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Announcing the 2022 SFFILM Rainin Filmmaker with Disabilities Grant Winner

SFFILM Rainin Filmmaker with Disabilities Grantee to receive $25,000

Writer Sarah Granger and her film, The Pain-Free Day, has been selected to receive funding through SFFILM’s suite of artist development programs, which provides financial and artistic support to artists worldwide. The SFFILM Rainin Filmmaker with Disabilities Grant, introduced in 2020, supports Bay Area-based filmmakers whose films specifically address stories from the disability community. Ensuring historically excluded communities have access to artistic and financial support in order to create a more inclusive film landscape is at the core of SFFILM and the Kenneth Rainin Foundation’s partnership.

“We are thrilled to be supporting Sarah and her film at this exciting screenwriting stage. We are deeply moved by the personal nature of the story and the sensitive mother-daughter relationship at its core,” the panel who chose the grantee noted in a statement. “The Pain-Free Day is a powerfully written script, as well as a particularly exciting opportunity to expand the scope of understanding disability within our communities. We are extremely grateful to the Kenneth Rainin Foundation for their continued partnership in new initiatives to support filmmakers in sharing their stories with the world.”

The panel that reviewed submissions for the SFFILM Rainin Filmmaker with Disabilities Grant included Emily Smith Beitkis, Associate Director, Paul K. Longmore Institute on Disability at San Francisco State University; Rosa Morales, Artist Development Associate Manager: Narrative Film, SFFILM; Masashi Niwano, Director of Artist Development, SFFILM; and Shelley Trott, Chief Program Officer, Kenneth Rainin Foundation.

About the Filmmaker and Film

Sarah Granger is a writer and producer drawn to stories of misunderstood people seeking connection—to one another and the world around them. Originally from Kansas City, she studied computer science, playwriting, and screenwriting at the University of Michigan before making her way to the San Francisco area, where she built a career working with technology, digital media, and social good organizations.

In 2006, Sarah sustained pelvic nerve damage while giving birth, leading to permanent neuralgia—and a pivot to writing, first as a journalist and author, and then as a screenwriter in 2018. Her feature screenplay, The Pain-Free Day, was selected as one of eight juried scripts on the 2020 Disability List curated by The Black List and the WGA Writers with Disabilities Committee. Her scripts have been recognized in multiple competitions and she participated in the 2021 RespectAbility Entertainment Lab and 2022 Stowe Story Lab.

Sarah strives to amplify underrepresented voices. She is an associate producer on three upcoming short films and executive producer of a micro-budget feature, Stay With Me, which is now at festivals. Sarah’s own narrative projects tend to include at least one character with a visible or invisible disability. Her bestselling nonfiction book, The Digital Mystique, was published by Seal Press, while her articles her articles have been published in The Huffington Post, LA Weekly, Slate, Inverse, and SFGate.

The Pain-Free Day Synopsis

After struggling for years housebound with severe pelvic pain, a dejected mother takes a risk and pulls her teenage daughter out of school for one day in an attempt to mend their strained relationship.

About the SFFILM Rainin Grant

The SFFILM and Kenneth Rainin Foundation partnership is the largest granting body for independent narrative feature films in the United States. SFFILM Rainin Grants are awarded to filmmakers whose narrative feature films will have a significant economic or professional impact on the Bay Area filmmaking community and/or meaningfully explore pressing social issues.

The SFFILM Rainin Grant is currently accepting applications for the 2023 cycle; the final deadline to apply is April 28, 2023. For more information learn more here.

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SFFILM is a nonprofit organization whose mission ensures independent voices in film are welcomed, heard, and given the resources to thrive. SFFILM works hard to bring the most exciting films and filmmakers to Bay Area movie lovers. To be the first to know what’s coming, sign up for our email alerts and watch your inbox.

Record Setting 8 SFFILM-Supported Films Headed to Sundance 2023

Meet the SFFILM Makers behind the SFFILM-supported titles

On Wednesday, December 7, the Sundance Institute revealed the slate of films that will premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. After two years of virtual programming, the long-running film festival will return in-person to Park City, Utah on January 19, 2023.

