If you were independently wealthy and had no friends, you could spend all of your time at Bay Area film festivals. Of course, if you did that, you probably wouldn’t stay friendless for long; you can meet some great people at these events. No sooner is the San Francisco International Film Festival over then Docfest … Continue reading More Festivals

Last week, I discussed art house theaters showing movies--especially old ones--on video rather than film, and whether I should warn readers when this happens. I forwarded the newsletter to theater managers in hope of getting some interesting replies. Their reaction was underwhelming. Only two responded. Tellingly, neither response came from a theater about which I've … Continue reading Video in Theaters, Part 2

I received an interesting email from a reader who, for professional reasons, wishes to remain anonymous. "It's becoming more common," he began, "for theaters to hold video screenings of movies (that are meant to be shown on film) without noting this in any of their publicity. Twice recently, I've commuted into S.F. to watch a … Continue reading Video in Theaters

I spent Saturday with Jean-Claude Carrière, Tilda Swinton, and John Turturro. Good company. (If you don’t recognize Carrière’s name, that just shows how badly we actor-and-director obsessed film fans disrespect screenwriters.) Yes, I’m talking about the San Francisco International Film Festival, where I devoted my day to big events with big names rather than actually … Continue reading More from the San Francisco International Film Festival