Welcome back! We’re excited to announce that SF Art & Film is returning this year to in-person events. We can’t wait to see you.
Cine Club will return to the San Francisco Art Institute (800 Chestnut Street). We will meet Fridays, starting the film program promptly at 6:30pm. Masks and vaccinations for students over 13 are required. One Cine film a month will be screened online to better serve students who cannot make it in person (and because the extended zoom discussions last year were so brilliant!)
Art Saturday museum tours and gallery walks will return twice a month, please RSVP.
We are in touch with our institutional partners like the San Francisco Symphony and will be offering Free Tickets as they become available. To keep up to date on everything, join our mailing list!
SEPTEMBER
SEPT 24 SFAI
Wes Anderson MOONRISE KINGDOM (2012)
Two young misfits meet and vow to love each other forever. Our hero escapes from his boy scout camp and our heroine from her less than ideal parents. Their adventures pit them against the forces of nature and society. Will love triumph?
OCTOBER
OCT 1 SFAI Terry Gilliam BRAZIL (1985)
A single man attempts to correct a typo and causes all hell to break loose in this brilliantly dark comedy about a world gone mad with bureaucracy and paranoia, where a repressive police state battles libertarian rebels for the future. An all-time favorite film of Cine Club students!
OCT 8 Zoom
Spike Lee DO THE RIGHT THING (1989)
A slice life in Brooklyn on the hottest day of the year; the bigotry and resentment that simmer under the surface of one New York neighborhood finally boil over. Lee’s masterwork remains as profoundly relevant as it was 30 years ago.
NOTE: Due to a scheduling conflict with SFAI, this screening has been switched to online.
OCT 15 ZOOM
Stanley Kubrick DR. STRANGELOVE (1958)
This savage satire on the US/Russia Cold war and the atom bomb scare is one of the most successful comedies you’ll ever see. It catches the panic in the president and his generals as they try to avoid World War III. Both hilarious and horrifying.
OCT 22 SFAI Andrei Tarkovsky STALKER (1979)
A Stalker is a guide who leads people through “the Zone," the ruins of a Chernobyl-like disaster where the laws of physics no longer apply. At its center is "The Room," said to grant each pilgrim their innermost wishes. This is science fiction at is most provocative, directed by one of Russia’s cinema legends.
OCT 29 SFAI Joel & Ethan Coen
FARGO (1996)
A pregnant cop investigates a bizarre crime in the frozen wilds of North Dakota. The criminals may be incompetent, but the crimes turn as ugly as can be. The Coen brothers have a great talent for balancing brilliant comedy and gut-wrenching tragedy in the same scene.
WARNING: graphic violence.
NOVEMBER
NOV 5 SFAI Wong Kar Wai 2046 (2009)
A writer in 1960’s Hong Kong blends the past, the present and the future, all connected though a single hotel room, no. 2046. A film with great style and visual beauty by one of the most compelling filmmakers working today.
WARNING: Mild nudity and sex scenes.
NOV 12 ZOOM Gillian Armstrong
MY BRILLIANT CAREER (1979)
At the end of the 19th century in rural Australia, a free-spirited young woman who works on the family farm dreams of a better life. Her family try to shatter her dreams, but the headstrong Sybella will let nothing stand the way of her brilliant career in the arts.
NOV 19 SFAI Roman Polanski
THE PIANIST (2002)
This unusual perspective on the Holocaust follows a young pianist as he escapes from the Warsaw Ghetto and spends the war trying to stay one step ahead of the Nazis.
DECEMBER
DEC 3 ZOOM Humberto Solás LUCIA (1968)
This stunning masterpiece tracks the fates of three women through the political revolutions that transformed Cuba—the War of Independence, the 1930’s and the 1960’s. Filmed in three styles: a tragic melodrama, a thoughtful political film and a delightful comedy.
DEC 10 SFAI Raoul Peck
I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO (2016)
One of the most influential American writers, James Baldwin, tells the story of racism in America though the lives and deaths of three famous friends—Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King. Baldwin’s voice makes this documentary a truly singular experience.