Securing a spot in the Sundance Film Festival lineup is no easy feat. Thanks to our SFFILM Makers programs, which include our FilmHouse Residency, the Documentary Film Fund, the Sloan Science in Cinema Filmmaker Fellowship, and the flagship SFFILM Rainin Grant — the largest granting body for independent narrative feature films in the US — SFFILM helps independent filmmakers break through. And, for the second time, a filmmaker supported by the SFFILM Rainin Grant for Filmmakers with Disabilities has been invited to show their work at Sundance.

The 2023 Sundance Film Festival slate includes a record-setting eight (8!) SFFILM-supported features, validating the integral part SFFILM plays in providing independent storytellers with the necessary advisory services, work space, and artist community for filmmakers to develop, complete, and submit their projects to festivals. “We are thrilled for our supported filmmakers, who will be premiering their films at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival,” said Masashi Niwano, SFFILM’s Director of Artist Development. “Their voices are fresh and diverse, and they all share a similar strength: bold storytelling and unique perspectives that we believe can change the world. We cannot wait for audiences to see these eight powerful films.”

The eight SFFILM-supported projects screening at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival are:

Against the Tide
Sarvnik Kaur, director/producer; Koval Bhatia, producer
SFFILM Support Received—Documentary Film Fund; SFFILM Invest
Appearing In—International Documentary Competition

All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
Raven Jackson, writer/director; Maria Altamirano, Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski, Mark Ceryak, producers
SFFILM Support Received—SFFILM Rainin Grant; SFFILM Westridge Grant
Appearing In—U.S. Dramatic Competition

Earth Mama
Savanah Leaf, writer/director/producer; Cody Ryder, producer; Danielle Massie, co-producer
SFFILM Support Received—SFFILM Rainin Grant

Fancy Dance
Erica Tremblay, writer/director/producer; Miciana Alise, writer
SFFILM Support Received—SFFILM Rainin Grant
Appearing In—U.S. Dramatic Competition

Fremont
Babak Jalali, writer/director; Marjaneh Moghimi, producer; George Rush, producer; Laura Wagner, producer; Carolina Cavalli, writer
SFFILM Support Received—SFFILM Rainin Grant
Appearing In—Next

Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Joe Brewster, co-director/producer; Michèle Stephenson, co-director/producer
SFFILM Support Received—Documentary Film Fund; SFFILM Invest
Appearing In—U.S. Documentary Competition

Going Varsity in Mariachi
Alejandra Vasquez, director; Sam Osborn, director; Julia Pontecorvo, producer; James Lawler, producer; Luis A. Miranda, Jr., producer
SFFILM Support Received—Documentary Film Fund
Appearing In—U.S. Documentary Competition

The Tuba Thieves
Alison O’Daniel, director/producer; Wendy Ettinger, executive producer; Rachel Nederveld, Maida Lynn, Su Kim, Maya E. Rudolph, producers
SFFILM Support Received—SFFILM Rainin Filmmakers with Disabilities Grant
Appearing In—Next

Since 2009, SFFILM has distributed more than $8.5 million to over 300 films through our various filmmaker-centered initiatives. SFFILM-supported projects include works by SFFILM Rainin Grant recipients, such as Channing Godfrey Peoples’ Miss Juneteenth, Fernando Frias’ I’m No Longer Here, Joe Talbot’s The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Nia DaCosta’s Little Woods, Nijla Mu’min’s Jinn, and Ryan Coogler’s Fruitvale Station. On the documentary feature side, SFFILM-supported projects include those by Documentary Film Fund recipients, such as CJ Hunt’s The Neutral Ground, Assia Boundaoui’s The Feeling of Being Watched, Ljubo Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska’s Honeyland, Liza Mandelup’s Jawline, Luke Lorentzen’s Midnight Family, and RaMell Ross’ Hale County This Morning, This Evening, among many other remarkable films.

Sharing compelling works from up-and-coming independent filmmakers with fresh perspectives, inventive ideas, and singular styles aligns deeply with the work SFFILM does. Outside of the San Francisco International Film Festival, events like Sundance help such works reach a wider audience and, hopefully, secure distribution deals that will continue to amplify the films’ messages and increase their visibility.

