65th San Francisco International Film Festival lineup: Sundance hit ‘Cha Cha Real Smooth,’ Claire Denis’ ‘Both Sides of the Blade,’ special tribute to Michelle Yeoh
Today, SFFILM announced the full lineup for the 65th annual San Francisco International Film Festival, the longest running film festival in the Americas. The 2022 Festival will run April 21–May 1 and feature tributes to Michelle Yeoh, including a special screening of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
“Michelle Yeoh is a global icon, an indelible screen presence who grounds every frame she inhabits with authenticity and explosive talent,” says SFFILM Director of Programming Jessie Fairbanks. “We are thrilled the extraordinary Sandra Oh will host Michelle in conversation to discuss Michelle’s creative body of work, shifting gears between genres and storytelling mediums, and much, much more.” The Tribute to Michelle Yeoh joins the previously announced Tribute to Jenny Slate, both highlights at the 2022 Festival. Previous festival tributes include Jackie Chan, Claire Denis, Clint Eastwood, Akira Kurosawa, and Charlize Theron.
This year the Festival will make its return to theaters in person, with more than 130 films from 56 countries to be shown at landmark venues including the Castro Theatre, the Vogue Theater, the Roxie Theater, the Victoria Theatre and BAMPFA in Berkeley. Of the films selected for the Festival, 56% are helmed by female or non-binary filmmakers and 52% are directed by BIPOC filmmakers. The festival also retains several online components and panels covering issues ranging from accessibility in the American film industry, moderated by IndieWire’s Kristen Lopez, the state of cinema from the devastating impact of the global pandemic to momentous changes within the media industry, moderated by Zaki Hasan to the exploration of archival footage in documentary filmmaking, including the Oscar-nominated Attica and Oscar-winning Summer of Soul.
U.S. films feature a host of Sundance hits and winners like 892, starring John Boyega and Michael K. Williams (in his final film role) about a bank robbery gone awry, Cooper Raiff’s romantic comedy Cha Cha Real Smooth [review] in which he stars with Dakota Johnson, Aubrey Plaza in the comedy/thriller Emily the Criminal, about a woman driven by desperation to join a fraud ring who discovers she has a talent for crime, Palm Trees and Power Lines starring Jonathan Tucker, about the thrills and dangers of adolescent sexuality in this story of bored 17-year-old Lea played, by Lily McInerny, who meets a charismatic but potentially dangerous man twice her age.
International films will soar in San Francisco, with screenings of Terence Davies’ Benediction [review], starring Jack Lowdon as acclaimed antiwar poet Siegfried Sassoon, Claire Denis’ Berlin winner Both Sides of the Blade [review], reuniting her with Juliette Binoche to tell the passionate story of a woman torn between two men. Co-starring Vincent Lindon and Grégoire Colin and the Venice-winning Happening [review] from BAFTA Best Director nominee Audrey Diwan, about a bright literature student in 1960s France refuses to let an unwanted pregnancy shatter her life, and seeks an illegal abortion.
Tickets and passes are on sale now to SFFILM Members through Thursday, March 31. General on sale starts this Friday, April 1. Here is the complete lineup.
Opening Night: Stay Awake
Jamie Sisley (USA 2022, 94 min)
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
Thu, Apr 21 7:30 PM CASTRO
Rarely conveyed in the headlines decrying the opioid epidemic are the personal struggles of addicts’ daily fight for sobriety and the hopeful resilience of their families. For teenagers Derek (Fin Argus) and Ethan (Wyatt Oleff), the situation is all too familiar as they pace the streets searching for their painkiller-dependent mother, Michelle. This Is Us star Chrissy Metz delivers a nuanced portrayal of guilt and shame that fearlessly digs into the trauma of recovery, while newcomers Argus and Oleff infuse the film with vulnerability and unexpected humor. First-time feature director Jamie Sisley masterfully builds a relatable world full of characters that vibrate with authenticity in this powerful, SFFILM-supported drama that will stick with you long after you exit the theater.
Centerpiece: 892
Abi Damaris Corbin (USA 2022, 103 min)
Wed, Apr 27 7:30 PM CASTRO
When a routine transaction turns into a bank heist, two employees find themselves at the whim of a man pushed to the limit. John Boyega delivers a riveting performance as former Marine Brian Brown-Easley who holds up a Wells Fargo in feverish desperation after his monthly disability check fails to arrive. At turns verbose and volatile, Brian just wants to be heard in hopes Veteran Affairs will issue his payment. Abi Damaris Corbin directs with clinical precision, packing every scene with emotional complexity and each frame with relentless tension, as 892 reveals the plight of a forgotten veteran crushed under the wheels of bureaucracy. Featuring the final performance of the late Michael K. Williams, this true story will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Closing Night: Cha Cha Real Smooth
Cooper Raiff (USA 2022, 107 min)
Sat, Apr 30 7 PM CASTRO
Andrew is a sweet, talkative, and deeply ambivalent 22-year-old. Fresh out of college and living with his mother (Leslie Mann), Andrew finds his reckless charm makes him the ideal go-to party starter for the bar and bat mitzvahs in his Long Island hometown. Andrew soon befriends single mother, Domino (Dakota Johnson) and her daughter Lola, and their lives become deeply entwined during the endless revelry of coming-of-age parties. As Andrew falls for a homelife that has no room for him, he is forced to face his desires and motives. Cooper Raiff writes, directs, produces, and stars in this hilarious, unexpected, and buoyant story about the people we love and the loves that define us.
