘The Pinochet Case’ and ‘Chile, Obstinate Memory.’ Later this month, Guzman's latest, a poignant and provocative reflection called 'Nostalgia for the Light,' closes the collection and screens as part of the San Francisco International Film Festival, April 26 and 28. More at bampfa.berkeley.edu and fest11.sffs.org.

SFIFF Presents Midnight Award to Clifton Collins, Jr., Zoe Saldana

Apr 16, 2011

The 54th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 21 - May 5) announced that Clifton Collins Jr. will be honored at the fourth Midnight Awards, 10:30 pm, Saturday, April 23 at the W San Francisco. The Midnight Awards takes the form of a late night talk show, hosted by Beth Lisick, New York Times best-selling author and coorganizer of the Porchlight Storytelling Series, with live musical accompaniment by the Darren Johnston Trio. Lisick will interview Collins and his previously announced Midnight Award corecipient Zoe Saldana. Clips of their work will be shown prior to the presentation of the awards. More at fest11.sffs.org.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Swimming in the Deep End of San Francisco International Film Festival

Max Goldberg
Apr 15, 2011

Films in the 54th SFIFF immerse viewers in distant times, unique places.

Film Globally, Screen Locally

Michael Fox
Apr 13, 2011

Local filmmakers reflect on the opportunities presented by screenings at the San Francisco International Film Festival.

Film Globally, Screen Locally

Michael Fox
Apr 13, 2011

Local filmmakers reflect on the opportunities presented by screenings at the San Francisco International Film Festival.

Film Globally, Screen Locally

Michael Fox
Apr 13, 2011

Local filmmakers reflect on the opportunities presented by screenings at the San Francisco International Film Festival.

54th San Francisco International Film Festival Will Present Founder’s Directing Award to Oliver Stone

Apr 7, 2011

Press release: The San Francisco Film Society announced today that Oliver Stone will be the recipient of the Founder’s Directing Award at the 54th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 21–May 5). The FDA will be presented to Stone at Film Society Awards Night, Thursday, April 28 at Bimbo’s 365 Club. The Film Society’s Youth Education program will be the beneficiary of the fundraiser honoring Stone. The soon-to-be-announced recipient of the Peter J. Owens Award for excellence in acting and Frank Pierson, recipient of the Kanbar Award for excellence in screenwriting will also be honored. More at sffs.org.

SFFS Announces 2011 SF International Film Festival Titles, Events

Susan Gerhard
Mar 29, 2011

SF International's 54th wide-ranging program is announced.

SFFS Announces 2011 SF International Film Festival Titles, Events

Susan Gerhard
Mar 29, 2011

SF International's 54th wide-ranging program is announced.

SFFS Announces 2011 SF International Film Festival Titles, Events

Susan Gerhard
Mar 29, 2011

SF International's 54th wide-ranging program is announced.

SFIFF54 Announces Documentaries in Golden Gate Awards, Films in New Directors Competition

Mar 4, 2011

Press release: The 54th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 21 - May 5) today announced its documentaries in competition for the Golden Gate Awards and films in competition for the New Directors Prize. The International will award close to $100,000 in total prizes this year. Sixty thousand dollars will be awarded to winners in three categories: investigative documentary feature ($25,000), documentary feature ($20,000) and Bay Area documentary feature ($15,000). The New Directors Prize of $15,000 is given to a narrative first feature that exhibits a unique artistic sensibility and deserves to be seen by as wide an audience as possible. Seventeen countries contributed to the production of the 11 films in this year's competition. Click through for titles or visit sffs.org.

De Oliveira's 'Angelica' Balming, Enlivening

Dennis Harvey
Jan 7, 2011

'The Strange Case of Angelica' finds Manoel de Oliveira, at 102 years old, in fine form.

De Oliveira's 'Angelica' Balming, Enlivening

Dennis Harvey
Jan 7, 2011

'The Strange Case of Angelica' finds Manoel de Oliveira, at 102 years old, in fine form.

De Oliveira's 'Angelica' Balming, Enlivening

Dennis Harvey
Jan 7, 2011

'The Strange Case of Angelica' finds Manoel de Oliveira, at 102 years old, in fine form.

De Oliveira's 'Angelica' Balming, Enlivening

Dennis Harvey
Jan 7, 2011

'The Strange Case of Angelica' finds Manoel de Oliveira, at 102 years old, in fine form.

De Oliveira's 'Angelica' Balming, Enlivening

Dennis Harvey
Jan 7, 2011

'The Strange Case of Angelica' finds Manoel de Oliveira, at 102 years old, in fine form.

De Oliveira's 'Angelica' Balming, Enlivening

Dennis Harvey
Jan 7, 2011

'The Strange Case of Angelica' finds Manoel de Oliveira, at 102 years old, in fine form.

Malmberg Builds a Following with 'Marwencol'

Jessica Sapick
Nov 29, 2010

A first-team non-fiction feature filmmaker hits it big with miniatures story.

Malmberg Builds a Following with 'Marwencol'

Jessica Sapick
Nov 29, 2010

A first-team non-fiction feature filmmaker hits it big with miniatures story.

Malmberg Builds a Following with 'Marwencol'

Jessica Sapick
Nov 29, 2010

A first-team non-fiction feature filmmaker hits it big with miniatures story.

Malmberg Builds a Following with 'Marwencol'

Jessica Sapick
Nov 29, 2010

A first-team non-fiction feature filmmaker hits it big with miniatures story.

Malmberg Builds a Following with 'Marwencol'

Jessica Sapick
Nov 29, 2010

A first-team non-fiction feature filmmaker hits it big with miniatures story.

Malmberg Builds a Following with 'Marwencol'

Jessica Sapick
Nov 29, 2010

A first-team non-fiction feature filmmaker hits it big with miniatures story.

Essential SF: Les Blank

Michael Fox
Nov 6, 2010

Eat, dance, love: Les Blank brings nonfiction back to life in a long and storied career.

Essential SF: Les Blank

Michael Fox
Nov 6, 2010

Eat, dance, love: Les Blank brings nonfiction back to life in a long and storied career.

Essential SF: Les Blank

Michael Fox
Nov 6, 2010

Eat, dance, love: Les Blank brings nonfiction back to life in a long and storied career.

Essential SF: Les Blank

Michael Fox
Nov 6, 2010

Eat, dance, love: Les Blank brings nonfiction back to life in a long and storied career.

Mike Ott on the Guileless Filmmaking of 'Littlerock'

Jessica Sapick
Oct 25, 2010

Mike Ott, now up for a Gotham Award, speaks on filmmaking process and his indie film 'Littlerock.'

Mike Ott on the Guileless Filmmaking of 'Littlerock'

Jessica Sapick
Oct 25, 2010

Mike Ott, now up for a Gotham Award, speaks on filmmaking process and his indie film 'Littlerock.'

Mike Ott on the Guileless Filmmaking of 'Littlerock'

Jessica Sapick
Oct 25, 2010

Mike Ott, now up for a Gotham Award, speaks on filmmaking process and his indie film 'Littlerock.'

Mike Ott on the Guileless Filmmaking of 'Littlerock'

Jessica Sapick
Oct 25, 2010

Mike Ott, now up for a Gotham Award, speaks on filmmaking process and his indie film 'Littlerock.'

Mike Ott on the Guileless Filmmaking of 'Littlerock'

Jessica Sapick
Oct 25, 2010

Mike Ott, now up for a Gotham Award, speaks on filmmaking process and his indie film 'Littlerock.'

Mike Ott on the Guileless Filmmaking of 'Littlerock'

Jessica Sapick
Oct 25, 2010

Mike Ott, now up for a Gotham Award, speaks on filmmaking process and his indie film 'Littlerock.'

'Ferlinghetti'

Oct 3, 2010

Photographer Christopher Felver's documentary on the San Francisco poet and publisher played at the 2009 San Francisco International Film Festival and gets another date to capture the current 'Howl' fever. It plays at the Smith Rafael Film Center.

Lixin Fan's 'Train' Arrives

Michael Fox
Sep 20, 2010

The creator of award-winning documentary 'Last Train Home' speaks about the new China.

Lixin Fan's 'Train' Arrives

Michael Fox
Sep 20, 2010

The creator of award-winning documentary 'Last Train Home' speaks about the new China.

Lixin Fan's 'Train' Arrives

Michael Fox
Sep 20, 2010

The creator of award-winning documentary 'Last Train Home' speaks about the new China.

Medina Stokes SF-set ‘Furnace’

Michael Fox
Aug 25, 2010

Dolissa Medina uncovers more ashes in a new, historical piece on San Francisco and its many great fires.

Medina Stokes SF-set ‘Furnace’

Michael Fox
Aug 25, 2010

Dolissa Medina uncovers more ashes in a new, historical piece on San Francisco and its many great fires.