Congratulations to all the filmmakers on this major accomplishment!

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Wrap Notes: 2022 SFFILM Awards Night

Relive SFFILM Awards Night, from the red carpet glamour and awardees’ acceptance speeches to the success of our annual fundraising efforts.

On Monday, December 5 at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA), the sold-out 2022 SFFILM Awards Night commemorated some of the year’s most remarkable filmmakers, actors, and storytellers. This year, SFFILM honored the following visionaries:

Stephanie Hsu (Everything Everywhere All At Once) — George Gund III Award: Breakthrough Performance
Ryan Coogler (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) — Irving M. Levin Award for Film Direction
Margot Robbie (Babylon) — Maria Manetti Shrem Award for Acting
Sarah Polley (Women Talking) — SFFILM Award for Storytelling

The importance of what IndieWire has called “an awards stop on the road to the Oscars” is two-fold, relating to both SFFILM’s mission and the film industry at large. SFFILM is a nonprofit organization working to transform the world through the creativity and inspiration of film. We work to inspire and connect audiences, educate students and teachers, and support filmmakers at every stage of their careers. Our screening events, education initiatives, artist development programs, and more share contemporary film’s most essential works with audiences, and provide artists with a platform to elevate their projects.

FilmHouse Resident Natalie Baszile. Photo by Pamela Gentile and courtesy of SFFILM.

All of this wouldn’t be possible without Awards Night, our organization’s most impactful annual fundraising event. “This evening of celebration not only honors the unique contributions of artists, but also fuels our ability to achieve our year-round initiatives of nurturing filmmakers, supporting students, and bringing audiences together through the transformative power of cinematic storytelling,” SFFILM’s Executive Director Anne Lai said of the event. “The impact of Awards Night is felt in every corner of our mission.”

Events like Awards Night have another goal, too: make Bay Area filmmakers, and the Bay Area film scene, an even more integral part of the film industry at large. “San Francisco now has a foothold in the awards season proper,” The Hollywood Reporter said of SFFILM Awards Night.

So, whether you joined in on the fun (and fundraising) in person, or caught highlights on our Instagram story, you can join us now in reliving 2022 SFFILM Awards Night.

Live From the Red Carpet

In true film fashion, Awards Night kicked off with a red carpet event. All of the awardees—Black Panther: Wakanda Forever director and writer Ryan Coogler; Babylon star Margot Robbie; Women Talking director and writer Sarah Polley; and Everything Everywhere All at Once co-lead Stephanie Hsu—stopped in to pose for photos and chat with members of the press.

Photo by Tommy Lau

Joan Chen

Photo by Tommy Lau

Stephanie Hsu

Photo by Tommy Lau

Danai Gurira

Photo by Tommy Lau

Danai Gurira and Ryan Coogler

Photo by Tommy Lau

Margot Robbie and Diego Calva

Photo by Tommy Lau

Jessica Fairbanks, Sarah Polley, Mariecar Mendoza, and Anne Lai

SFFILM Director of Programming Jessica Fairbanks, Sarah Polley, Mariecar Mendoza, and SFFILM Executive Director Anne Lai

Our awardees were joined on the carpet by the entertainment heavy-hitters who would later present them with their awards. The evening’s presenters included actor and playwright Danai Gurira (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever); actor Diego Calva (Babylon); the San Francisco Chronicle’s Senior Arts and Entertainment Editor, Mariecar Mendoza; and actor and filmmaker Joan Chen (Saving Face).

First to arrive were Hsu and Chen. When the two met on the carpet, Hsu thanked Chen for coming, sharing that she’d recently watched Alice Wu’s seminal Saving Face (2004), which, like Everything Everywhere All at Once, centers the relationship between a Chinese American mother and her queer daughter. Hsu referred to her experience with both of these films happening pretty serendipitously as a “real full-circle moment.”

Throughout the evening, the other stars stopped by the red carpet, too. Before stepping in front of the cameras, Ryan Coogler and Zinzi Evans (Executive Producer, Judas and the Black Messiah) and SFFILM Executive Director Anne Lai greeted each other with warm admiration. A decade ago, Ryan Coogler received the SFFILM Rainin Grant, which helped the Oakland native complete his acclaimed debut feature, Fruitvale Station (2013). Soon after, Gurira embraced Coogler excitedly before stunning on the carpet with one of the evening’s sharpest looks.