TRIBUTES
A Tribute to Jenny Slate
Fri, Apr 22 7:30 PM CASTRO
An actor, voice performer, and comedian, Jenny Slate spent a season on Saturday Night Live (2009-2010) before achieving viral success with Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2010), the first of three animated shorts. Over the last dozen years, Slate has successfully juggled roles in big-screen features, such as Obvious Child (Festival 2014), for which she received a Film Independent Spirit Award nomination; Landline (Festival 2017); and Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) with parts in series like Parks and Recreation and The Great North and voice work in Big Mouth and Bob’s Burgers. Join us for a conversation with Jenny Slate and a screening of the big-screen feature of Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2022).
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
Dean Fleischer-Camp (USA 2021, 90 min)
Poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, this feature expansion of the beloved web series features the titular mollusk (voiced by Jenny Slate) looking after his Nana Connie (Isabella Rossellini) and ruminating on his home life and missing family. Recommended for ages 9 and up.
A Tribute to Michelle Yeoh: In Conversation with Sandra Oh
Fri, Apr 29 6 PM CASTRO
Michelle Yeoh is recognized as one of the greatest and most successful actresses. From martial arts goddess to Bond Girl, Yeoh has graced the screen in myriad Hollywood blockbusters and shattered convention.
Yeoh’s extensive filmography is a collection of iconic roles, from Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Rob Marshall’s Memoirs of a Geisha, to Roger Spottiswoode’s Tomorrow Never Dies, Danny Boyle’s Sunshine, and John Chu’s romantic comedy, Crazy Rich Asians, the highest-grossing romantic comedy in the U.S. in the past 10 years. Additionally, she recently joined the Marvel stratosphere when she starred in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, one of the highest grossing films of 2021.
The acclaimed actress is poised to have a remarkable 2022, as she will soon be seen in the highly-anticipated Daniels’ feature, Everything Everywhere All At Once for A24 [review], premiering opening night at SXSW 2022. She will also reprise her role from James Cameron’s Avatar and will be seen in the forthcoming sequels as well as Paul Feig’s The School for Good and Evil and The Witcher Blood Origin for Netflix.
Rotten Tomatoes ranked Yeoh as the greatest action heroine of all time. She has been featured in People magazine’s annual “50 Most Beautiful People in the World” issue and the BBC featured her on their list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world.
In 2016, Yeoh was appointed Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations and is actively involved in sustainability and environmental efforts.
MUSIC + FILM
32 Sounds
Sam Green (USA 2022, 95 min)
Sun, Apr 24 7:30 PM CASTRO
Festival favorite Sam Green returns with this immersive documentary, a poem in audio and images that explores the effect of sound on our lives, narrated by the filmmaker with a live score by JD Samson.
Land of Gold
Jon Else (USA 2021, 82 min)
Thu, Apr 28 7:30 PM CASTRO
Soprano Julia Bullock mesmerizes in this entrancing documentary that brings to vivid life John Adams’ and Peter Sellars‘ opera Girls of the Golden West and the Gold Rush era that inspired it. SFFILM’s free screening of Land of Gold is presented in partnership with SF Opera and the Castro Theatre, both celebrating their centenary anniversaries. The film will be preceded by a performance from members of the Opera’s Adler Fellows program, a multi-year residency for opera’s most promising young artists. This is a Community Screening with free admission. RSVP required at [sffilm.org].
DOCUMENTARIES: INTERNATIONAL
Children of the Mist
Diễm Hà Lệ (Vietnam 2021, 93 min)
Fri, Apr 22 5:30 PM VOGUE
Sat, Apr 23 3 PM BAMPFA
Living in isolation from the modern world in the mountains of Vietnam, feisty Hmong teenager Di must decide if she will succumb to tradition or bravely choose a different fate.
The Devil’s Drivers
Mohammed Abugeth, Daniel Carsenty (Qatar/France/Lebanon/Germany 2021, 93 min)
Mon, Apr 25 8:30 PM ROXIE
“On the left side is Israel; on the right side is Palestine.” Drivers Hamouda and Ismail risk prison or worse to smuggle Palestinian workers into Israel through gaps in the border wall.
La Guerra Civil
Eva Longoria Bastón (UK/USA/Mexico 2022, 102 min)
Sat, Apr 23 12 PM VICTORIA
Sun, Apr 24 7:45 PM BAMPFA
The legendary boxing rivalry between Mexican Julio César Chávez and Mexican American Oscar De La Hoya sets the stage for an examination of identity, tradition, and nationality in Eva Longoria Bastón’s gripping documentary.