Medina Stokes SF-set ‘Furnace’

Michael Fox
Aug 25, 2010

Dolissa Medina uncovers more ashes in a new, historical piece on San Francisco and its many great fires.

'Micmacs' at the Red Vic

Aug 25, 2010

Jean-Pierre Jeunet's San Francisco International Film Festival opening night film, an arms-trade satire, plays at the Red Vic this week. It's a visually intoxicating story of a man who finds acceptance with a group of creative, scrap-heap dwelling misfits.

Eat, Pray, Love, Direct

Jessica Sapick
Aug 23, 2010

Ruba Nadda speaks of sultry actors and tenacious directors in the making of 'Cairo Time.'

Eat, Pray, Love, Direct

Jessica Sapick
Aug 23, 2010

Ruba Nadda speaks of sultry actors and tenacious directors in the making of 'Cairo Time.'

Eat, Pray, Love, Direct

Jessica Sapick
Aug 23, 2010

Ruba Nadda speaks of sultry actors and tenacious directors in the making of 'Cairo Time.'

Maoz Speaks of the Limits of Language in 'Lebanon'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 16, 2010

The Lebanon War of 1982 informs Samuel Maoz's 'Lebanon.'

Maoz Speaks of the Limits of Language in 'Lebanon'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 16, 2010

The Lebanon War of 1982 informs Samuel Maoz's 'Lebanon.'

Maoz Speaks of the Limits of Language in 'Lebanon'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 16, 2010

The Lebanon War of 1982 informs Samuel Maoz's 'Lebanon.'

Maoz Speaks of the Limits of Language in 'Lebanon'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 16, 2010

The Lebanon War of 1982 informs Samuel Maoz's 'Lebanon.'

Maoz Speaks of the Limits of Language in 'Lebanon'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 16, 2010

The Lebanon War of 1982 informs Samuel Maoz's 'Lebanon.'

Maoz Speaks of the Limits of Language in 'Lebanon'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 16, 2010

The Lebanon War of 1982 informs Samuel Maoz's 'Lebanon.'

Back with a 'Vengeance'

Matt Sussman
Aug 13, 2010

Johnnie To delivers on his trademark themes with 'Vengeance.'

Back with a 'Vengeance'

Matt Sussman
Aug 13, 2010

Johnnie To delivers on his trademark themes with 'Vengeance.'

Back with a 'Vengeance'

Matt Sussman
Aug 13, 2010

Johnnie To delivers on his trademark themes with 'Vengeance.'

Back with a 'Vengeance'

Matt Sussman
Aug 13, 2010

Johnnie To delivers on his trademark themes with 'Vengeance.'

Back with a 'Vengeance'

Matt Sussman
Aug 13, 2010

Johnnie To delivers on his trademark themes with 'Vengeance.'

Back with a 'Vengeance'

Matt Sussman
Aug 13, 2010

Johnnie To delivers on his trademark themes with 'Vengeance.'

Schneider and Zanuck on the Highs of 'Get Low'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 6, 2010

Filmmakers working with Duvall, Murray and Spacek talk about humor, perseverance, and process.

Schneider and Zanuck on the Highs of 'Get Low'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 6, 2010

Filmmakers working with Duvall, Murray and Spacek talk about humor, perseverance, and process.

Schneider and Zanuck on the Highs of 'Get Low'

Jessica Sapick
Aug 6, 2010

Filmmakers working with Duvall, Murray and Spacek talk about humor, perseverance, and process.

On the Road with 'Joan,' Stern and Sundberg Talk Big Picture

Michael Fox
Jun 14, 2010

The makers of Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work speak about their latest, as well as the state of documentary filmmaking.

Poitras's Unexpected Path to 'The Oath'

Jessica Sapick
May 16, 2010

Laura Poitras speaks during SFIFF53 about the process of creating The Oath from the stories of Osama Bin Laden's former bodyguard and driver.

Poitras's Unexpected Path to 'The Oath'

Jessica Sapick
May 16, 2010

Laura Poitras speaks during SFIFF53 about the process of creating The Oath from the stories of Osama Bin Laden's former bodyguard and driver.

SF Chronicle: 'S.F. Film Festival Bestows Prizes'

May 7, 2010

Almost $300,000 was given out Wednesday night for awards and grants honoring documentary winners.

San Francisco International's Local Filmmakers Next Step

Michael Fox
May 6, 2010

We caught up with several Bay Area makers, fresh off their high-energy screenings at SFIFF53 and primed to keep the momentum rolling.

San Francisco International's Local Filmmakers Next Step

Michael Fox
May 6, 2010

We caught up with several Bay Area makers, fresh off their high-energy screenings at SFIFF53 and primed to keep the momentum rolling.

SFIFF53: Golden Gate Awards and Juried Prizes/Grants Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2010

Cash prizes totaling nearly $300,000 for filmmakers highlighted the San Francisco International Film Festival s Golden Gate Awards Wednesday night.

SFIFF53: Golden Gate Awards and Juried Prizes/Grants Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2010

Cash prizes totaling nearly $300,000 for filmmakers highlighted the San Francisco International Film Festival s Golden Gate Awards Wednesday night.

SFIFF53: War Stories

Matt Sussman
May 5, 2010

Films about our species enduring capacity to be inhumane toward its own are perennials at festivals, and will be so as long as wars are waged.

SFIFF53: War Stories

Matt Sussman
May 5, 2010

Films about our species enduring capacity to be inhumane toward its own are perennials at festivals, and will be so as long as wars are waged.

SFIFF53 Reports: Divine Madness at 'All About Evil' Premiere

Dennis Harvey
May 4, 2010

Judging from Saturday night s festivities, half the capacity Castro Theatre audience had worked on or otherwise invested in Joshua Grannell a.k.a. Peaches Christ s debut feature.

SFIFF53 Reports: James Schamus, Roger Ebert and the Writing Life

Dennis Harvey
May 3, 2010

Few would argue that a good movie often starts with a good story. Yet it has been the screenwriter s lot to be underappreciated.

Behind the Music with 'Simonal'

Julia Barbosa
May 3, 2010

The documentary Simonal: No One Knows How Tough it Was explores the polemic surrounding a man considered by many to be the greatest singer in Brazilian history.

Behind the Music with 'Simonal'

Julia Barbosa
May 3, 2010

The documentary Simonal: No One Knows How Tough it Was explores the polemic surrounding a man considered by many to be the greatest singer in Brazilian history.

Dialogues: Gary Snyder on Art, Anarchy and the Environment

Robert Avila
May 3, 2010

Poet, essayist, environmentalist, Buddhist, public intellectual and teacher Gary Snyder speaks on life and the making of 'The Practice of the Wild.'

Dialogues: Gary Snyder on Art, Anarchy and the Environment

Robert Avila
May 3, 2010

Poet, essayist, environmentalist, Buddhist, public intellectual and teacher Gary Snyder speaks on life and the making of 'The Practice of the Wild.'

Dialogues: Gary Snyder on Art, Anarchy and the Environment

Robert Avila
May 3, 2010

Poet, essayist, environmentalist, Buddhist, public intellectual and teacher Gary Snyder speaks on life and the making of 'The Practice of the Wild.'

Dialogues: Gary Snyder on Art, Anarchy and the Environment

Robert Avila
May 3, 2010

Poet, essayist, environmentalist, Buddhist, public intellectual and teacher Gary Snyder speaks on life and the making of 'The Practice of the Wild.'

New York-set Charlie Barker's Big S.F. Break

Michael Fox
May 2, 2010

Along with selfless sacrifices and random luck, low-budget independent films often depend on the timely intervention of an angel.

SFIFF53: Women's Worlds

Max Goldberg
May 1, 2010

Don t let Hollywood crow about The Hurt Locker and the year of the woman until more filmmakers of the sort featured at this year s festival benefit.

SFIFF53: Women's Worlds

Max Goldberg
May 1, 2010

Don t let Hollywood crow about The Hurt Locker and the year of the woman until more filmmakers of the sort featured at this year s festival benefit.

SFIFF53 Reports: California Dreamin' at Film Society Awards Night

Susan Gerhard
Apr 30, 2010

San Francisco itself took a lead role at Film Society Awards Night, the dinner and awards program benefiting the Film Society s year-round Youth Education initiative.

SFIFF53 Reports: California Dreamin' at Film Society Awards Night

Susan Gerhard
Apr 30, 2010

San Francisco itself took a lead role at Film Society Awards Night, the dinner and awards program benefiting the Film Society s year-round Youth Education initiative.

SFIFF53: 'At the Movies' with Roger Ebert

Dennis Harvey
Apr 30, 2010

You know someone is well liked when they re used as the standard by which you fall short.

