Film Appreciation Archives

Honoring the films and filmmakers that have been curated, presented, and supported by SFFILM over the past year

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Nadim Cheikhrouha, Kaouther Ben Hania

Photo by Tommy Lau

Jharrel Jerome, Boots Riley

Photo by Tommy Lau

Greta Gerwig

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Davis Guggenheim

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Matthew Heineman, Lauren Domino

Photo by Tommy Lau

Anna Hints, Marianne Ostrat

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Barry Jenkins, Raven Jackson

Photo by Tommy Lau

Sarvnik Kaur, Koval Bhatia

Photo by Pamela Gentile

SFFILM Sloan Science in Cinema Award: Oppenheimer

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Savannah Leaf

Photo by Tommy Lau

Boots Riley, Cord Jefferson

Photo by Pamela Gentile

Miri Navasky, Joan Baez, and Karen O’Connor

Celine Song, Greta Lee

Fall and winter is Award Season time in Hollywood, and that means lists of nominees, short lists, and gala events where awards are presented, and earnest speeches are made. SFFILM is proud to highlight a slice of the nominated films and filmmakers we featured at the San Francisco International Film Festival, Doc Stories, SFFILM Presents, Awards Night, and through our Artist Development and Youth Education programs.

All nominations and awards gather momentum towards the final show which is the Oscars on March 10, so our list starts there. We’ll update throughout the season!

96th Academy Awards

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM—SHORT LISTS

American Symphony
Four Daughters
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Stamped from the Beginning
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie
32 Sounds

DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM—SHORT LISTS

Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games
How We Get Free
The Last Repair Shop
Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó
Oasis

SFFILM Awards Night

EXEMPLARY ACHIEVEMENT IN FILM CRAFT

Dream Scenario—Nicolas Cage, the Maria Manetti Lifetime Achievement Award for Acting
Cassandro—Roger Ross Williams, the Nion McEvoy & Leslie Berriman Award for Storytelling
American Fiction—Cord Jefferson, the George Gund III Award for Virtuosity
Barbie—Greta Gerwig, the Irving M. Levin Award for Film Direction

Gotham Awards

BEST FEATURE

Past Lives / WINNER

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Against the Tide
Four Daughters / WINNER

BREAKTHROUGH DIRECTOR AWARD

Raven Jackson, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
Celine Song, Past Lives

BREAK THROUGH SERIES—UNDER 40 MINS

I’m A Virgo

Critics Choice Association—Documentary

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie / WINNER

BEST DIRECTOR

Davis Guggenheim – Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie / WINNER

Cinema Eye Honors—Documentary

OUTSTANDING NONFICTION FEATURE

32 Sounds
Four Daughters
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

OUTSTANDING NONFICTION SHORT

Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games
Neighbour Abdi
Oasis

International Documentary Association (IDA)

BEST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY

Against the Tide
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Milisuthando

BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY

How to Carry Water
Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó
Neighbour Abdi

Film Independent Spirit Awards

BEST FEATURE

American Fiction
Past Lives

BEST FIRST FEATURE

All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
Earth Mama

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD

Fremont

Golden Globes

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

Oppenheimer / WINNER
Past Lives

BEST MOTION PICTURE – MUSICAL OR COMEDY

American Fiction
Barbie

BEST MOTION PICTURE – ANIMATED

Elemental
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Stay In Touch With SFFILM

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Welcome to the 2018 SFFILM Festival

Welcome to the 61st San Francisco International Film Festival! This is both a challenging and inspiring moment to be a part of global film…

Welcome to the 2018 SFFILM Festival

SFFILM Executive Director Noah Cowan – photo by Trejure.com

Welcome to the 61st San Francisco International Film Festival! This is both a challenging and inspiring moment to be a part of global film culture. The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements have prompted a great deal of much-needed self-reflection in our community as well as a new focus on positive change. We are inspired to redouble our efforts in support of films and filmmakers creating that change in this country and beyond.

We’ve done a lot of thinking recently about how SFFILM serves our community and our shared values. This has led us to comprehensively re-examine how SFFILM’s key activities across film exhibition, media education, and artist development can best drive our vision of a progressive film culture. Evidence of our new strategic path can be seen throughout this Festival program — in the incredible diversity of talent behind many of our most prominent films this year; in the special programs we’ve designed to interrogate our current social realities; and in the artist talks, live presentations, and collaborative film-and-conversation events that make the Festival a distinctive collective experience.

There is no doubt that the future of the film community we envision lives with today’s youth. With this in mind, we have taken strides to significantly enhance the resources and programs available through SFFILM Education, with expanded opportunities for schools, families, and educators both “live” in San Francisco and digitally across the country through new online platforms. These programs will specifically confront the challenges of media learning around critical social issues that are so often obfuscated by the current breakdowns in our national conversation.

Perhaps the most palpable and direct change this organization creates can be felt in our artist development initiatives known collectively as SFFILM Makers. A national powerhouse of granting and residency programs, SFFILM Makers has supported several films in this year’s Festival lineup and scores of others through creative behind-the-scenes assistance that hits every stage of the filmmaking process. Our new strategic plan has us significantly increasing SFFILM Makers’ size and reach in the years to come, harnessing local financial and intellectual resources to champion the values of the Bay Area by making powerful films that tell globally meaningful stories.

All of this work comes together every year at the Festival. It is an occasion for our community to unite in celebration of film, and to renew our commitment to supporting our artists, our young people, and our allies nationally and abroad. While we must acknowledge this moment of difficult reckoning, let’s make this year’s event a call for thoughtful investment — in spectacular art, in meaningful action, and in our fundamental belief in the possibility of change.

Thank you — and enjoy the movies!

Noah Cowan