Midwives
Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing (Myanmar/Canada/Germany 2022, 89 min)
Amidst Myanmar’s escalating civil war, a Buddhist midwife and her Muslim apprentice overcome personal and professional differences to care for their patients at a village clinic in this nuanced documentary.
Mon, Apr 25 6 PM ROXIE
Sun, May 1 2:30 PM BAMPFA
No Simple Way Home
Akuol de Mabior (South Sudan/Kenya/South Africa 2022, 85 min)
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
Sat, Apr 23 8:30 PM VOGUE
First-time filmmaker Akuol de Mabior examines the legacy of her father, John Garang de Mabior, revered as the founding father of South Sudan.
Nothing Compares
Kathryn Ferguson (UK/Ireland 2022, 97 min)
Fri, Apr 29 8:45 PM VICTORIA
Profiling Irish singer-songwriter Sinéad O’Connor’s speedy rise to fame and ensuing controversial stances, this documentary serves as an essential reminder of just how ahead of her time she was.
DOCUMENTARIES: USA
Bitterbrush
Emelie Mahdavian (USA 2021, 91 min)
Sun, Apr 24 5:30 PM VICTORIA
Seasonal cattlewomen Hollyn and Colie contemplate their itinerant lives as they herd livestock through the majestic mountain ranges of the American West in this illuminating observational documentary.
Black Mothers Love & Resist
Débora Souza Silva (USA 2022, 102 min)
WORLD PREMIERE
Fri, Apr 29 8:30 PM ROXIE
Wanda Johnson and Angela Williams, mothers of young Black men victimized by police brutality, come together and build a network of community-led support, mutual aid, and healing in this trenchant documentary.
The Exiles
Violet Columbus, Ben Klein (USA/Taiwan/France/China 2021, 96 min)
Sat, Apr 23 3 PM VICTORIA
Sun, Apr 24 2 PM BAMPFA
Never-before-seen footage of Chinese dissidents enmeshed in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and their bittersweet reflections 30 years later anchor this hybrid of cine-memoir and archival excavation focused on Who Killed Vincent Chin? documentary firebrand Christine Choy.
Fire of Love
Sara Dosa (USA/Canada 2021, 93 min)
Sat, Apr 23 1 PM CASTRO
Sun, APR 24 5 PM BAMPFA
A couple’s passion for one another is inextricably bound with the explosive geology that is their life’s work in this stunning documentary portrait of volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft narrated by Miranda July.
I Didn’t See You There
Reid Davenport (USA 2022, 76 min)
Fri, Apr 29 6 PM VICTORIA
Sat, Apr 30 3 PM BAMPFA
Oakland resident, filmmaker, and disability activist Reid Davenport reflects on matters of visibility, family, and the freak show in his latest personal documentary, winner of Sundance’s Directing Award for US Documentary.
The Janes
Tia Lessin, Emma Pildes (USA 2022, 101 min)
Sat, Apr 30 6 PM VICTORIA
Timely and fascinating, this examination of a 1960s-era underground abortion collective is a meditation on national anxieties and a capsule of unsung heroes.
Jeannette
Maris Curran (USA 2022, 78 min)
WORLD PREMIERE
Sat, Apr 23 3:15 PM ROXIE
Filmed in striking vérité, this portrait of competitive bodybuilder and queer single mother Jeannette unfolds as a nuanced story about coping with trauma in the wake of the Pulse Nightclub shooting.
Master of Light
Rosa Ruth Boesten (USA/Netherlands 2022, 84 min)
Sun, Apr 24 2:45 PM VOGUE
Classical painter George Anthony Morton strives for success while struggling to reacclimate to his Kansas City hometown and reconnect with family members after a period of incarceration.
Mija
Isabel Castro (USA 2022, 88 min)
Thu, Apr 28 5:30 PM VICTORIA
Young Mexican American music manager Doris Muñoz strives to support her undocumented family while defining her own career as a musician and discovering new talent in singer-songwriter Jacks Haupt.
Navalny
Daniel Roher (USA/Germany/Russia 2022, 98 min)
Sat, Apr 23 4:30 PM CASTRO
During a flight from Siberia to Moscow in August 2020, someone poisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny with a deadly nerve agent. This riveting documentary explores the question of who tried to kill him and why.
Riotsville, USA
Sierra Pettengill (USA 2022, 91 min)
Sun, Apr 24 12:30 PM VICTORIA
Sun, May 1 4:30 PM BAMPFA
This stunning essay film employs a treasure trove of archival US military recordings and 1960s broadcast TV as the foundation for a piercing interrogation into the origins of the militarization of American police.
Sell/Buy/Date
Sarah Jones (USA 2022, 97 min)
Sun, Apr 24 5:30 PM VOGUE
Tony Award®-winning performer and playwright Sarah Jones transforms and updates her solo show into a richly empathetic hybrid documentary as she travels the country to interview real-life sex workers. Executive produced by Meryl Streep.