SFIFF53: The Art of Revival

Dennis Harvey
Apr 29, 2010

Through most of its history, the Festival has featured revivals of restored classics and little-known gems. This year s selections run an unusually wide gamut.

Local Filmmakers In SFIFF Spotlight

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2010

Leland Orser saw his first movie at the Alexandria, and Joshua Grannell initially established himself as a S.F. character via his alter ego Peaches Christ.

Local Filmmakers In SFIFF Spotlight

Michael Fox
Apr 27, 2010

Leland Orser saw his first movie at the Alexandria, and Joshua Grannell initially established himself as a S.F. character via his alter ego Peaches Christ.

SFIFF53 Reports: 'Utopia,' 'Morning'

SF360
Apr 27, 2010

Live & Onstage thought globally and drafted locally with Sam Green and musician Dave Cerf s live Utopia in Four Movements, which never takes the exact same form.

Hernandez's Guilty Verdict

Michael Fox
Apr 26, 2010

If there's a sure-fire crowd-pleaser in this year's San Francisco International Film Festival, it s Roberto Hernandez and Geoffrey Smith's Presumed Guilty.

Hernandez's Guilty Verdict

Michael Fox
Apr 26, 2010

If there's a sure-fire crowd-pleaser in this year's San Francisco International Film Festival, it s Roberto Hernandez and Geoffrey Smith's Presumed Guilty.

SFIFF s Porchlight On For Guests

Michael Fox
Apr 24, 2010

Ch‚ Sandoval of Chile, Kaspar Astrup Schroder of Denmark, Pedro Gonzal‚z-Rubio of Mexico, John Herschend and Claudia Gonson don t have much in common except stories to tell.

SFIFF s Porchlight On For Guests

Michael Fox
Apr 24, 2010

Ch‚ Sandoval of Chile, Kaspar Astrup Schroder of Denmark, Pedro Gonzal‚z-Rubio of Mexico, John Herschend and Claudia Gonson don t have much in common except stories to tell.

SFIFF53 Reports: The Butcher Block; Opening Night

SF360
Apr 24, 2010

To be from the Bay Area and called The Butcher Brothers might mean you get mixed up with purveyors of grass fed meats.

Dialogues: Jim Harrison on Poetry, Documentary

Robert Avila
Apr 23, 2010

Writer Jim Harrison offers thoughts about his relationship to Gary Snyder and his contributions to 'The Practice of the Wild.'

Dialogues: Jim Harrison on Poetry, Documentary

Robert Avila
Apr 23, 2010

Writer Jim Harrison offers thoughts about his relationship to Gary Snyder and his contributions to 'The Practice of the Wild.'

Dialogues: Jim Harrison on Poetry, Documentary

Robert Avila
Apr 23, 2010

Writer Jim Harrison offers thoughts about his relationship to Gary Snyder and his contributions to 'The Practice of the Wild.'

Dialogues: Jim Harrison on Poetry, Documentary

Robert Avila
Apr 23, 2010

Writer Jim Harrison offers thoughts about his relationship to Gary Snyder and his contributions to 'The Practice of the Wild.'

SFIFF53: Deft Dussollier In 'Micmacs,' 'Wild Grass'

Dennis Harvey
Apr 21, 2010

How many foreign stars do U.S. moviegoers know? Not many, alas. My favorite living French actor, André Dussollier, appears prominently in two high-profile festival films.

SFIFF53: Deft Dussollier In 'Micmacs,' 'Wild Grass'

Dennis Harvey
Apr 21, 2010

How many foreign stars do U.S. moviegoers know? Not many, alas. My favorite living French actor, André Dussollier, appears prominently in two high-profile festival films.

'Utopia' in San Francisco

Susan Gerhard
Apr 18, 2010

I found Sam Green deep in preparation, but he found time to walk me through the greatest dreams and worst nightmares of the 20th century.

'It Came from Kuchar,' 'La Mission' in Theatres

sf360
Apr 16, 2010

Bay Area-made and Mission-inspired, Peter Bratt's La Mission joins Jennifer Kroot's wild and woolly It Came from Kuchar in Bay Area theaters this week.

SFIFF53: Ephemeral Film and Music, Live & Onstage

Marc Capelle
Apr 14, 2010

If you imagine the S.F. International Film Festival as an circus tent, with Opening and Closing nights the main supports, the other tent poles are interactive live experiences.

SFIFF53: Ephemeral Film and Music, Live & Onstage

Marc Capelle
Apr 14, 2010

If you imagine the S.F. International Film Festival as an circus tent, with Opening and Closing nights the main supports, the other tent poles are interactive live experiences.

Can-Can Do: Silent Shooting at the Victoria

Jane Riccobono
Apr 13, 2010

The Victoria Theater is shut up tight, with no sign of life. After a few raps on the door, a woman peeks out and leads me inside.

Christina Yao's solid Empire of Silver

Michael Fox
Apr 12, 2010

First-time filmmaker Christina Yao is soft-spoken and exceedingly polite, but it s apparent that very little intimidates her.

Christina Yao's solid Empire of Silver

Michael Fox
Apr 12, 2010

First-time filmmaker Christina Yao is soft-spoken and exceedingly polite, but it s apparent that very little intimidates her.

Rosen's Insights into 53rd San Francisco International

Michael Fox
Apr 5, 2010

With opening night approaching, Rachel Rosen talked about her L.A. Rolodex, the function of festivals in a broadband world and her favorites in the festival.

San Francisco International Film Festival's 53rd Edition

Susan Gerhard
Mar 30, 2010

Director of Programming Rachel Rosen and programmers Rod Armstrong, Audrey Chang and Sean Uyehara shared thoughts on 177 films from 46 countries.

Words from Sundance Staffers: Landon Zakheim

Hilary Hart
Jan 21, 2010

Hilary Hart, who annually holds down the late-night shift at the Egyptian at Sundance, offers interviews with fellow workers at the festival.

Bay Area Narrative Filmmakers Thriving in Doc Capital

Michael Fox
Dec 23, 2009

Michael Fox shows independent filmmakers who are thriving in the Bay Area.

Parker and di Napoli on Parody and High Art

Adam Hartzell
Nov 1, 2009

Bay Area locals Jonathan Parker and Catherine di Napoli discuss (Untitled), a hilarious romp through the world of conceptual art and atonal music.

SFFS's Debut Cinema by the Bay

Robert Avila
Oct 22, 2009

A new, four-day showcase of local filmmaking doubles as a forum for the region's influence as subject and setting for filmmakers beyond the bay.

Heddy Honigmann and the Art of Interview

Max Goldberg
Oct 2, 2009

With the Netherlands-based filmmaker's latest portrait in resilience, Oblivion, opening Friday, it's a good time to celebrate one of documentary's most engaging storytellers.

Heddy Honigmann and the Art of Interview

Max Goldberg
Oct 2, 2009

With the Netherlands-based filmmaker's latest portrait in resilience, Oblivion, opening Friday, it's a good time to celebrate one of documentary's most engaging storytellers.

Montalbano's "The Recondite Heart"

Michael Fox
Sep 29, 2009

East Bay filmmaker Miles Montalbano is in preproduction on dark coming-of-age story The Recondite Heart, his followup to his lauded debut, Revolution Summer.

Franny Armstrong's S.O.S. to the World

Sean Uyehara
Sep 19, 2009

Franny Armstrong talks about the moral imperative of her films, the importance of Hopenhagen, and the unexpected magnitude of her success.

Franny Armstrong's S.O.S. to the World

Sean Uyehara
Sep 19, 2009

Franny Armstrong talks about the moral imperative of her films, the importance of Hopenhagen, and the unexpected magnitude of her success.

Kim Longinotto and Women Make Movies Film Festival

Adam Hartzell
Aug 27, 2009

A mini-retrospective of the work of Kim Longinotto plays during the Women Make Movies Film Festival at the Roxie.

'Lion's Den' and '24 City'

Susan Gerhard
Jul 31, 2009

Veteran filmmakers Pablo Trapero and Jia Zhang-ke complicate their genres with Lion's Den and 24 City.

Richard Levien, from 'Immersion' to 'La Migra'

Jennifer Preissel
Jun 29, 2009

New Zealand transplant Richard Levien, a longstanding fixture of the San Francisco indie film community, breaks out of the editing room with Immersion.

Richard Levien, from 'Immersion' to 'La Migra'

Jennifer Preissel
Jun 29, 2009

New Zealand transplant Richard Levien, a longstanding fixture of the San Francisco indie film community, breaks out of the editing room with Immersion.

Miller Brothers Touch Home at AT&T Park

Michael Fox
Jun 2, 2009

The Miller brothers take their memoir-release to the local ballpark.

Miller Brothers Touch Home at AT&T Park

Michael Fox
Jun 2, 2009

The Miller brothers take their memoir-release to the local ballpark.

