The San Francisco International Film Festival returned this weekend after last year’s event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year's festival features more than 100 films from around the world.
“We are excited that over 50% of the films are directed by black indigenous people of color, as well as 57% directed by women,” SFFILM executive director Anne Lai explained to KCBS Radio. “It’s a really representative group of directors and storytellers that we have.”
There will be some in-person screenings at the Fort Mason Flix drive-in in San Francisco and the entire line-up is available online, which opens the festival to audiences across the country. So could this mixed medium screening model continue beyond the pandemic? Lai says maybe, as that really would be up to filmmakers and distributors.
“What we learned from this past year is how open people are to watching things online and some people who can’t get out and aren’t able to go physically in see a film,” Lai said. “I do hope there will be a hybrid version that can continue, I do think it’s something we’re very interested in.”
The festival continues through next Sunday, April 18. For more information go to SFFILM.org.
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