DEC 17 TBA Charles Chaplin
MODERN TIMES (1929)
The famous Little Tramp takes on the Industrial Revolution in a symphony of comedy, sound, and movement. Chaplin refusal to introduce spoken word into his films allowed him focus on the physical comedy and made his films richer. A true joy to watch.
JANUARY
JAN 14 ZOOM Fritz Lang M (1924)
A serial killer who hunts children tries to avoid suspicion as the police (and the criminal underworld) circle ever closer. This film’s expressionist style and dramatic lighting create such a chilling atmosphere, it helped inspire a whole new genre: the film noir.
JAN 21 ZOOM Akira Kurosawa
STRAY DOGS (1949)
Following last week’s proto-noir, here is a classic of the genre. During a heatwave in post-war Tokyo, a newly promoted policeman’s gun is stolen by a pickpocket. Can he track the man through the criminal underworld and retrieve his gun before it is used?
JAN 28 ZOOM Robert Eggers
THE LIGHTHOUSE (2019)
Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s. A brilliant look at American fables about masculinity; filled with frightening imagery and powerful performances.
FEBRUARY
FEB 4 ZOOM Michael Roemer
NOTHING BUT A MAN (1964)
Shot at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, this film gives a truthful portrait of a young African American couple. Grounded in exceptional performances, the film shows both the oppression and discrimination they face as Black people in America, as well as the struggles and joys of building a relationship.
FEB 11 SFAI
Agnes Varda CLEO FROM 5 to 7 (1962)
This marvel of an existential comedy follows a pop singer as she wanders Paris trying to distract herself while she awaits the results of a medical test. One of the jewels of the French New Wave.
FEB 18 ZOOM
Satyajit Ray PATHER PACHALI (1955)
This debut film from India’s most famous director was made with little money and a lot of talent. It takes two children in rural India through their childhood into adolescence capturing the atmosphere and rhythms of daily life. An endearing masterpiece!
FEB 18 SFAI
Iryna Tsilyk
THE EARTH IS BLUE AS AN ORANGE (2020)
Students at SFAI, where we host Cine Club, have organized an evening of protest and solidarity with the Ukraine tonight. Accordingly, we have decided to postpone Wilder's Roman Holiday to bring you this powerful documentary about a family of filmmakers living through the war.
MARCH
MAR 4 SFAI Jane Campion BRIGHT STAR (2009)
The story of English poet John Keats’ affair with Fanny Brawne at the end of his short life is a one of the great, love stories in history. He’s struggling and impoverished, she’s bright and talented, and they don’t have much time. It’s deeply moving and filled with stunning imagery.
MAR 11 SFAI
Ingmar Bergman PERSONA (1966)
On a remote, isolated island, a breezy young nurse is assigned to look after a brilliant but troubled actress who has become catatonic. One woman is silent, the other never stops talking. A film like no other, it explores the darkest parts of personality and the profound relationships between people. Brilliant, challenging, and unforgettable.
MAR 18 Zoom
Agnieszka Holland MR JONES (2019)
A political thriller about a reporter who illegally enters the Soviet Union to investigate rumors that Ukrainians being starved to death. Even when he discovers evidence of the Holodomor (in which over 4 million Ukrainians died) no one would believe him. Director Holland is one of the founders of our Cine Club and we are thrilled to show you her latest film.
MAR 25 SFAI
Terrence Malick THE TREE OF LIFE (2011)
An extraordinary film from a visionary director—the story of a family in Texas, torn apart by life’s forces is seen in the context of the entire history of life on earth, with even a glimpse of paradise thrown in! A stunning film, not to be missed.
APRIL
Date April 15
William Wyler ROMAN HOLIDAY (1953)
Overwhelmed by her suffocating schedule, a touring European princess steals off for a night in Rome, breaking all the rules she can. The film introduced to the screen Audrey Hepburn, who was given an Oscar for her first film. Delightful, free-wheeling and a joy for everyone.