Bruce Goldstein: From NY to SF to 'Con'

Judy Stone
May 17, 2009

Bruce Goldstein recalls his adventures in film land as he prepares to host the Con Film Festival at the Film Forum in New York.

Bruce Goldstein: From NY to SF to 'Con'

Judy Stone
May 17, 2009

Bruce Goldstein recalls his adventures in film land as he prepares to host the Con Film Festival at the Film Forum in New York.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Keeping Scores

Marc Capelle
May 11, 2009

Marc Capelle's ode to Westerns and Buddy films as well as noteworthy festival scores.

SFIFF52: Golden Gate Awards Uncorked, SFFS/KRF Grant Winner Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 7, 2009

SFIFF handed out approximately $100,000 and announced the winner San Francisco Film Society/Kenneth Rainin Foundation Filmmaking Grant during its Golden Gate Awards.

SFIFF52: Golden Gate Awards Uncorked, SFFS/KRF Grant Winner Announced

Susan Gerhard
May 7, 2009

SFIFF handed out approximately $100,000 and announced the winner San Francisco Film Society/Kenneth Rainin Foundation Filmmaking Grant during its Golden Gate Awards.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Dinosaurs, Disease, and Delirium

Robert Avila
May 7, 2009

The Lost World, the 1925 silent fantasy

SFIFF52: Planet Armstrong

Lynn Rapoport
May 6, 2009

Franny Armstrong's The Age of Stupid is a documentary encased like a time capsule inside a fictive but science-based, frighteningly possible future

SFIFF52: Planet Armstrong

Lynn Rapoport
May 6, 2009

Franny Armstrong's The Age of Stupid is a documentary encased like a time capsule inside a fictive but science-based, frighteningly possible future

Crafting an Elegant Essay Documentary

Karen Everett
May 4, 2009

The Edit Room: How do you keep your audience engaged rather than putting them to sleep?

Local Makers Line Up Next Shot after SFIFF

Michael Fox
May 4, 2009

The 2009 SFIFF has been a launching pad for the numerous Bay Area filmmaker

SFIFF52 Blogs: Cataloguing California

Jennifer Preissel
May 4, 2009

California Company Town, blends the sights and sounds of the state's economically depressed towns, industrial wastelands and failed utopian communities.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Coppola & Lucas at the Castro

Dennis Harvey
May 3, 2009

An Evening with Francis Ford Coppola & Friends honored Coppola with the Founder Directing Award and included a moderated discussion with editing/sound design genius Walter Murch, director Carroll Ballard, scenarist-turned-director Matthew Robbins, and George Lucas.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Wilkerson's Proving Strong

David Winks Gray
May 2, 2009

On May Day Eve, Travis Wilkerson performed Proving Ground, probably the first multimedia Leninist rant to have ever graced the Sundance Kabuki.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Wilkerson's Proving Strong

David Winks Gray
May 2, 2009

On May Day Eve, Travis Wilkerson performed Proving Ground, probably the first multimedia Leninist rant to have ever graced the Sundance Kabuki.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Five Reasons why SF Loves Coppola

Justin Juul
May 1, 2009

The San Francisco Film Society awarded Francis Ford Coppola the Founder & Directing Award this week. Justin Juul offers us five reasons why San Francisco loves Coppola.

Film Society Awards: Ballard, Coppola, Redford and Toback

Susan Gerhard
May 1, 2009

The San Francisco Film Society honored Francis Ford Coppola, Carroll Ballard, Robert Redford and James Toback. Coppola surprised the audience by turning over the Founder's Directing Award he received to longtime colleague Carroll Ballard.

SFIFF52: Leone's 'Once Upon a Time in the West'

Dennis Harvey
Apr 30, 2009

Once Upon a Time in the West is grand, cynical, lavish and above all huge, Sergio Leone's penchant for the iconically gargantuan (perhaps at the willing expense of relatable human detail) expressed in ultimate form.

SFIFF52: Robert Redford Accepts Owens Award

Dennis Harvey
Apr 29, 2009

Robert Redford braves the public and accepts the San Francisco International Film Festival's Peter J. Owens Award.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Portillo's 'Al Más Allá'

David Winks Gray
Apr 29, 2009

Lourdes Portillo's partly autobiographical documentary Al Más Allá draws a laugh from the San Francisco International Film Festival crowd.

SFIFF52: Robert Redford Accepts Owens Award

Dennis Harvey
Apr 29, 2009

Robert Redford braves the public and accepts the San Francisco International Film Festival's Peter J. Owens Award.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Portillo's 'Al Más Allá'

David Winks Gray
Apr 29, 2009

Lourdes Portillo's partly autobiographical documentary Al Más Allá draws a laugh from the San Francisco International Film Festival crowd.

SFIFF52: 'The Professionals' Unites Filmmakers

Michael Fox
Apr 28, 2009

The Professionals an ambitious array of panels, case studies and discussions, makes its debut as a forum for encouraging Bay Area moviemakers to engage with guests and colleagues.

SFIFF52: 'The Professionals' Unites Filmmakers

Michael Fox
Apr 28, 2009

The Professionals an ambitious array of panels, case studies and discussions, makes its debut as a forum for encouraging Bay Area moviemakers to engage with guests and colleagues.

SFIFF52 Blogs: Mission, Midnight and Under the Influence

Marc Capelle
Apr 28, 2009

Marc Capelle meets and greets with actress Gena Rowlands, composer Bo Harwood and other film mavens and mavericks at a post-screening party for Cassavette's A Woman Under the Influence and the Mission Awards

SFIFF52: Lourdes Portillo, Persistence of Vision Award Recipient

Robert Avila
Apr 27, 2009

The San Francisco-based and internationally acclaimed documentarian Lourdes Portillo speaks about her work; she wins the 52nd San Francisco International Film Festival Persistence of Vision Award.

SFIFF52: Lourdes Portillo, Persistence of Vision Award Recipient

Robert Avila
Apr 27, 2009

The San Francisco-based and internationally acclaimed documentarian Lourdes Portillo speaks about her work; she wins the 52nd San Francisco International Film Festival Persistence of Vision Award.

SFIFF52: Chris Felver's "Ferlinghetti" Captures an Icon

David Winks Gray
Apr 26, 2009

Chris Felver traces the life of antiauthoritarian Lawrence Ferlinghetti, owner of City Lights Books, from his days as a Navy serviceman in World War II through the landmark First Amendment trial in Ferlinghetti.

SFIFF52: Yun Suh's "City of Borders"

David Winks Gray
Apr 26, 2009

City of Borders, the debut film by Bay Area filmmaker Yun Suh, follows several Palestinian characters seeking refuge at a gay bar. The film testifies to the intolerance that members of the LGBTQ community face in addition to all of the other walls, physical and social, separating people in the region.

SFIFF52: Yun Suh's "City of Borders"

David Winks Gray
Apr 26, 2009

City of Borders, the debut film by Bay Area filmmaker Yun Suh, follows several Palestinian characters seeking refuge at a gay bar. The film testifies to the intolerance that members of the LGBTQ community face in addition to all of the other walls, physical and social, separating people in the region.

SFIFF52: Jarmel and Schneider's "Speaking in Tongues"

Susan Gerhard
Apr 25, 2009

Jarmel and Schneider's Speaking in Tongues follows the stories of four public school children studying Mandarin, Cantonese and Spanish along with their English.

SFIFF52: Jarmel and Schneider's "Speaking in Tongues"

Susan Gerhard
Apr 25, 2009

Jarmel and Schneider's Speaking in Tongues follows the stories of four public school children studying Mandarin, Cantonese and Spanish along with their English.

SFIFF52: "Lightness of Being" – Eight Wry Films

Dennis Harvey
Apr 24, 2009

The eight films in the San Francisco International Film Festival's Lightness of Being spotlight are Laila's Birthday, Small Crime, Mid-August Lunch, Every Little Step, (Untitled), In the Loop, Our Beloved Month of August and Still Walking.

SFIFF52: "Lightness of Being" – Eight Wry Films

Dennis Harvey
Apr 24, 2009

The eight films in the San Francisco International Film Festival's Lightness of Being spotlight are Laila's Birthday, Small Crime, Mid-August Lunch, Every Little Step, (Untitled), In the Loop, Our Beloved Month of August and Still Walking.

SFIFF52: Peter Bratt's "La Mission"

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2009

Peter Bratt's La Mission focuses on conflict within a family and a neighborhood, exploring what happens when a single father named Che learns a secret about his son that tests his love for his family and his community's love for him.

SFIFF52: New Narrative Trend for Bay Area Cinema

Michael Fox
Apr 21, 2009

Four independent narratives - La Mission, My Suicide, Everything Strange and New and (Untitled) - are adding to the Bay Area's repertoire, historically regarded as a breeding ground for documentary filmmakers.