Philanthropist and arts advocate Maria Manetti Shrem (left) and Honoree Margot Robbie (right). Photo Courtesy of Drew Altizer Photography.

The star-studded arrivals were capped off by Polley, who spent much time discussing the ins-and-outs of her latest film and writing process with journalists, and Babylon co-stars Robbie and Calva. Robbie not only shared insights into her much-lauded performance in Babylon, but also paused for photos with Maria Manetti Shrem — a philanthropist and patron of the arts as well as the namesake of the acting award she generously supports — and gushed about spending time in San Francisco.

Once the red carpet ended, all of the evening’s stars mingled with guests at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) reception, while other Awards Night attendees enjoyed a cocktail hour and snapped their own photos in front of our step-and-repeat.

Insider Scoop: Acceptance Speeches + Awards

After guests, honorees, and presenters enjoyed dinner service in the YBCA’s Forum, the real show began.

**Joan Chen** celebrates and introduces Honoree **Stephanie Hsu**. Photo Courtesy of Drew Altizer Photography.

First up, Stephanie Hsu received the George Gund III Award: Breakthrough Performance for her work in the Daniels’ hit Everything Everywhere All at Once. “Stephanie’s performance brought vulnerability, humor, edge, and richness to a story that—at its heart—is about a daughter and mother trying to find connection and trust,” presenter Joan Chen said before handing the mic to Hsu.

Honoree **Stephanie Hsu** at SFFILM Awards Night. Photo courtesy of Drew Altizer Photography.

“I keep saying that this movie is the most honest handshake I could possibly make with Hollywood, because it encapsulates so much of what I have always dreamed stories can offer,” Hsu said upon accepting her award. “Wildness, subversion, challenge, healing. Mass medicine, mass possibility. Togetherness. A transference of energy that hopefully inspires us to be better for one another. Joy.”

**Danai Gurira** introduces Honoree **Ryan Coogler**. Photo by Pamela Gentile and courtesy of SFFILM.

Next, Danai Gurira presented Ryan Coogler with the Irving M. Levin Award for Film Direction. Centering her remarks on Coogler’s uniqueness, as both a filmmaker and a human, Gurira reached out to the director’s mother for input. One anecdote came from a teacher, who compared a young Coogler to a figure from Greek mythology: “He was like Atlas…carrying the entire world on his shoulders, bearing profound concern for others, his family, his classmates, his community,” Gurira relayed. “He needed an outlet to pour all that love and deep care and concern for the world around him [into].” Filmmaking was that outlet.

Gurira applauded the “nice, unassuming” Coogler for holding fast to his vision in such a demanding industry; creating such remarkable, thoughtful worlds on screen; honoring the late Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman; and working with so many women as key collaborators. “Ryan is a man whose pureness of heart is that special ingredient that makes his visionary brand of leadership so empowering,” Gurira said. “This man gives me hope for the world. A world where power is shared.”

Honoree **Ryan Coogler** and **Danai Gurira** (back). Photo Courtesy of Drew Altizer Photography.

After accepting his award for directing, Coogler touched on the surrealness of the moment. “It feels very strange — you get this award [and] look and see Guillermo [Del Toro] and Spike [Lee] holding this thing,” Coogler said. “I feel like I’m just getting started. But it has been 10 years since I’ve been [a] professional filmmaker — a decade as they say, for gravitas.”

The director went on to compare breaking into the film industry like standing outside and watching airplanes fly overhead; for Coogler, those seemingly untouchable planes were filmmakers, flying high. “You know when you sit down on an airplane and you go from, like, just sitting still to, you know, [feeling] tight — and it’s pretty, pretty, pretty fast, and all of a sudden it lifts off and then you know you can relax? That was the moment that, you know, [SFFILM] got me to,” Coogler said, referencing the SFFILM Rainin Grant he received a decade ago, which went toward the making of Fruitvale Station (2013). “Without that, I don’t know where I would be [today].”