The Thief Collector
Allison Otto (USA 2022, 94 min)
Fri, Apr 22 5:30 PM VICTORIA
A surreal 20th-century mystery unfolds in this fascinating documentary that unpacks the audacious 1985 heist of a Willem de Kooning painting from an Arizona museum and its shocking recovery 32 years later.
TikTok, Boom.
Shalini Kantayya (USA 2022, 90 min)
Sat, Apr 30 3 PM VICTORIA
For young people, TikTok is the most popular platform for creating personalized content. But behind the cute videos lurk issues of censorship and data mining. This documentary deftly explores both sides of the TikTok boom.
We Feed People
Ron Howard (USA 2022, 90 min)
Sat, Apr 23 5:30 PM VOGUE
Acclaimed director Ron Howard helms this uplifting documentary profiling renowned chef José Andrés and the World Central Kitchen, his nonprofit dedicated to feeding people in the wake of natural and humanitarian catastrophes.
NARRATIVES: INTERNATIONAL
Benediction
Terence Davies (UK 2021, 137 min)
U.S. Premiere
Fri, Apr 29 4 PM BAMPFA
Sat, Apr 30 3 PM CASTRO
Terence Davies separates man from myth in his masterly portrait of acclaimed antiwar poet Siegfried Sassoon, employing archival footage, gleefully catty dialogue, and an artful crosscutting between the different eras of his subject’s fraught and complex life.
Both Sides of the Blade
Claire Denis (France 2022, 116 min)
Sat, Apr 23 8 PM CASTRO
Master director Claire Denis reunites with Juliette Binoche to tell the passionate story of a woman torn between two men. Co-starring Vincent Lindon and Grégoire Colin, the film is scored by Denis regular Stuart Staples.
The Box
Lorenzo Vigas (Mexico/USA 2021, 93 min)
Sun, Apr 24 5 PM ROXIE
A simple trip to recover his father’s remains evolves into an eye-opening introduction to the insidious world of factory labor for teenager Hatzin when he meets local promoter Mario.
Costa Brava, Lebanon
Mounia Akl (Lebanon/France/Spain/Sweden/Denmark/Norway/Qatar 2021, 106 min)
Sun, Apr 24 12 PM VOGUE
Sat, Apr 30 5:30 PM BAMPFA
Set in the near future but reflecting on current crises in present-day Lebanon, this tense debut portrays three generations of the Badri family, who have retreated from the chaos of Beirut to a rural homestead.
The Cow Who Sang a Song Into the Future
Francisca Alegría (Chile/France/USA/Germany 2022, 93 min)
Thu, Apr 28 8:30 PM ROXIE
In her debut feature, director Francisca Alegría creates a magical realist tale of familial legacy and loss, set against a backdrop of environmental decline.
The Employer and the Employee
Manolo Nieto (Uruguay/Argentina/Brazil/France 2021, 110 min)
Sun, Apr 24 8:30 PM VICTORIA
In this slow-burning drama, the dynamics of money and power play out between two young fathers in the wake of a tragedy on a Uruguayan farm.
Fire on the Plain
Zhang Ji (China 2021, 113 min)
Sun, Apr 24 8:45 PM VOGUE
Thu, Apr 28 8 PM BAMPFA
The son of a local gangster and daughter of a factory worker conspire to flee their desperate lives as a serial killer runs rampant in this Chinese social realist neo-noir.
The Gravedigger’s Wife
Khadar Ayderus Ahmed (Finland/Germany/France 2021, 83 min)
Sun, Apr 24 8 PM ROXIE
A loving husband takes to the road to ask for financial help from extended family when chronic kidney disease threatens his wife’s life in this warm and humanistic drama.
Happening
Audrey Diwan (France 2021, 100 min)
Fri, Apr 22 7 PM BAMPFA
Sat, Apr 23 6 PM VICTORIA
A bright literature student in 1960s France refuses to let an unwanted pregnancy shatter her life, and seeks an illegal abortion in this powerful drama adapted from Annie Ernaux’s memoir.
Hatching
Hanna Bergholm (Finland 2021, 87 min)
Wed, Apr 27 8:45 PM ROXIE
A young gymnast copes with her mother’s overwhelming demands by caring for a large, mysterious egg. When it hatches, things quickly get out of hand.
The Hill Where Lionesses Roar
Luàna Bajrami (Kosovo/France 2021, 83 min)
Sat, Apr 23 2:45 PM VOGUE
A trio of lifelong Kosovar friends facing dead-end futures hatches a wild plan that promises an ecstatic moment of freedom and maybe much more in this luminous coming-of-age tale.
Hit the Road
Panah Panahi (Iran 2021, 94 min)
Fri, Apr 22 8:30 PM VOGUE
Sat, Apr 23 5:30 PM BAMPFA
In Panah Panahi’s auspicious feature debut, an eccentric family takes a road trip through sun-drenched Iranian landscapes as they accompany their eldest son to a mysterious destination.
Întregalde
Radu Muntean (Romania 2021, 104 min)
Wed, Apr 27 8:45 PM VICTORIA
Sat, Apr 30 7:45 PM BAMPFA
Wryly funny and suspenseful, this Cannes hit portrays a trio of Romanian aid workers whose SUV gets stuck on a logging road in remote Transylvania.