SFIFF52: New Narrative Trend for Bay Area Cinema

Michael Fox
Apr 21, 2009

Four independent narratives - La Mission, My Suicide, Everything Strange and New and (Untitled) - are adding to the Bay Area's repertoire, historically regarded as a breeding ground for documentary filmmakers.

SFIFF52: Jim Granato's "D tour"

Dan Cowles
Apr 19, 2009

Local filmmaker Jim Granato, whose movie D tour follows the band Rogue Wave and its ailing drummer Pat Spurgeon, on tour and on dialysis, is competing for the San Francisco International Film Festival's Golden Gate Award in Documentary.

SFIFF52: Jim Granato's "D tour"

Dan Cowles
Apr 19, 2009

Local filmmaker Jim Granato, whose movie D tour follows the band Rogue Wave and its ailing drummer Pat Spurgeon, on tour and on dialysis, is competing for the San Francisco International Film Festival's Golden Gate Award in Documentary.

SFIFF52: Wisdom of the Underages

Jonathan Kiefer
Apr 16, 2009

Where would cinema be without good, old-fashioned youthfulness? Hence: Youth Bring the Truth, a showcase for promising pre-adult media-makers including several local teenagers from this year's San Francisco International Film Festival.

SFIFF52: Wisdom of the Underages

Jonathan Kiefer
Apr 16, 2009

Where would cinema be without good, old-fashioned youthfulness? Hence: Youth Bring the Truth, a showcase for promising pre-adult media-makers including several local teenagers from this year's San Francisco International Film Festival.

Holtzman: Psychedelic Cambodian Rock in 'Dengue Fever'

Michael Fox
Apr 15, 2009

Zac Holtzman scores The Lost World with Dengue Fever, creating a sound that has been described as a psychedelic version of vintage Cambodian rock'n'roll, fueled by Cambodian singer Chhom Nimol's vocal stylings and Ethan Holtzman's organ and accordion shadings.

SFIFF52: Light and Saraf's 'Empress Hotel'

David Winks Gray
Apr 13, 2009

Local filmmakers Allie Light and Irving Saraf's latest film Empress Hotel delves into the lives of the residents at the titular building, a Tenderloin housing facility for the recently homeless. The film makes visible an area many city dwellers may only experience in the fringe of their consciousness and provides insight into the lives of the residents within.

SFIFF52: Jennifer Maytorena Taylor and a 'New Muslim Cool'

Sura Wood
Apr 6, 2009

Jennifer Maytorena Taylor's documentary, New Muslim Cool, focuses on Hamza Perez, a Catholic hip hop artist, who converted to Islam; whose life is now a crucible of disparate urban influences.

SFIFF52: Jennifer Maytorena Taylor and a 'New Muslim Cool'

Sura Wood
Apr 6, 2009

Jennifer Maytorena Taylor's documentary, New Muslim Cool, focuses on Hamza Perez, a Catholic hip hop artist, who converted to Islam; whose life is now a crucible of disparate urban influences.

SF International Film Festival Lineup

Susan Gerhard
Mar 31, 2009

The two weeks of programs offers 151 films from 55 countries, awards and prices, and a wide array of San Francisco talent, from legendary names to the fledgling artists.

Michael Jacobs 'Audience of One' at the Roxie

Susan Gerhard
Mar 30, 2009

Michael Jacobs talks about his documentary, which follows Pentecostal Pastor Richard Gazowsky engaged in the creation of an ambitious, multi-million dollar sci-fi-feature on God.

'Medicine for Melancholy' in the City it Re-discovered

Michael Fox
Mar 5, 2009

Barry Jenkins talks abut his background, making movies in San Francisco and the issues of black identity, assimilation and gentrification, which are at the heart of his film.

'Medicine for Melancholy' in the City it Re-discovered

Michael Fox
Mar 5, 2009

Barry Jenkins talks abut his background, making movies in San Francisco and the issues of black identity, assimilation and gentrification, which are at the heart of his film.

'Medicine for Melancholy' and the Art of DIY Legal Agreements

George Rush
Mar 3, 2009

For many narrative filmmakers, hiring a lawyer is either an afterthought or not a financial reality, but moving forward with a film without considering legal is a huge mistake.

A Composer Almost Ready for His Close-Up

Michael Fox
Jan 23, 2009

Michael Fox looks behind the scenes of a film on the maverick Seattle composer-performer-inventor Trimpin.

Lance Hammer on Beauty and 'Ballast'

Michael Guillen
Oct 17, 2008

Hammer discusses his debut feature premiered at Sundance to resounding critical fanfare, winning prizes for best director and cinematography.

Chris Marker Comes Home, At Last

Michael Fox
Sep 1, 2008

I confess that for a long while I had the misperception, based on almost no exposure to his work, that French essayist Chris Marker made dense, dry films steeped in political theory and inaccessible to anyone but a narrow strata of irrelevant European intellectuals.

Exhuming History with "The Judge and the General"

Susan Gerhard
Aug 11, 2008

SF360.org asked Bay Area filmmaker Elizabeth Farnsworth about her film, which follows Judge Juan Guzmán as he investigates General Pinochet's crimes.

Exhuming History with "The Judge and the General"

Susan Gerhard
Aug 11, 2008

SF360.org asked Bay Area filmmaker Elizabeth Farnsworth about her film, which follows Judge Juan Guzmán as he investigates General Pinochet's crimes.

'The Exiles,' a Return Engagement

Dennis Harvey
Jul 30, 2008

A film from 1961, The Exiles is a long-in-making unvarnished look at 12 hours in the lives of a group of American Indians who have come to Los Angeles.

Riffling through '1000 Journals' with Someguy

Michael Fox
Jul 28, 2008

Andrea Kreuzhage speaks about her documentary, 1000 Journals, which raises a host of fascinating questions about creativity, collaboration, community, and communication.

Catherine Breillat's 'The Last Mistress'

Michael Fox
Jul 14, 2008

French author and director Catherine Breillat speaks about the fierce passion play of her latest, The Last Mistress.

Catherine Breillat's 'The Last Mistress'

Michael Fox
Jul 14, 2008

French author and director Catherine Breillat speaks about the fierce passion play of her latest, The Last Mistress.

Alex Gibney on Going 'Gonzo'

Cathleen Rountree
Jun 30, 2008

SF360.org sits down with director Alex Gibney, whose film, Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson played at the 51st SFIFF.

'Up the Yangtze' with Yung Chang

Judy Stone
Jun 6, 2008

Filmmaker Yung Chang talks about 'Up the Yangtze,' his superb documentary that examines the surreal changes in China around the controversial Three Gorges Dam.

The Doctor and the Documentarian Behind "The English Surgeon"

Jennifer Preissel
May 19, 2008

When The English Surgeon had its U.S. premiere at the SFIFF this month, Geoffrey Smith and Henry Marsh received a standing ovation.

Q&A: Alex Rivera, 'Sleep Dealer'

Michael Guillen
May 14, 2008

Rivera's debut centers on a young man grappling with a technological future in which neural implants, telerobotics and ubiquitous computing serve a global economy.

"Standard Operating Procedure" and the Stories We Tell

Staff
May 9, 2008

Joan Didion famously said, "We tell ourselves stories in order to live." We've internalized the American narrative of Abu Ghraib and accepted its implications.

In Other Words: States of Cinema, Music and Mind

Eve O'Neill
May 8, 2008

"There are no movies without music," Kevin Kelly asserted last Saturday in his State of Cinema address.

SF International's Golden Gate Awards: Alive and Cooking

Susan Gerhard
May 8, 2008

Food scents and film sensibilities mingled in a pungent party atmosphere at the California Culinary Academy.

Capelle on Composers: Day Three

Staff
May 8, 2008

The final installment in the San Francisco composer and musician's blog from the 2008 SFIFF.

Capelle on Composers: Back to Back

Marc Capelle
May 7, 2008

Back to music.



I have some friends that were in a Sub Pop band that pre-dated Nirvana. They were known as the Dwarves. Their music is and was a snotty suburban unholy mixture of the Sonics, the Orlons, the Stooges and a vat of amphetamines. Their record covers usually featured midgets and half-naked woman covered in either blood or some sort of Nestle syrup of some sort. Here is one of their lines.



[Editor’s note: For the San Francisco International’s 51st edition, SF360.org has asked Bay Area musician/composer/cineaste Marc Capelle to blog his thoughts on movies, music, and the films showing in the Festival. This is the third of three installments.]

Gibney Going "Gonzo," Part Two

Cathleen Rountree
May 7, 2008

The second installment of Alex Gibney's interview about Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, which closes the San Francisco International Film Festival.

Gibney Going "Gonzo," Part Two

Cathleen Rountree
May 7, 2008

The second installment of Alex Gibney's interview about Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, which closes the San Francisco International Film Festival.