**Diego Calva** introduces Honoree **Margot Robbie**. Photo by Pamela Gentile and courtesy of SFFILM.

Later, Hollywood newcomer Diego Calva presented Margot Robbie with the newly named Maria Manetti Shrem Award for Acting. “Diego is an undeniable talent. You might not know who he is now, but you will soon,” Robbie said of her Babylon co-star on the SFFILM Awards Night stage. “I really look forward to the moment where I get to return the favor and give you an award. ‘Cause that day will come.”

Robbie then thanked SFFILM for its commitment to preserving cinema, reiterating that she wasn’t just thanking the organization for her award, but for SFFILM’s screenings, community outreach, and the San Francisco International Film Festival. “[You do] so much,” Robbie said. “It’s so important to foster new voices, and that means a lot to me, too.”

Honoree **Margot Robbie** as **Diego Calva** (back) looks on. Photo by Pamela Gentile and courtesy of SFFILM.

As for her performance — which fellow awardee Sarah Polley later called something that’s “not to be believed, it’s Olympic acting. I don’t even understand what you did” — the Maria Manetti Shrem Award-winner expressed one connection she shares with her Babylon character, Nelly. “She dreams of being a part of something bigger than her. Something that means something — something that’s gonna last. And I feel that way too,” Robbie continued. “And I think cinema at its best can do that.”

**Mariecar Mendoza** introduces Honoree **Sarah Polley** at SFFILM Awards Night. Photo by Pamela Gentile and courtesy of SFFILM.

San Francisco’s very own Mariecar Mendoza, senior arts and entertainment editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, had the pleasure of introducing the evening’s final awardee, director and writer Sarah Polley, who received the SFFILM Award for Storytelling. “[It’s clear that] not only [does] she have a genuine knack for storytelling, but also for listening and absorbing the expertise of those around her,” Mendoza said of Polley.

Honoree **Sarah Polley** as presenter **Mariecar Mendoza** looks on. Photo by Tommy Lau and courtesy of SFFILM

After calling the evening “such an education,” Polley paid homage to a filmmaker who wasn’t in the room: Audrey Wells, notably the screenwriter behind films like Guinevere (1999) and The Hate U Give (2018). “I’m in the hometown of my mentor and role model, the late great Audrey Wells, who loved this city so much,” Polley said. “She made it her mission to make me see myself as a storyteller… This would’ve been Audrey’s moment. So I, in part, accept this on her behalf.”

The Women Talking writer and director went on to give her thoughts on the nature of storytelling, explaining that since making her documentary, Stories We Tell (2013), she’s interested in stories “told by a chorus of voices.” For Polley, “[Our narratives] are moving, fluid, elastic things… but we hold onto them with white knuckles as though they’re solid structures, hoping they’ll be our life raft on the white waters we’re tossed on,” underscoring the importance of not just storytelling, but film as a whole.

Reel Talk: Remarks from Anne Lai + Our Fundraising Successes

“In addition to honoring our awardees, you are also helping to raise critical funds to support SFFILM’s year-round work in showing films, in educating youth about and through film, and helping independent filmmakers get their work made,” Executive Director Anne Lai said in her remarks. This year, the sold-out event garnered generous support from our dedicated, passionate community, allowing us to hit our fundraising goals to Fund the Future of Film.

SFFILM Executive Director Anne Lai at SFFILM’s Awards Night. Photo Courtesy of Drew Altizer Photography.

“It’s as transformative and as present today as it was at its birth over a century ago,” Lai said, referencing the power of films. “The allure of being in the cinema together remains one of the brightest and most potent, the most influential and inspiring, and the most democratic and accessible way in which we can seek entertainment, knowledge, escape, and human connection.”

While Coogler, Hsu, Robbie, and Polley’s collective body of work has already made an unequivocal impact on film, art, and, in many cases, our very lives, SFFILM hopes to empower more artists and filmmakers to change the world through their remarkable talents and singular perspectives. And, thanks to our many supporters, patrons, and members, 2023 is already shaping up to be another landmark year of championing films and filmmakers.