Lo Invisible
Javier Andrade (Ecuador/France 2021, 85 min)
Sat, Apr 30 9:15 PM VICTORIA
In her opulent home in the Ecuadorian countryside, Luisa sinks further and further into a forlorn state brought on by a bout with postpartum depression.
Klondike
Maryna Er Gorbach (Ukraine/Turkey 2022, 100 min)
Fri, Apr 22 8:30 PM VICTORIA
Sun, May 1 7 PM BAMPFA
Armed conflict hits home in the most vivid way imaginable when mortar fire decimates one wall of the farmhouse belonging to married Ukrainian couple Irka and Tolik in this striking drama based on real events.
Mars One
Gabriel Martins (Brazil 2022, 115 min)
Fri, Apr 22 8:45 PM ROXIE
Sat, Apr 23 7:45 PM BAMPFA
Featuring four vibrant characters from working-class Brazil, this tender film is a delightful portrait of a mutually nurturing family who dares to dream.
Neptune Frost
Anisia Uzeyman, Saul Williams (Rwanda/USA 2021, 105 min)
Sat, Apr 23 8:45 PM ROXIE
Wed, Apr 27 7 PM BAMPFA
Replete with mind-altering visual and sonic imagery, this Afrofuturist mélange of music, poetry, and resistance is hypnotic and visionary in its depiction of a genderqueer community of hackers and techno poets.
Private Desert
Aly Murituba (Brazil 2021, 121 min)
Mon, Apr 25 8:30 PM VICTORIA
In this passionate melodrama reflecting on toxic masculinity, a police officer from southern Brazil facing brutality charges travels north to find his internet love Sara, only to be shocked by her flesh-and-blood reality.
Sonne
Kurdwyn Ayub (Austria 2022, 88 min)
Sat, Apr 30 5 PM ROXIE
When three teenage girlfriends make a home music video to R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion,” their moment of uninhibited camaraderie becomes an unexpected viral sensation in Vienna.
Sublime
Mariano Biasin (Argentina 2022, 97 min)
Sat, Apr 23 9 PM VICTORIA
Irresistible garage rock enhances this winning coming-of-age tale as teenage bass player Manu, swept up in a cascade of emotions and hormones, falls in love with his BFF and bandmate Felipe.
Sun & Daughter
Catalina Razzini (Bolivia/Spain/Germany 2021, 84 min)
Sat, Apr 23 12 PM VOGUE
At Lake Titicaca in the mountains of Bolivia, 10-year-old Lucia concocts a mythical reunion with her father, who is away working in La Paz.
Utama
Alejandro Loayza Grisi (Bolivia/Uruguay/France 2022, 87 min)
Sun, Apr 24 3 PM VICTORIA
Thu, Apr 28 6 PM BAMPFA
A long drought parching their Bolivian highlands homeland endangers an elderly Quechua llama herder and his wife’s way of life in this intricate examination of the relationship between land and humanity.
Wet Sand
Elene Naveriani (Switzerland/Georgia 2021, 115 min)
Sat, Apr 30 12 PM VICTORIA
A granddaughter returns to her reclusive grandfather’s seaside village in Georgia after his suicide to organize his funeral only to discover his long-suppressed secret love in this meditative drama about small-town prejudice.
NARRATIVES: USA
Emily the Criminal
John Patton Ford (USA 2022, 97 min)
Fri, Apr 29 8:30 PM CASTRO
Aubrey Plaza delivers a pitch-perfect performance as a woman driven by desperation to join a fraud ring who discovers she has a talent for crime in this taut thriller, leavened by bursts of mordant humor.
Montana Story
Scott McGehee, David Siegel (USA 2021, 113 min)
Thu, Apr 28 8:30 PM VICTORIA
Haley Lu Richardson and Owen Teague are magnificent as estranged siblings who return to their dying father’s ranch in this incredibly moving drama about healing and moving forward.
Over/Under
Sophia Silver (USA 2021, 88 min)
WORLD PREMIERE
Sat, Apr 30 2 PM ROXIE
Tweens Violet and Stella spend idyllic summers at camp and the beach. As time passes, personalities and bodies evolve in this thoughtful and elegiac indie drama about the everlasting bond of female friendship. Recommended for ages 11 and up.
Palm Trees and Power Lines
Jamie Dack (USA 2022, 110 min)
Wed, Apr 27 5:30 PM VICTORIA
Director Jamie Dack depicts the thrills and dangers of adolescent sexuality in this story of bored 17-year-old Lea, who meets a charismatic but potentially dangerous man twice her age.
MID-LENGTHS
American Justice on Trial
Andrew Abrahams, Herb U. Ferrette, II (USA 2022, 40 min)
WORLD PREMIERE
Fri, Apr 22 6 PM ROXIE
This gripping documentary revisits the 1968 Huey Newton trial, one of the most important moments in American judicial history that changed the court system. Screens with For Love and Legacy (dir. A.K. Sandhu) and Men Who Talk (dir. Cristin Stephens). Total runtime 74 min.