Cinemania at the SF International

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2008

The Jules Feiffer quote at the bottom of festival superfan Sue Jean Halvorsen's email reads, "Movies are better than real life."

Cinemania at the SF International

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2008

The Jules Feiffer quote at the bottom of festival superfan Sue Jean Halvorsen's email reads, "Movies are better than real life."

'Shampoo.' Rinse. Repeat.

Judy Stone
May 4, 2008

Warren Beatty on the sexual and political message of Shampoo and a new film in the works about romantic revolutionary journalist John Reed.

Nights on the Towne: Film Society Awards Night

Susan Gerhard
May 4, 2008

You know a festival is working its way into your brain when, in a landscape of intersecting ideas, you begin to witness the collisions.

Capelle on Composers: Day Two

Staff
May 2, 2008

Errol Morris has a giant brain. Anybody who wants to argue against that thesis does not have a giant brain. So let's move on.

In Other Words: Standard Operating Procedure

Staff
Apr 30, 2008

Joan Didion famously said, "We tell ourselves stories in order to live." We have internalized the narrative of Abu Ghraib and accepted its implications.

Capelle and Composers: Day One

Staff
Apr 30, 2008

Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts is a very close-quartered and loving documentary, a year in the life of the composer.

Mike Leigh's Topsy-Turvy World

Dennis Harvey
Apr 29, 2008

SF Film Society’s Founder’s Directing Award winner Mike Leigh's work has created a distinctive insider’s portrait of working-to-middle class English life.

SFIFF51: Katherin McInnis Cues the Carnival Music

Jennifer Preissel
Apr 28, 2008

The longtime Bay Area resident, who recently relocated to Brooklyn, screens Woodward's Gardens in the shorts program "In A Lonely Place: New Experimental Cinema."

SFIFF51: Katherin McInnis Cues the Carnival Music

Jennifer Preissel
Apr 28, 2008

The longtime Bay Area resident, who recently relocated to Brooklyn, screens Woodward's Gardens in the shorts program "In A Lonely Place: New Experimental Cinema."

SFIFF51: Barry Jenkins' San Francisco Story

Michael Fox
Apr 26, 2008

Medicine for Melancholy is a graceful and poignant film about fleeting urban connections, black identity and invisibility, cultural adventures and this gentrified city's lost soul.

SFIFF51: Barry Jenkins' San Francisco Story

Michael Fox
Apr 26, 2008

Medicine for Melancholy is a graceful and poignant film about fleeting urban connections, black identity and invisibility, cultural adventures and this gentrified city's lost soul.

SFIFF51: Eddie Muller's Muses

Jennifer Preissel
Apr 26, 2008

A self-described "cultural archeologist," the noir expert's debut short, The Grand Inquisitor, pays homage to the Dashiell Hammett-style detective story.

SFIFF51: Eddie Muller's Muses

Jennifer Preissel
Apr 26, 2008

A self-described "cultural archeologist," the noir expert's debut short, The Grand Inquisitor, pays homage to the Dashiell Hammett-style detective story.

I [heart] Jason Lee

Dennis Harvey
Apr 25, 2008

The star of My Name Is Earl is (alongside Grindhouse superstarlet Rose McGowan) the recipient of this year's SFIFF Midnight Award.

Asia Argento, In Full Flower

Dennis Harvey
Apr 23, 2008

Motherhood has supposedly had a slowing-down effect on Asia Argento, though at present evidence points rather wildly to the contrary. Not only does she star in this week’s San Francisco International Film Festival official opener, Catherine Breillat’s costume intrigue The Last Mistress, she also figures heavily in two other SFIFF features. Both are programmed in the culty "Late Show" section: Go Go Tales, Abel Ferrara’s most acclaimed film in years, and The Mother of Tears, a latest horror opus directed by her own fan-idolized gorehound dad Dario Argento. A couple weeks ago yet another vehicle opened commercially, Olivier Assayas’ Boarding Gate, which is entirely dominated by her feverish and highly physical performance.



Conventional logic might suggest all this visibility means it’s "breakthrough" time for Asia Argento, that moment when an actor goes from being a familiar face to a marquee name that can singlehandedly draw folks into the multiplex, or at least the arthouse. (In Europe she’s already quite well-known.) But as her project choices among other things bear out, Argento probably isn’t very interested in becoming a "star" in the conventional sense. In fact, she seems the girl most likely to run from any such fate.

Asia Argento, In Full Flower

Dennis Harvey
Apr 23, 2008

Motherhood has supposedly had a slowing-down effect on Asia Argento, though at present evidence points rather wildly to the contrary. Not only does she star in this week’s San Francisco International Film Festival official opener, Catherine Breillat’s costume intrigue The Last Mistress, she also figures heavily in two other SFIFF features. Both are programmed in the culty "Late Show" section: Go Go Tales, Abel Ferrara’s most acclaimed film in years, and The Mother of Tears, a latest horror opus directed by her own fan-idolized gorehound dad Dario Argento. A couple weeks ago yet another vehicle opened commercially, Olivier Assayas’ Boarding Gate, which is entirely dominated by her feverish and highly physical performance.



Conventional logic might suggest all this visibility means it’s "breakthrough" time for Asia Argento, that moment when an actor goes from being a familiar face to a marquee name that can singlehandedly draw folks into the multiplex, or at least the arthouse. (In Europe she’s already quite well-known.) But as her project choices among other things bear out, Argento probably isn’t very interested in becoming a "star" in the conventional sense. In fact, she seems the girl most likely to run from any such fate.

SFIFF51: On the Breeding Behind "Evolution: The Musical!"

Robert Avila
Apr 22, 2008

Think of it as The Sound of Music meets Quest for Fire, or Jesus Christ Superstar rocks Land of the Lost.

SFIFF51: Craig Baldwin Shoots the Moon, and the Desert

Michael Fox
Apr 18, 2008

The Mission filmmaker has slaved in the underground for some three decades, a guide and shaman for other artists working on the fringes.

SFIFF51: The Miller Brothers on writing, pitching, acting, directing, and hitting one out of the ballpark

Susan Gerhard
Apr 16, 2008

Touching Home by Bay Area-raised identical twins Logan and Noah Miller is a largely autobiographical coming-of-age film that radiates sincerity.

SFIFF51: The Miller Brothers on writing, pitching, acting, directing, and hitting one out of the ballpark

Susan Gerhard
Apr 16, 2008

Touching Home by Bay Area-raised identical twins Logan and Noah Miller is a largely autobiographical coming-of-age film that radiates sincerity.

SFIFF51: Dawn Logsdon, on new hope in an old neighborhood, "Faubourg TremŽ"

Susan Gerhard
Apr 15, 2008

Dawn Logsdon and Lolis Eric Elie dig through the rubble of Hurricane Katrina to tell the story of Faubourg TremŽ, which was home to African Americans and fertile ground for political activism, music and literary life.

SFIFF51: Dawn Logsdon, on new hope in an old neighborhood, "Faubourg TremŽ"

Susan Gerhard
Apr 15, 2008

Dawn Logsdon and Lolis Eric Elie dig through the rubble of Hurricane Katrina to tell the story of Faubourg TremŽ, which was home to African Americans and fertile ground for political activism, music and literary life.

SFIFF51: Renee Tajima- Pe–a's trip down “Calavera Highway'

Michael Fox
Apr 15, 2008

If making a movie about one’s family could be equated with a fire-walk in August, then making a documentary about one’s partner’s family might be akin to a midsummer sauna. Yet veteran L.A. filmmaker Renee Tajima-Pe–a (Who Killed Vincent Chin?) signed on to a road trip with her husband from L.A. to Washington state to Texas in search of "la verdad" about the father that abandoned Armando’s mother Rosa and his six brothers several decades ago. An intimate and elegantly crafted work of cinema verita, Calavera Highway encompasses universal familial tensions, Mexican-American identity, the responsibilities of fathers (and sons) and the psychic malleability of map-drawn borders.



Tajima-Pe–a, who’s an associate professor at UC Santa Cruz, will receive the Golden Gate Award for long-form television documentary at the S.F. International Film Festival, where Calavera Highway screens three times in early May. Via email, she talked about searching for "Calaveras" hidden in closets and elsewhere.

Johnny Symons and "Ask Not"

Michael Fox
Apr 12, 2008

East Bay filmmaker Johnny Symons' documentary "Ask Not" moves beyond stereotypes to examine what experience is really like for gays and lesbians in the military.