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SFFILM’s Anne Lai on the Future of the Castro Theatre

SFFILM Executive Director Anne Lai’s thoughts on preserving cinema at the Castro Theatre

This past year has been an affirming success for SFFILM, and we could not have done it without you. From our Festival in April through Doc Stories this fall, we joyfully welcomed people back to the movies and into our city’s theaters. We saw energized audiences, filled with movie lovers who were eager to find in-person community again.

In addition to our public programming, we’ve hosted filmmakers from around the world, re-opened FilmHouse in the new SFFILM headquarters in SoMa, provided support to many promising and independent filmmakers, taught students at our Youth Filmmakers Camp this summer, and meaningfully reconnected with our partner organizations. To close out 2022, we will honor four of the year’s singular filmmakers and performers at SFFILM Awards Night: Oakland’s own Ryan Coogler, director Sarah Polley, actor and producer Margot Robbie, and actor Stephanie Hsu. The state of Bay Area filmmaking and moviegoing is strong and we are overjoyed to do our part in keeping the culture of film vibrant and accessible for all.

Photo by Tommy Lau

Audience in the Castro Theatre

Photo by Pamela Gentile

STAY AWAKE, Shrihari Sathe + Albert Jones + Quinn McColgan + Fin Argus + Chrissy Metz + Jamie Sisley + Jessie Fairbanks

Photo by Tommy Lau

Doc Stories Attendees

Photo by Pamela Gentile

FilmHouse College Night

Photo by Pamela Gentile

32 SOUNDS, Castro Theatre

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Youth Filmmaker Camp

Photo by Pamela Gentile

JEANNETTE, Yvens Carrenard + Maris Curran + Jeannette Feliciano

Photo by Pamela Gentile

SFFILM Festival Attendees

With this returned momentum also come real challenges to the filmgoing culture that has been such a vital part of our city. I want to highlight one challenge in particular that has taken center stage this year for film lovers in San Francisco: the loss of movie theaters. Local independent theaters, and even some national chains, have closed their doors here, significantly reducing communal exhibition opportunities. To compound these losses, the proposed changes coming to our beloved movie palace, the Castro Theatre, have been especially concerning.

As many of you know, the Castro Theatre is slated to lose its cinematic-centered design under the current renovation plans. Now managed by Another Planet Entertainment (APE), the theater will undergo changes to address some much-needed updates to an historic building. We feel there is great power and opportunity in having a locally based and highly successful management company like APE both preserve and improve this historic venue. However, after months of listening, talking, and engaging behind the scenes with APE and local organizations we remain deeply concerned about the planned renovations from a number of perspectives. First, the prioritization of multi-use space over raked cinema seating could result in a diminished filmgoing experience. Next, the lack of significant improvement to accessibility, safety, and an equitable, dignified audience experience for wheelchair users and people with limited mobility does not align with SFFILM’s commitment to improving accessibility. Of particular concern is the proposed use of lifts for wheelchair users which brings up serious safety issues in case of evacuation. Finally, potential rental cost increases for nonprofits like ours could significantly impair our ability to utilize the theater at all post-renovation.

We very much want to have a relationship with APE in which we can express our concerns and work together to address them for the benefit of the greater community. We also want a relationship in which there is an appropriate level of sensitivity and consultation regarding programming decisions so that the unique character of the neighborhood and its importance to the LGBTQ+ community is recognized and respected. Obviously, we are not alone in this desire. We applaud all of our colleagues who have been outspoken about their concerns, including those at the Silent Film Festival, Eat Drink Films, the Castro Theatre Conservancy, the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District, noteworthy actors and directors, and so many others. They have been quick and consistent to rally the community and highlight the challenges these proposed changes present to filmgoing at the Castro.

Our belief in our city’s identity as a global cultural leader is steadfast. The Castro Theatre has been and remains a vital component of that identity. San Francisco and the greater Bay Area deserve to have its last and greatest cinema palace embody a long-standing commitment to film arts and entertainment. We sincerely hope that the city’s planning authorities and the Historic Preservation Commission set to meet on December 7 understand the value and the opportunity to prioritize cinema as they consider approving any proposed changes to the Castro Theatre. In the meantime, we plan to continue the conversation with both members of the community and APE, with a firm view toward preserving the Castro for an art form that sparks joy, inspiration, and connection for so many people.