Ayoungman
Holly Fortier, Larry Day (Canada 2021, 38 min)
WORLD PREMIERE
Wed, Apr 27 6 PM ROXIE
In the wake of the racially motivated murder of 24-year-old Kristian Ayoungman, the Siksika Nation comes together in this portrait of unity and resilience. Screens with Anshan Diaries (dir. Charles Dong) and My Duduś (dir. Tom Krawczyk). Total runtime 74 min.
Mud Water
My-Linh Le (USA 2021, 31 min)
WORLD PREMIERE
Fri, Apr 29 5:45 PM ROXIE
Myth, naturalism, and performance blend in this lively chronicle of a Bay Area dance crew preparing for a major battle in turfing, a dance style originated in Oakland. Screens with The Door of Return (dir. Kokutekeleza Musebeni, Anna Zhukovets) and Listen to the Beat of Our Images (dir. Audrey Jean-Baptiste, Maxime Jean-Baptiste). Total runtime 76 min.
My Dear
Aragon Yao (Portugal 2021, 30 min)
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
Sat, Apr 23 6 PM ROXIE
Shifting between observational footage, paper puppetry, and poetic symbolism, a young Chinese filmmaker explores expressions of sexual identity in this essay about queerness, immigration, and performance. Screens with cosboi (dir. Gosha Shapiro) and Blue Veil (dir. Shireen Alihaji). Total runtime 50 min.
The Time of the Fireflies
Mattis Appelqvist Dalton, Matteo Robert Morales (Mexico/USA/Belgium 2021, 52 min)
Sat, Apr 30 7:30 PM ROXIE
Miguel left his family behind in Mexico 13 years ago. Now, trapped between his memories and his determination to provide, he struggles to forge a path in New York. Screens with Busan, 1999 (dir. Thomas Kim) and Fanmi (dir. Sandrine Brodeur-Desrosiers, Carmine Pierre-Dufour). Total runtime 77 min.
SHORTS
Shorts 1
Sat, Apr 23 12 PM ROXIE
Eight stories weave the connective tissue between one’s identity and the family that helps shape it, for better and for worse, as seen through the eyes of lost children, wayward adults, and those enduring uncontrollable forces demanding who or where we’re supposed to be. Total Runtime: 97 min.
Alma y Paz (dir. Cris Gris)
Dear Chantal (dir. Nicolás Pereda)
Half-Day (dir. Morgan Mathews)
How Small! (dir. Charlene Xu)
My Parent, Neal (dir. Hannah Saidiner)
Nasir (dir. Nasir Bailey, Jackson Kroopf)
Some Still Search (dir. Nesaru Tchaas)
tough (dir. Taylor Ferguson)
Shorts 2
Tue, Apr 26 5:30 PM ROXIE
Bodies dance, flesh becomes pliable, cycles repeat, and hey, does that face in front of you look familiar? This mix of animated and new visions shorts upends traditional approaches to storytelling, and features work from Latvia, France, China, French Guiana, the UK, and the US. Total Runtime: 84 min.
Anxious Body (dir. Yoriko Mizushiri)
Don’t Get Too Comfortable (dir. Shaima Al Tamimi)
Ever Wanting (for Margaret Chung) (dir. TT Takemoto)
Isn’t It a Beautiful World (dir. Joseph Wilson)
Life Is a Particle Time Is a Wave (dir. Daniel Zvereff)
Norma (dir. Max Weinman)
Sierra (dir. Sander Joon)
Still Life (dir. Conner Griffith)
Thanks Again! (dir. Yifan Jiang)
Shorts 3
Sun, Apr 24 2 PM ROXIE
From the sleepy suburbs of northern California to the vibrant streets of Panama, dramatic and oftentimes fateful occurrences transform the lives of a young indigenous woman, the daughter of the first Black Miss Panama, a New Orleans hair stylist, and more. Total Runtime: 93 min.
BABYBANGZ (dir. Juliana Kasumu)
Holding Moses (dir. Rivkah Beth Medow)
Long Line of Ladies (dir. Rayka Zehtabchi, Shaadiin Tome)
Miss Panama (dir. Lamar Bailey Karamañites, Pascale Boucicaut)
Tuesday Afternoon (dir. Pete Quandt)
Shorts 4
Thu, Apr 28 5:30 PM ROXIE
Our past has something to say, if only we are prepared to listen. From distant loves to cryogenic preservation, this collection of narrative and non-fiction shorts from around the world features stories of the past made present again. Total Runtime: 102 min.
Another Life to Live (dir. Ian Adelson, RJ Brown)
Charlotte (dir. Zach Dorn)
Hannah’s Biography (dir. Patricia Lee)
Letter to a Pig (dir. Tal Kantor)
Love, Dad (dir. Diana Cam Van Nguyen)
Masquerade (dir. Olive Nwosu)
My Grandmother Is an Egg (dir. Wu-Ching Chang)
Successful Thawing of Mr. Moro (dir. Jerry Carlsson)
Shorts 5
Tue, Apr 26 8:30 PM ROXIE
Hailing from all over the world, this eclectic mix of films takes its protagonists on journeys that grant them a better understanding of who they are. From realistic to surreal, each short is as riveting as it is compelling. Total Runtime: 103 min.