"Cachao: Uno Mas"

Chuy Varela
Apr 10, 2008

Cachao: Uno Mas documents acclaimed bassist and cuban music innovator Israel "Cachao" Lopez's work and San Francisco concert at Bimbo's

SF Int'l announces its 51st program and year-round screen

Susan Gerhard
Apr 1, 2008

The SFIFF announced its 2008 program and the June 13 launch of its year-round programming on one screen at the Sundance Kabuki

SF Int'l announces its 51st program and year-round screen

Susan Gerhard
Apr 1, 2008

The SFIFF announced its 2008 program and the June 13 launch of its year-round programming on one screen at the Sundance Kabuki

Amanda Micheli Going for La Corona

Sean Uyehara
Jan 23, 2008

A reprinting of an interview with Amanda Micheli because her film, now playing Sundance, has just made the final cut for an Academy Award.

Jeffrey Blitz and Reece Thompson on "Rocket Science"

Michael Guillen
Aug 8, 2007

A conversation with the Oscar-nominated Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound) on his new feature, which screened at the S.F. International Film Festival.

Reviews: "Brand Upon the Brain!", "Golden Door"

Matt Sussman
Jun 12, 2007

Brand is no short supply of Guy Maddin's usual firecrackers: apostrophe, hyperbole, and of course, catastrophe.

Reviews: "Bamako" and "Angel-A"

Robert Avila
May 29, 2007

A masterful stroke by writer-director Abderrahmane Sissako; Luc Besson returns to American theaters after a nearly decade-long absence.

Hal Hartley, Not So simple

Robert Avila
May 13, 2007

Changes in Hal Hartley's geography and work styles have put distance between his early films and also given the director a chance to experiment with form.

Golden Gate Award to "The Key of G"

Brian Brooks/indieWIRE
May 10, 2007

Mexican director Francisco Vargas Quevedo’s "The Violin" (El violin) won the San Francisco International Film Festival’s Skyy Prize, while Israeli duo Shahar Cohen and Halil Efrat’s "Souvenirs" took best documentary feature (West Coast premiere), capping the Golden Gate Awards ceremony Wednesday evening for the festival’s landmark 50th edition.

Golden Gate Award to "The Key of G"

Brian Brooks/indieWIRE
May 10, 2007

Mexican director Francisco Vargas Quevedo’s "The Violin" (El violin) won the San Francisco International Film Festival’s Skyy Prize, while Israeli duo Shahar Cohen and Halil Efrat’s "Souvenirs" took best documentary feature (West Coast premiere), capping the Golden Gate Awards ceremony Wednesday evening for the festival’s landmark 50th edition.

Live from Fog City

Dennis Harvey
May 9, 2007

While the SF International Film Festival has always had celebrity guests, the 50th edition featured a particular concentration of unique one-offs.

SFIFF50, Diving In

Johnny Ray Huston
May 8, 2007

The 50th annual SF International Film Festival is as good a time to put forth an argument. Here’s one: The most compelling movie stars of the current era are athletes, and the most dynamic 21st-century cinema is sports cinema.

Hal Hartley, Not So Simple: Part II

Robert Avila
May 7, 2007

The Unbelievable Truth helped jumpstart the independent film movement in the U.S. in 1989, followed by eight more Hartley features in the next decade.

A "Flanders" Reader

Michael Guillen
May 6, 2007

As Bruno Dumont's Flanders navigates festival waters, it's been leaving behind a noticeable wake.

Film Society Awards Night

Brian Brooks/indieWIRE
May 4, 2007

If the Bay Area oozed self-regard last night, it couldn't exactly be blamed.

Film Society Awards Night

Brian Brooks/indieWIRE
May 4, 2007

If the Bay Area oozed self-regard last night, it couldn't exactly be blamed.

Spike Lee

Dennis Harvey
May 3, 2007

When then-unknown Spike Lee premiered She's Gotta Have It at the SF International in 1986, there was an instance of filmus interruptus.

Digital Festival

Michael Fox
May 2, 2007

Movies are shifting at mach speed from the theater to the home. The future is at hand.

Picturing Politics at SFIFF50

Robert Avila
May 1, 2007

A shot in Wonders Are Many makes visual reference to Guernica as shorthand for art's charge to speak for the voiceless.

Picturing Politics at SFIFF50

Robert Avila
May 1, 2007

A shot in Wonders Are Many makes visual reference to Guernica as shorthand for art's charge to speak for the voiceless.

Daniel Wu, Heavenly King

Jennifer Young
Apr 30, 2007

Daniel Wu and fictitious boy band Alive from his directorial debut The Heavenly Kings on Cantpop, the Bay Area, and Hong Kong film.

Daniel Wu, Heavenly King

Jennifer Young
Apr 30, 2007

Daniel Wu and fictitious boy band Alive from his directorial debut The Heavenly Kings on Cantpop, the Bay Area, and Hong Kong film.

SF360 Film Culture Confidential: Shhhhhh....

Staff
Apr 28, 2007

How did Kink.com make it to the Mission? How did Straight Outta Hunters Point get out of Hunters Point? How'd the Roxie get saved?

SFIFF50

Dennis Harvey
Apr 26, 2007

A decade might be long enough in dog years, but in film festival terms it takes a bit more time to impress.

SFIFF50

Dennis Harvey
Apr 26, 2007

A decade might be long enough in dog years, but in film festival terms it takes a bit more time to impress.

Kerry Laitala and Her New "Muse"

Katherin McInnis
Apr 25, 2007

The artist's filmsÑsensual, intricate, tactileÑare a magical combination of optical artistry, snippets of forgotten films, and bits of lace, tape, and glitter.

A Festival, a Half Century

B. Ruby Rich
Apr 24, 2007

Is there anyone who doesn't know that the San Francisco International Film Festival is turning 50 this month?

A Festival, a Half Century

B. Ruby Rich
Apr 24, 2007

Is there anyone who doesn't know that the San Francisco International Film Festival is turning 50 this month?

Jon Else On Acts of Creation

Michael Fox
Apr 23, 2007

Wonders Are Many: The Making of Doctor Atomic blends World War II history with composer John Adams and director Peter Sellars’ staging of a new opera on the subject.

Uyehara Hits High Notes on Music of SFIFF50

Sean Uyehara
Apr 20, 2007

Thinking about the upcoming SFIFF, music may not be the first thing that pops into your head. It may not even be the second.

Uyehara Hits High Notes on Music of SFIFF50

Sean Uyehara
Apr 20, 2007

Thinking about the upcoming SFIFF, music may not be the first thing that pops into your head. It may not even be the second.

SFIFF50-philes

Susan Gerhard
Apr 11, 2007



Just a week out of the SFIFF50 press conference at the Westin St. Francis, and the buzz has already had a chance to build. SF360.org checked in with a few friends in the San Francisco filmmaking scene to see what they’re looking forward to in the 50th edition of the SF International Film Festival. Big winners: Guy Maddin’s “Brand Upon the Brain!” and, of course, the live and in-person tribute to Spike Lee, who — as Strand Releasing’s Marcus Hu reminds us — returns to the Bay Area to receive his Film Society Directing Award in spite of the fact the projector broke during the premiere of “She’s Gotta Have It” at the SFIFF more than 20 years ago.



I’m eager to see Camila Guzman Urzula’s documentary “The Sugar Curtain” for perspectives on life in Cuba from those in their twenties and thirties. I’m curious about how a savvy film critic like Wesley Morris will interview Spike Lee. It will be a welcome occurrence to see two Black men talking on a US festival stage about film.
Cornelius Moore
California Newsreel



“Audience of One:” I know this year the festival is honoring Lucas and Coppola and those guys as local heroes, but really. Hollywood North? What happened? Now here is a group of makers, Pentacostals no less, working on a gargantuan bible epic right down on Ocean Avenue in the old El Rey Theatre. Now that’s hot!
Christian Bruno
Strand, A Natural History of Cinema



Although I’ve already seen it, I look forward to attending the one-off screening of Guy Maddin’s “Brand Upon the Brain!” since each live performance, by design, differs somewhat from the last. No self-respecting (or, for that matter, self-deprecating) cineaste should miss it. Beyond that, I’m particularly interested in Alain Resnais’ latest, “Coeurs” (i.e., “Private Fears in Public Places,” which, due to timing conflicts, I missed in Toronto), reuniting the director with the exceptional playwright Alan Ayckbourn. I remain quite fond of his recent films even if most folks in this country seem to disregard his work after “Mon oncle d’Amerique,” released over a quarter-century ago.
Jonathan Marlow
GreenCine



I love that SFIFF is honoring Spike Lee, I saw “She’s Gotta Have It” when it had its world premiere at SFIFF and remembered what an amazing experience that was when the projector broke!
Marcus Hu
Strand Releasing



I first started attending SFIFF in 1964 while still in high school. I saw the independent “The Luck of Ginger Coffey,” directed by Irvin Kershner and starring Robert Shaw, a fascinating documentary look at a country

S.F. International Announces Lineup for 50th

Susan Gerhard
Apr 4, 2007

The festival kicks off with Emanuele Crialese's Golden Door and closes with Olivier Dahan's Edith Piaf biopic, La vie en rose.

