Cinespot : 52nd San Francisco International Film Festival

52nd San Francisco International Film Festival

The San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF52) opens its 52nd year with an inspired array of films from around the globe and a broad range of accompanying festivities. SFIFF52 opens April 23 and runs through May 7, with over 150 films from more than 50 countries, including four world premieres, eight North American premieres, four U.S. premieres and 47 West Coast premieres.

This year, a number of Asian films will be screened, including Hong Kong films Claustrophobia, The Beast Stalker, Japanese film Still Walking, Chinese films Good Cats, River People, Taiwanese film Artemisia, Korean films Go Go 70s, Hansel and Gretel and a few more.

Opening, Centerpiece and Closing Nights

Opening Night begins at 7:00 pm at the historic Castro Theatre, where the curtain rises on Peter Bratt's stirring second feature, La Mission (USA), a compelling redemptive drama about the powerful ties of family and community. The film, which was shot in San Francisco's colorful Mission District, is a powerful story of transformation and reconciliation, set in a neighborhood often battling to end its own cycles of violence and conflict.

The Festival's Centerpiece screening, a not-to-be-missed date night showcasing the latest work from a celebrated new director, this year features the West Coast premiere of Marc Webb's 500 Days of Summer. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel sizzle in this indie romantic comedy that traces the course of an office romance in a nonlinear narrative spurred on by a rocking soundtrack.

The Festival's Closing Night offers a rousing finale on Thursday, May 7, 2009, beginning with the screening of the West Coast premiere of Unmade Beds, the youthful, sensuous and beautifully assured second feature from Argentine filmmaker Alexis Dos Santos.

Awards

Three major award recipients - Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Redford and James Toback - will be feted at the annual Film Society Awards Night on Thursday, April 30. This year's Founder's Directing Award (formerly the Film Society Directing Award) goes to one of the seminal figures in American independent film, director and producer Francis Ford Coppola. he Peter J. O wens Award, honoring an actor whose work exemplifies brilliance, independence and integrity, will be given to actor Robert Redford. The Kanbar Award, honoring excellence in screenwriting, goes this year to the inimitable James Toback, the brilliantly scandalous pen behind such films as Fingers and The Gambler.

The Film Society's Mel Novikoff Award, named for the pioneering San Francisco film exhibitor, is bestowed annually on an individual or institution whose work has enhanced the filmgoing public's knowledge and appreciation of world cinema. Innovative programmer, archivist and showman Bruce Goldstein has been given the award. This year's Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award, which honors a filmmaker working in forms other than narrative feature, goes to singular documentarian Lourdes Portillo

The Festival's Midnight Awards honor a dynamic young American actress and actor entering the prime of their careers, who have made outstanding contributions to independent and Hollywood cinema and who bring unusual intelligence, exemplary talent and extraordinary depth of character to their roles. This year, the third annual Midnight Awards go to Evan Rachel Wood and Elijah Wood.

Thirteen feature documentaries are in the juried Golden Gate competition for three prizes with total prize money of $60,000; Eleven films will be in juried competition for the Festival's New Directors Prize, a $15,000 cash award given to a debut feature filmmaker. This yea's contenders include Hong Kong veteran screenwriter turned director Ivy Ho's Claustrophobia.

HK Cinema

SFIFF 52 presents two films from Hong Kong, Ivy Ho's directing debut Claustrophobia and Dante Lam's The Beast Stalker. In competition for the new director award, Ivy Ho is scheduled attend the festival and meet the audience.

Claustrophobia
Director: Ivy Ho
Cast: Ekin Cheng, Karena Lam, Eric Tsang, Andy Hui
Synopsis: Love is a virus. It incubates silently. It strikes suddenly. It blinds your immunity. It spreads by way of intimate contacts. Its favourite breeding groud - small, crowded, claustrophobic spaces such as an office.Pearl, a marketing executive in her twenties, found herself being drawn closer and closer to Tom, her married-with-kids boss. "Is this love?" Pearl pondered. If so, was the feeling mutual? How and when did a normal working relationship gradually evolve into something romantic? What should she do now? The anxiety is becoming unbearable... Directed and screenplay by Ivy Ho, screenwriter of a lot of award-winning films, Claustrophobia is her debut as a director.

The Beast Stalker
Director: Dante Lam
Cast: Nicholas Tse, Nick Cheung, Zhang Jingchu
Synopsis: Sergeant Tong Fei mistakenly killed the elder daughter of public prosecutor Ann Gao while he was in the process of capturing wanted criminal Cheung Yat-tung. Ann Gao works doubly hard to bring Cheung Yat-tung to justice. But as Cheung is about to stand trial, Ann Gao's younger daughter, Ling, is kidnapped; to be returned only if she drops all charges against Cheung. Tong Fei suffers several near misses in his capture of the kidnapper, but Ann Gao refuses to work with him. Both Tong and Ann finally work together and free Ling, but while Ann leaves to bring Cheung to court, the kidnapper defeats Tong, and Ling, fleeing on her own, is involved in a dramatic and serious accident. Will Tong find and rescue Ling in time? Will the kidnapper be brought to justice? And will Ann Gao's misunderstanding with Tong Fei ever be resolved?

Venue

The 52nd San Francisco International Film Festival runs April 23 - May 7, 2009 at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas, the Castro Theatre and Landmark's Clay Theatre in San Francisco; and the Pacific Film Archive Theater in Berkeley. Held each spring for 15 days, the International is an extraordinary showcase of cinematic discovery and innovation in the country's most beautiful city, featuring 25 juried awards, 200 films and live events with upwards of 100 participating filmmakers and diverse audiences of 75,000+ people.

For tickets and information, go to their official website here or call 925-866-9559.

written by: staff (04/2009)
source: SFIFF 52