SFFILM announced the full lineup for the 65th annual San Francisco International Film Festival, the longest running film festival in the Americas. This year the Festival will make its return to theaters in person, featuring more than 130 films from 56 countries, including 16 World and 10 North American premieres, along with many SFFILM-supported titles. Of the films selected for the Festival, 56% are helmed by female or non-binary filmmakers and 52% are directed by BIPOC filmmakers. The Festival will also celebrate cinematic icon Michelle Yeoh with a special tribute to be presented by critically acclaimed actor Sandra Oh. The 2022 Festival will run April 21–May 1, with tickets on sale now at sffilm.org.
Michelle Yeoh was recently hailed by New York Times film critic A.O. Scott as “one of the great international movie stars of the past quarter-century.” Her tribute will be an intimate conversation with Emmy Award-nominated actress Sandra Oh, about her prestigious and extensive career that will take place at the Castro Theatre on Friday, April 29 at 6:00 pm. The Tribute to Michelle is preceded by a special screening of Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in 35 mm at the Castro on Monday, April 25.
“Michelle Yeoh is a global icon, an indelible screen presence who grounds every frame she inhabits with authenticity and explosive talent,” says SFFILM Director of Programming Jessie Fairbanks. “We are thrilled the extraordinary Sandra Oh will host Michelle in conversation to discuss Michelle's creative body of work, shifting gears between genres and storytelling mediums, and much, much more.” The Tribute to Michelle Yeoh joins the previously announced Tribute to Jenny Slate, both highlights at the 2022 Festival. Previous festival tributes include Jackie Chan, Claire Denis, Clint Eastwood, Akira Kurosawa, and Charlize Theron.
Another celebrated Asian film industry individual will be celebrated during the festival. Filmmaker, writer, and composer Trinh T. Minh-ha, a Distinguished Professor of the Graduate School at the University of California, Berkeley, will receive the Persistence of Vision Award. Her many awards include the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Women's Caucus for Art; the 2006 Trailblazers Award at MIPDoc in Cannes, France; and the 1991 AFI National Independent Filmmaker Maya Deren Award. This year's POV program will feature Trinh T. Minh-ha in conversation with Rizvana Bradley, Assistant Professor of Film and Media at UC Berkeley, followed by the North American premiere of Minh-ha's latest film, What About China? which will see its North American premiere on Friday, 29 April 7:00PM at the BAMPFA.
Without further ado though, here is the line-up of Asian and Asian diaspora feature to mid-length film selections available at this year's edition of the SFFILM Festival, in order of appearance. To see the rest of the film line-up and shorts, peruse the SFFILM site here: https://sffilm.org/2022-festival-program/
Children of the Mist Diễm Hà Lệ (Vietnam 2021, 93 min)
Fri, Apr 22 5:30 PM VOGUE Sat, Apr 23 3:00 PM BAMPFA
Living in isolation from the modern world in the mountains of Vietnam, feisty Hmong teenager Di must decide if she will succumb to tradition or bravely choose a different fate.
Mud Water My-Linh Le (USA 2021, 31 min) WORLD PREMIERE
Fri, Apr 29 5:45 PM ROXIE
Myth, naturalism, and performance blend in this lively chronicle of a Bay Area dance crew preparing for a major battle in turfing, a dance style originated in Oakland. Screens with The Door of Return (dir. Kokutekeleza Musebeni, Anna Zhukovets) and Listen to the Beat of Our Images (dir. Audrey Jean-Baptiste, Maxime Jean-Baptiste). Total runtime 76 min.
Hit the Road Panah Panahi (Iran 2021, 94 min)
Fri, Apr 22 8:30 PM VOGUE Sat, Apr 23 5:30 PM BAMPFA
In Panah Panahi's auspicious feature debut, an eccentric family takes a road trip through sun-drenched Iranian landscapes as they accompany their eldest son to a mysterious destination.
Klondike Maryna Er Gorbach (Ukraine/Turkey 2022, 100 min)
Fri, Apr 22 8:30 PM VICTORIA Sun, May 1 7:00 PM BAMPFA
Armed conflict hits home in the most vivid way imaginable when mortar fire decimates one wall of the farmhouse belonging to married Ukrainian couple Irka and Tolik in this striking drama based on real events.
Wet Sand Elene Naveriani (Switzerland/Georgia 2021, 115 min)
Sat, Apr 30 12:00 PM VICTORIA
A granddaughter returns to her reclusive grandfather's seaside village in Georgia after his suicide to organize his funeral only to discover his long-suppressed secret love in this meditative drama about small-town prejudice.