S.F. International Announces Lineup for 50th

Susan Gerhard
Apr 4, 2007

The festival kicks off with Emanuele Crialese's Golden Door and closes with Olivier Dahan's Edith Piaf biopic, La vie en rose.

Amanda Micheli's Wonder Women

Sean Uyehara
Apr 2, 2007

When Bay Area filmmaker Amanda Micheli approaches, you can see that she is an athlete. She's sure of herself.

The Critics and Antonioni

Max Goldberg
Mar 29, 2007

A look at critics' responses to Antonioni through the ages shows there is, and always was, plenty to say about his work.

The SF International's GreenWorld contest turns a big issue over to the makers of shorts

Miljenko Skoknic
Mar 21, 2007

The SFIFF GreenWorld Contest brings the vision of filmmakers to the forefront of environmental discourse through fiction, documentary, experimental, and essayistic films.

The SF International's GreenWorld contest turns a big issue over to the makers of shorts

Miljenko Skoknic
Mar 21, 2007

The SFIFF GreenWorld Contest brings the vision of filmmakers to the forefront of environmental discourse through fiction, documentary, experimental, and essayistic films.

A Royal Family

Susan Gerhard
Feb 21, 2007

It's a big week for Peter Morgan, partly because the SFFS announced he'll receive the Kanbar Award for excellence in screenwriting at the 50th SFIFF.

Key Events of 50th SFIFF Announced at Sundance

Susan Gerhard
Jan 23, 2007

Highlights of the upcoming festival were presented by the San Francisco Film Society Executive Director.

Second Look at 3rd I

Jennifer Young
Nov 14, 2006

Three days, nine films, eight shorts, and endless bliss courtesy of last weekend's fourth annual 3rd I South Asian Film Festival.

Cinema, New Italian Style

Michael Fox
Nov 9, 2006

The relationship between intellectualism and passion, a distinctly Italian concern, propels the 2006 edition of New Italian Cinema.

Truman Capote , 1974

Susan Gerhard
Nov 1, 2006

A visit to the 50th anniversary portion of San Francisco Film Society’s web site nets not just the real Truman Capote candidly essaying on life and the movies in a 1974 visit to the SF International Film Festival.

Academy Grant Jump Starts SF International's 50th

Susan Gerhard
Aug 23, 2006

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Academy Foundation bestowed a surprise grant of $150,000 over three years.

Night Listening with Patrick Stettner

indieWIRE
Aug 14, 2006

The director of The Business of Strangers talks about his second feature, starring Robin Williams.

Car Talk with Chris Paine

Susan Gerhard
Jul 11, 2006

SF360 talked to the director of Who Killed the Electric Car?, which opened last week, after his recent stop through the City.

A Conversation with Farmer John (Peterson)

Susan Gerhard
May 30, 2006

A conversation with John Peterson on his unusual farming practices, and the documentary that captures them.

Werner Herzog, Setting the Record Straight

Robert Avila
May 9, 2006

The 2006 recipient of the Film Society Directing Award was full of raised-finger pronouncements, self-effacing demurrals, and unsolicited rebuttals at a Q&A preceding his film.

San Francisco International Film Festival's Award Winners

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2006

A complete list of the winners of the Golden Gate Awards show, which was all about celebrating the city, with filmmakers of all genres saying a kind word or two about it.

San Francisco International Film Festival's Award Winners

Susan Gerhard
May 5, 2006

A complete list of the winners of the Golden Gate Awards show, which was all about celebrating the city, with filmmakers of all genres saying a kind word or two about it.

Tilda Swinton: The 2006 SFIFF "State of Cinema" Address

Marshall Plan
May 4, 2006

An address delivered by Tilda Swinton to an audience at the Kabuki Theatre on April 29, 2006, during the San Francisco International Film Festival.

Tilda Swinton: The 2006 SFIFF "State of Cinema" Address

Marshall Plan
May 4, 2006

An address delivered by Tilda Swinton to an audience at the Kabuki Theatre on April 29, 2006, during the San Francisco International Film Festival.

Addictive TV's VJ-style "Eye of the Pilot" at the Kabuki

Michael Fox
May 3, 2006

An intimate group caught Addictive TV's VJ-style show of ÔEye of the Pilot' at the Kabuki, and stayed late for an enthusiastic Q&A.

Addictive TV's VJ-style "Eye of the Pilot" at the Kabuki

Michael Fox
May 3, 2006

An intimate group caught Addictive TV's VJ-style show of ÔEye of the Pilot' at the Kabuki, and stayed late for an enthusiastic Q&A.

San Francisco International Film Festival, Week Two

Cheryl Eddy
May 1, 2006

The second week of the 49th SFIFF was packed with tributes and special events, luring diverse crowds with honorees like Werner Herzog and Ed Harris.

San Francisco International Film Festival, Week Two

Cheryl Eddy
May 1, 2006

The second week of the 49th SFIFF was packed with tributes and special events, luring diverse crowds with honorees like Werner Herzog and Ed Harris.

Words on work with Michael Glawogger

Michael Fox
May 1, 2006

A conversation with director Michael Glawogger on his film, Workingman's Death, which screens at the 2006 SFIFF.

Words on work with Michael Glawogger

Michael Fox
May 1, 2006

A conversation with director Michael Glawogger on his film, Workingman's Death, which screens at the 2006 SFIFF.

Unleash the Blogs, II

Susan Gerhard
Apr 30, 2006

Is it possible that Big Tilda in the real is bigger than Lucy Gray's larger-than-life projections of her onto City Hall?

Unleash the Blogs, II

Susan Gerhard
Apr 30, 2006

Is it possible that Big Tilda in the real is bigger than Lucy Gray's larger-than-life projections of her onto City Hall?

The Revolution Will Be Digitized?

Susan Gerhard
Apr 28, 2006

The revolution will not be televised, but it may be digitized, run through Final Cut Pro, and projected on the screen near you.

Choose Your Words

Robert Avila
Apr 27, 2006

Memorize these words that supposedly can bring you under government scrutiny when said over the phone, or written in a text message or email.

Andy Lau, The Magic Man

Jennifer Young
Apr 26, 2006

The Kabuki turned into a mosh pit at the Sunday screening of All About Love as Andy Lau's fans rushed the stage to greet him.

From Here to Iberia at SFIFF

Cheryl Eddy
Apr 25, 2006

Heroic firefighters, eerie simian costumes, a Baywatch star-as-activist, fierce flamenco dancers, and a rushing tide of watermelon juice.

From Here to Iberia at SFIFF

Cheryl Eddy
Apr 25, 2006

Heroic firefighters, eerie simian costumes, a Baywatch star-as-activist, fierce flamenco dancers, and a rushing tide of watermelon juice.

Unleash the Blogs

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2006

The S.F. International Film Festival opened the gates this year to an accredited citizen press corps of bloggers and vloggers.

Unleash the Blogs

Susan Gerhard
Apr 23, 2006

The S.F. International Film Festival opened the gates this year to an accredited citizen press corps of bloggers and vloggers.

Graham Leggat, SFIFF Executive Director, Indexed

Susan Gerhard
Apr 21, 2006

"I got a call out of the blue," Graham Leggat says, explaining how he left the Film Society of Lincoln Center for the left coast.

Masharawi Finds Palestinians In States of Suspended Animation

Robert Avila
Apr 20, 2006

Palestinian filmmaker Rashid Masharawi's Waiting intricately and ingeniously intertwines irony, humor, and pathos.

International REMIX

Susan Gerhard
Apr 19, 2006

If you haven't yet found your repurpose in life, SFIFF's International Remix site might be of use.

Tommy Pallotta's Reanimation of "A Scanner Darkly"

Daniel Cowles
Apr 18, 2006

The producer talks about the barriers filmmakers have faced in bringing Philip K. Dick's novel to the screen.

Picks for the San Francisco International Film Festival

Susan Gerhard
Mar 31, 2006

The List: B. Ruby Rich picks her favorites for the 2006 San Francisco International Film Festival.

Picks for the San Francisco International Film Festival

Susan Gerhard
Mar 31, 2006

The List: B. Ruby Rich picks her favorites for the 2006 San Francisco International Film Festival.

49th Annual SFIFF Lineup

Susan Gerhard
Mar 28, 2006

San Francisco International Film Festival announces lineup for the 49th annual festival.

49th Annual SFIFF Lineup

Susan Gerhard
Mar 28, 2006

San Francisco International Film Festival announces lineup for the 49th annual festival.

Sundance Cinemas Buys Kabuki 8

Susan Gerhard
Mar 24, 2006

Sundance Cinemas buys the Kabuki 8 and announces plans to reopen as the Sundance Kabuki in early fall 2006.