All Nighter (dir. Hardik Sadhwani, Ritviq Joshi)
All the Crows in the World (dir. Yi Tang)
Be Somebody (dir. Edelawit Hussien)
Empty Hands (dir. Paolo Marinou-Blanco)
Enjoy (dir. Saul Abraham)
Live (dir. Baggio Jiang)
Shorts 6: Family Films
Sat, Apr 23 10 AM CASTRO
Providing a little something for everyone, this captivating collection of animated, documentary, and narrative shorts spans the globe. Taking us from the moon’s surface to the sacred lands of the Navajo Nation, these films find moments of deep connection in unexpected ways. Recommended for ages 5 and up. Total Runtime: 71 min.
Battery Daddy (dir. Seung-bae Jeon)
Dream Carriers (dir. Esmeralda Hernandez)
Intervals (dir. Mitchelle Tamariz)
Mama Has a Mustache (dir. Sally Rubin)
The Ocean Duck (dir. Huda Razzak)
‘Ohana and ‘Āina: Connecting Family, Farming, and Freedom (dir. Jade Onaka, Joel Serin-Christ)
Mr. Spam Gets a New Hat (dir. William Joyce)
Space Race (dir. Shane Dioneda)
The Trails Before Us (dir. Fritz Bitsoie)
Shorts 7: Youth Works
Sat, Apr 30 11 AM ROXIE
With resilience, determination, and consideration, young filmmakers breathe life into filmmaking’s future. Through cerebral period pieces, zany parallel futures, and deeply personal and innovative recollections of growing up, this mix of animation, narrative, and documentary introduces a bold yet nuanced approach to storytelling. Recommended for ages 10 and up. Total Runtime: 69 min.
Avi: From the North (dir. Avi Maksagak)
Beth (dir. Ava Bounds)
Freshman Year (dir. Bea Hammam, Sydney Kaufman)
Honeybee (dir. Emilio Vazquez Reyes)
Incursion (dir. Noah Lillywhite, Kai Willey)
Moments (dir. Hurshida Sherkulova, Evgeniya Papina)
Performance Anxiety (dir. Shaina Ocampo)
Pho (dir. Ethan Chu)
Think Like a Filmmaker (dir. Eli Berliner)
Unzipped (dir. Jenna Miller)
ONLINE EVENTS
CROSSINGS: Navigating Visibility
Tue, Apr 26 4 PM VIRTUAL AT SFFILM.ORG
Accessibility in the American film industry is limited, inconsistent, and frequently nonexistent. Too often, our colleagues are overlooked or marginalized to the point of invisibility. Beyond identifying growth areas and increasing representation on screen, how can we create a fully accessible film industry? Join us for this special discussion where we explore radically needed shifts to industry standards, economic paradigms, and creative inclusivity.
Featuring Dawn Valadez (filmmaker), Emily Smith Beitiks (Associate Director, Paul K. Longmore Institute on Disability at San Francisco State University), Lawrence Carter-Long (Director Of Communications, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund-DREDF), Reid Davenport (filmmaker, Festival 2022), and Asha Phelps (Administrative & Operations Manager, IFC Center). Moderated by Kristen Lopez.
SHIFTING LANDSCAPES: The State of Cinema
Wed, Apr 27 6:30 PM VIRTUAL AT SFFILM.ORG
Filmmakers are no strangers to challenges. From the devastating impact of the global pandemic to momentous changes within the media industry, the last few years have altered the future of cinema and storytelling. Join us as we gather influential industry professionals and impassioned thought leaders to discuss the state of cinema today and tomorrow and explore innovative strategies and opportunities for filmmakers to endure and thrive.
Featuring Ryan Werner (Head of Marketing and PR, Cinetic), Karin Chien (Producer), Molly O’ Brien (NBCUniversal, Head of Documentary), and Sonya Childress (Color Congress). Moderated by Zaki Hasan.
KEEP IT BRIEF: Short Films on the Rise
Wed, Apr 27 4 PM VIRTUAL AT SFFILM.ORG
Once thought merely as steppingstones to feature films, short films are pushing their way into today’s crowded media landscape and distinguishing themselves from their “taller” counterparts with vivid and concise storytelling. With the abundance of short film festivals, online offerings, streaming services, and public television, there are more ways than ever to view shorts, but is this sustainable for filmmakers seeking funding and audiences seeking content? This panel’s distinguished guests will delve into the current and future state of short-format cinema.
Featuring Nicolás Pereda (Dear Chantal); director Adrian Burrell whose short, The Game God(s), is streaming on The New Yorker; Natalie Jasmine Harris whose short, Pure, is streaming on HBO Max; Christine Kecher, the Senior Commissioning Editor for the New York Times’ Op-Docs shorts channel; and Diana Sánchez Maciel, the Head of Programming and Acquisitions for the online short film platform Argo.