Warmly,
Anne Lai
Executive Director, SFFILM

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The Art Vanguard Behind SFFILM’s Renamed Award for Acting, Maria Manetti Shrem

Q&A with the Icon Whose Namesake Now Dons SFFILM’s Renamed Award for Acting: Maria Manetti Shrem

Maria Manetti Shrem is an entrepreneurial force whose legacy spans fashion, fine art, film, and so much more. She’s pursued many lives-worth of visions, most recently establishing the Maria Manetti Shrem Award for Acting as part of a new partnership with us here at SFFILM. This honor recognizes the 360-degree dedication that actors give to their crafts, developing their characters and themselves along the way, all in pursuit of sharing something transformative with the world. Today, Maria and Jan, her husband, continue to bring energy to a number of channels and causes, as founders of the UC Davis Museum of Contemporary Art and supporters of over 30 charities. Maria and Jan currently reside in San Francisco, which makes this following Q&A that much closer to home.

Do you recall when you were introduced to SFFILM? What was your first SFFILM experience?

The first time I attended SFFILM was 20 years ago. I have admired their organization and their devotion to movies. I loved meeting and talking with Jeremy Irons. “The House Of The Spirit” is one of my favorite movies.

SFFILM’s acting award was first established in 1996 and has honed iconic performances from recipients including Glenn Close, Adam Driver, Richard Gere, Oscar Issac, Robin Willliams, and Amy Adams, among many others. What does this particular honor signify to you and your love of film and acting? What do you hope to carry on with this new title?

I love movies. Actors in the end are who make them memorable. No matter if they play evil or good people. We are enchanted by those characters–their words, their faces, their moves, their attitude, their walk, their gazes, their silence. I want to support the festival naming this specific award to raise attention and awareness on such a difficult job. Actors must be resilient dreamers as I am still.

Why did you decide to champion the Award for Acting, specifically, alongside SFFILM? How does it fit alongside your other work?

Last year, during the SFFILM’s Awards Night, I realized that this very specific award didn’t have a supporting name yet. So, I thought I had a chance to contribute to one of the oldest festivals in the Nation, and specifically the film festival of my city, San Francisco, adding my name to such a special job. Actors deliver moods, values and feeling alongside their own glamour. My whole life’s job was in fashion. I have always dealt with elegance and beauty.

How exactly, or in what ways, does the Award “provide support to a vital cinematic arts organization whose work invests in the storytellers of tomorrow”?

I hope to contribute to raise some national and international attention to SFFILM, helping to build long-term brand awareness, and to support the educational values that SFFILM brings to the SF Bay Area community.

You’re building community all over—at Met Opera, at UC Davis, at SF Opera, at KQED, at Festival Napa Valley, at UCSF, at CPMC, at SFFILM to mention a few—what do you hope is your greatest legacy in doing so?

I want to give with my warm hands, and not with cold ones after passing. I have always said that for me there are three stages in life: education; hard work; and if success brings prosperity and wealthy, to eventually give back. I support all three stages by fostering educational programs, talents in science, health, opera, and the arts; and by inspiring other wealthy people to give now to help others, and to motivate the youth to fulfill their own dreams.

How have you personally been impacted by cinema, theatre, acting and the film community?

I love movies, and particularly the old Italian cinema masters such as Fellini, De Sica-Zavattini, Rossellini, Pasolini, Visconti, Zeffirelli, and some of their main actors such as Sophia Loren (a very dear friend of mine), Marcello Mastroianni, Monica Vitti, Claudia Cardinale, Anna Magnani, etc. I love cinema in general and the kind of stories filmmakers tell us sharing knowledge, values and dreams, principles, and ideas to fight for. I was born romantic, but movies made me more passionate. That’s why I love romantic movies.

SFFILM’s Awards Night is one of the most star-studded and important nights in cinema throughout the year. Is there a memory that stands out most to you?

Meeting actors and directors is very exciting and rewarding for me. Recently, I enjoyed so much having dinner and talking with Michelle Yeoh and Sandra Oh. Truly two versatile professionals who inspire us.