‘Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back’ to Close 69th San Francisco International Film Festival (SFFILM) at The Castro Theatre

Today, SFFILM announced Closing Night of the 69th San Francisco International Film Festival with a very special Star Wars Day screening of Star Wars: Episode V— The Empire Strikes Back. 

The event is presented at the newly renovated Castro Theatre in collaboration with storied Bay Area entertainment leaders Lucasfilm and Another Planet Entertainment. Actor Anthony Daniels, who has portrayed the legendary golden droid C-3PO in every film of the Star Wars Saga, will join for an onstage conversation with his lifelong friend, Lucasfilm veteran and SFFILM Board Vice President Howard Roffman. Roffman’s three decades of work on the Star Wars franchise helped redefine merchandise licensing as we know it today.

Closing Night takes place on Monday, May 4, 2026 at 7:00 pm at The Castro Theatre. Tickets will go on sale exclusively for SFFILM Members tomorrow, February 4, and to the general public on Friday, February 6. The full program for the SFFILM Festival will be announced on April 1.

“No other movie has had more global, cultural, and generational influence than Star Wars, and it all started right here in the Bay Area,” said Anne Lai, Executive Director of SFFILM. “We are thrilled to close the 69th San Francisco International Film Festival with The Empire Strikes Back in the beautifully renovated Castro Theatre. This collaboration with Lucasfilm and Another Planet Entertainment not only celebrates our shared cinema history but, more importantly, will bring audiences together to experience film in as grand a way as possible. What could be a better backdrop for a space opera?”

“Teaming up with SFFILM and Lucasfilm to present The Empire Strikes Back feels like the perfect way to celebrate this moment, ” said Gregg Perloff, Another Planet Entertainment, CEO and Co-Founder . “Bringing audiences together for a Star Wars Day screening in this beautifully restored theatre honors both the Bay Area’s deep connection to the Star Wars saga and APE’s commitment to revitalizing this iconic venue. After years of dedicated work to restore the Castro Theatre, we’re proud to host an event that brings the community together around the magic of movies on the big screen.

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Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

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), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) 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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