Archival Footage in Documentary Filmmaking
Tue, Apr 26 5 PM VIRTUAL AT SFFILM.ORG
Key elements in documentary filmmaking, found and archival footage recontextualize history in exciting and innovative fashion, whether bringing to light the real story of the 1971 Attica Prison uprising or showcasing an all-but-forgotten 1969 Harlem music festival. The filmmakers taking part in this talk have employed this material to narrate the lives of volcanologists, spin the stories of musicians, and revisit the career of an outspoken filmmaker and her involvement in Chinese politics and culture.
Expected panelists: Violet Columbus and Ben Klein (The Exiles, Festival 2022), Sara Dosa (Fire of Love, Festival 2022), Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine (Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song, 2021), and Penny Lane (Listening to Kenny G, 2021).
MOVIE MAGIC: How the Music Gets Made
See sffillm.org for date + time
Music looms large in making a film; a score or a soundtrack is as integral to capturing a viewer’s attention and emotions as the imagery onscreen. What is the relationship between music and the larger story? How do a director and composer collaborate to create a mood? How does music work within the larger soundscape of a film? This panel will explore these questions and more as it delves into the alchemical effect of music on film.
Featuring Isabel Castro (filmmaker, Festival 2022), Helado Negro (composer, Festival 2022), Saul Williams (musician and filmmaker, Festival 2022), Academy Award-nominated composer Emile Mosseri, and more.
HOMEBASE: A Spotlight on Bay Area Talent
Mon, Apr 25 4 PM VIRTUAL AT SFFILM.ORG
The Bay Area is the film industry’s hidden gem. In what is sure to be a lively and insightful conversation, local filmmakers and film organization leaders will highlight their exceptional work, discuss the Bay Area film scene’s shifting landscape, illuminate how the community rooted here shapes the creation of art and film, and share insights and resources that have strengthened their work.
Featuring Morgan Matthews, Débora Souza Silva (filmmaker, Festival 2022), Patricia Lee, Adam Bergeron. Moderated by Rosa Morales.
Golden Gate Awards Ceremony
Join us for a virtual presentation of the 2022 SFFILM Golden Gate Awards. Including our juried awards for shorts, mid-lengths, documentaries, new directors, Cine Latino, and other special designations, this live-streamed event will feature SFFILM staff and filmmakers from the festival. Also, don’t miss repeat screenings of the award-winning films.
Saturday, April 30, 11 am (Online Only)
FAMILY WORKSHOPS
Family Workshop: Disney+’s Sketchbook
WORLD PREMIERE
SUN, MAY 1 1 PM THE WALT DISNEY FAMILY MUSEUM
In the new instructional documentary series Disney+’s Sketchbook, making its world premiere at SFFILM Festival, Disney+ viewers receive an intimate glimpse into the lives of talented artists and animators. Each episode focuses on a single artist teaching us how to draw a single iconic character from a Walt Disney Animation Studios film. As we learn the steps to drawing these characters, we also discover that the artists themselves each have unique stories to tell about how they joined Disney and their chosen character. This workshop will include two full episodes featuring artists Gabby Capili and Eric Goldberg. A Q+A with the artists and the directors behind the production will follow. Gabby and Eric will finish with a live drawing activity featuring some of their favorite characters. Be sure to bring paper and pencils with you to draw along.
Presented in partnership with the Walt Disney Family Museum. Recommended for ages 7 and up. Ticket price does not include museum admission.
Total Run Time (TRT) 90 min
Family Workshop: Drawings, Books and Movies: The Short Films and Large Whimsies of William Joyce
Sun, Apr 24 11 AM ROXIE
Artist William Joyce has worn many hats throughout a creative career that has included authoring and illustrating 50 bestselling children’s books, pioneering in digital animation, and founding an Academy Award®-winning studio. In this workshop, Bill will present a few SFFILM favorites, including the Oscar®-winning The Fantastic Flying Books of Morris Lessmore. He will also screen his latest creation, Mr. Spam Gets a New Hat, offering a peek behind the curtain as he explains how he and his partners at DNEG Animation and Epic Games crafted this silent, Technicolor wonder that celebrates creativity and the films of yesteryear. The program will finish with Bill leading a live drawing activity featuring some of the favorite characters he has created. Be sure to bring paper and pencils with you to draw along.
Recommended for ages 7 and up.
Total Run Time (TRT) 90 min
2022 San Francisco International Film Festival (SFFILM Festival)
Founded in 1957, the San Francisco International Film Festival (SFFILM Festival) is the longest-running film festival in the Americas. The 11 day event features a range of marquee premieres, international competitions, compelling documentaries, new digital media work, live music performances, and dazzling red carpet events. The SFFILM Festival is deeply rooted in the culture and process of film appreciation—film as an art form and as a meaningful agent for social change—and is an important showcase for the most searching and innovative films from around the globe. The 65th edition runs April 21–May 1, 2022.
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
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