The Exiles Violet Columbus, Ben Klein (USA/Taiwan/France/China 2021, 96 min)
Sat, Apr 23 3:00 PM VICTORIA Sun, Apr 24 2:00 PM BAMPFA
Never-before-seen footage of Chinese dissidents enmeshed in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and their bittersweet reflections 30 years later anchor this hybrid of cine-memoir and archival excavation focused on Who Killed Vincent Chin? documentary firebrand Christine Choy.
My Dear Aragon Yao (Portugal 2021, 30 min) NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
Sat, Apr 23 6:00 PM ROXIE
Shifting between observational footage, paper puppetry, and poetic symbolism, a young Chinese filmmaker explores expressions of sexual identity in this essay about queerness, immigration, and performance. Screens with cosboi (dir. Gosha Shapiro) and Blue Veil (dir. Shireen Alihaji). Total runtime 50 min.
Costa Brava, Lebanon Mounia Akl (Lebanon/France/Spain/Sweden/Denmark/Norway/Qatar 2021, 106 min)
Sun, Apr 24 12:00 PM VOGUE Sat, Apr 30 5:30 PM BAMPFA
Set in the near future but reflecting on current crises in present-day Lebanon, this tense debut portrays three generations of the Badri family, who have retreated from the chaos of Beirut to a rural homestead.
Fire on the Plain Zhang Ji (China 2021, 113 min)
Sun, Apr 24 8:45 PM VOGUE Thu, Apr 28 8:00 PM BAMPFA
The son of a local gangster and daughter of a factory worker conspire to flee their desperate lives as a serial killer runs rampant in this Chinese social realist neo-noir.
The Gravedigger's Wife Khadar Ayderus Ahmed (Finland/Germany/France 2021, 83 min)
Sun, Apr 24 8:00 PM ROXIE
A loving husband takes to the road to ask for financial help from extended family when chronic kidney disease threatens his wife's life in this warm and humanistic drama.
Midwives Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing (Myanmar/Canada/Germany 2022, 89 min)
Amidst Myanmar's escalating civil war, a Buddhist midwife and her Muslim apprentice overcome personal and professional differences to care for their patients at a village clinic in this nuanced documentary.
Mon, Apr 25 6:00 PM ROXIE Sun, May 1 2:30 PM BAMPFA
CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON
Mon, Apr 25 7:00 PM CASTRO
Veteran Hong Kong martial arts icons Michelle Yeoh and Chow Yun-Fat face off against newcomer Ziyi Zhang over a stolen sword in Ang Lee's electrifying epic. Set in the 19th century, during the last days of the Qing Dynasty, Lee's breakthrough film is an exhilarating blend of lush visuals, awe-inspiring action, and romantic adventure. A cinematic phenomenon, the film boasts an exquisite cast; Peter Pau's luminous, Oscar®-winning cinematography; Tom Yip's costume and Oscar-winning production design; and Yuen Woo Ping's breathtaking fight choreography with its spectacular, gravity-defying wirework. Nominated for 10 Academy Awards®, including Best Director and Best Picture, it won four, including Best Foreign Language Film and Best Original Score for Dun Tan's vivid compositions. Twenty-two years after its release, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, screening at the Festival in glorious 35 mm, retains its power to thrill.
$15 Member | $18 General Purchase tickets for this event and receive 10% off tickets for the Tribute to Michelle Yeoh Friday, April 29.
The Devil's Drivers Mohammed Abugeth, Daniel Carsenty (Qatar/France/Lebanon/Germany 2021, 93 min)
Mon, Apr 25 8:30 PM ROXIE
“On the left side is Israel; on the right side is Palestine.” Drivers Hamouda and Ismail risk prison or worse to smuggle Palestinian workers into Israel through gaps in the border wall.
TikTok, Boom. Shalini Kantayya (USA 2022, 90 min)
Sat, Apr 30 3:00 PM VICTORIA
For young people, TikTok is the most popular platform for creating personalized content. But behind the cute videos lurk issues of censorship and data mining. This documentary deftly explores both sides of the TikTok boom.
Sonne Kurdwyn Ayub (Austria 2022, 88 min)
Sat, Apr 30 5:00 PM ROXIE
When three teenage girlfriends make a home music video to R.E.M.'s “Losing My Religion,” their moment of uninhibited camaraderie becomes an unexpected viral sensation in Vienna.
