The San Diego International Film Festival is an independent film festival in San Diego, California, produced by the nonprofit San Diego Film Foundation. The main event has traditionally been held annually in autumn at venues in the Gaslamp Quarter, La Jolla, and Balboa Park.
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Location | San Diego and La Jolla |
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Established | 2001 |
Founded by | Karl Kozak, Robin Laatz |
Awards | Golden Eagle, Kumeyaay Eagle, Gregory Peck Award, Chris Brinker Award |
Artistic director | Tonya Mantooth |
Website | sdfilmfest |
The festival hosts celebrity awards banquets, panel discussions, retrospectives, parties, premieres, and contemporary independent narrative, documentary and short film screenings. Competitive juried categories vary year to year and have included foreign language, animated, Native American, military, social justice, equestrian, thrillers, and local films made in San Diego.
Special advanced screenings for VIP members[1] and educational programs[2] for San Diego area high schools are held year round in addition to an annual formal "Oscar watch party" in the winter.[3]
History
editThe San Diego International Film Festival (originally just "The San Diego Film Festival") and its non-profit foundation were founded in 2001 by event planner Robin Laatz and her filmmaker husband Karl Kozak.[4]
In its first decade, films premiering at the festival included Roger Dodger, The Blair Witch Project, Fahrenheit 9/11, An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting for Superman, Napoleon Dynamite, Primer, The Machinist, and Born Into Brothels.[citation needed]
The festival has been designated "Best Party Fest" and "Best Beach Fest" by the "Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide".[5] It has also been criticized along the same lines for being "more intent on throwing parties than putting quality films on the screen."[6]
New Leadership/Native Direction
editIn 2012, leadership passed to husband and wife producers Dale Strack and Tonya Mantooth.[7] According to Strack, they were modeling it after Napa Valley Film Festival, with a "longer term goal" of rivaling Sundance or TriBeCa.[6]
The festival expanded to a second location in La Jolla the same year.
Another new change was the establishment of a "Native American Advisory Board", whose name was changed in 2017 to "American Indian Advisory Board".[8] Tribes represented on the AIA board include Sac and Fox, Luiseño, Kumeyaay, Seminole, Lipan/Mescalero Apache, and the Barona Band of Mission Indians. Notable members of the board include character actor Saginaw Grant (The Lone Ranger, Breaking Bad), Randolph Mantooth (Emergency!, Sons of Anarchy, brother of Tonya Mantooth) and Erica Pinto, the Chairwoman of Jamul Indian Village.[9]
2012-2019
editNotable films premiering at the festival during this time include Silver Linings Playbook, 12 Years a Slave, He Named Me Malala, Goosebumps, The Imitation Game, Wild, Lion, Tiger, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Call Me By Your Name, Marshall, The Favourite, Widows, Boy Erased, Jojo Rabbit, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Marriage Story, The Irishman, and Parasite.[citation needed]
In 2013, New York area film critic Jeffrey Lyons was added as festival host and made honorary jury chairman. He acted as host or as co-host along with his with son Ben Lyons or with Access Hollywood film critic Scott Mantz, up until 2018, when Mantz hosted solo.
The festival added "International" to its name in 2016, having previously been known only as the San Diego Film Festival.[10]
In 2016, the festival established a Film Insider Series for VIP members to watch featured official selections and festival winners, premieres and special advanced screenings throughout the year.[11]
In September 2019, the festival began hosting free screenings of popular movies on Mission Beach.[12]
In 2019, the festival expanded to six days and hosted a second opening night film (The Irishman) at the La Jolla Village.[13][14]
2020-present
editNotable films premiering at the festival during this time include Nomadland, The French Dispatch, Spencer, The Power of the Dog, The Lost Daughter, The Banshees of Inisherin, and The Inspection.
In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival was reduced to four days and presented 114 films both virtually and on drive-thru screens.[15][16]
As of 2020, the San Diego International Film Festival is a qualifying festival for the Canadian Screen Awards.[17]
In 2021, limited in-person screenings resumed at new venues including the Museum of Photographic Arts and the San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park, as well as the Catamaran Resort in Mission Bay.[18] A special screening was held on the deck on a historic aircraft carrier at the USS Midway Museum.[19]
In 2022, after organizers at the Women's Museum of California's had ended their Women's Film Festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they joined forces with the San Diego Festival to present a women's series of films.[20]
In 2023, the film festival's opening night is being held at Westfield UTC AMC on October 8. Where, for the festival's 22nd year, they will have a showing of the Oscar winning film, The Holdovers.[21] The Festival will be occurring October 18–22 at Balboa Park's Museum of Photographic Arts, during those 5 days there will be showing 91 films of the 3,200 films that were submitted. The theme of this years Festival is "Celebrating the power of film", meaning films will be outlining the importance of film and its impact on our society and community.[22][23]
Awards
editGregory Peck Award
editThe Gregory Peck Award for Cinematic Excellence has been presented by the family of San Diego native Gregory Peck at the festival since 2014. Recipients at the San Diego festival include Andy Garcia,[24] Laurence Fishburne,[25][26] Keith Carradine, Patrick Stewart,[27] Annette Bening,[28] and Alan Arkin.[29] The family originally presented the award at the Dingle International Film Festival in Ireland. Previous recipients include Gabriel Byrne, Jim Sheridan, Jean-Jacques Beineix, and Laura Dern.[30]
Chris Brinker Award
editThe Chris Brinker Award was created by the family of Chris Brinker, a San Diego area producer best known for The Boondock Saints movies, who died of a brain aneurysm at the age of 42.[31] The award is given every year to the best first time director in competition at the festival.
Golden Eagle
editSince 2014, honored celebrities and winning filmmakers have been presented with a "Golden Eagle" themed statuette, sculpted by Apache artist Ruben Chato.[32]
Kumeyaay Eagle Award
editAn annual award presented to the best film competing in the American Indian track.[33]
Night of the Stars Awards
editThe festival offers other awards - Auteur, Vanguard, Humanitarian, Rising Star, etc. - that vary year to year. Honorees include:
- 2022: Regina Hall, Tony Hale, Lisa Ann Walker, Colson Baker.[34][35]
- 2019: Lindsay Wagner, Jared Harris, Pitbull, Jillian Bell, Camilla Morrone.[25][36]
- 2018: Kenny Loggins, Kathryn Hahn, John Cho, Topher Grace, Zachary Levi, Alex Wolff, Christian Navarro.[37][38][39]
- 2017: Kumail Nanjiani, Heather Graham, Taran Killam, and Blake Jenner.[27]
- 2017: Kate Beckinsale, Simon Helberg, and Jason Mitchell[40]
- 2016: Adrien Brody, Geena Davis, Brit Marling, and John Boyega[41]
- 2015: Beau Bridges, Michelle Monaghan, Eli Roth, Allison Pill, Tom Berenger[42]
- 2014: Judd Apatow, Michael B. Jordan, and Mariel Hemingway[43][44]
- 2013: Gus Van Sant, Diane Ladd, Anne Heche, Penny Lane, Stephen Gyllenhaal, and Martin McDonagh.[45][46][47]
Gala Event Films
editPartnerships
editFilms from San Diego that win or are nominated in the 48 Hour Film Project are screened during the festival every year.
The San Diego International Film Festival has partnered with the San Diego County Office of Education and San Diego Unified School District to bring films about social issues like homelessness, water pollution and refugees to area high schools.[39]
The festival - along with the GI Film Festival, FilmOut San Diego, San Diego Asian Film Festival, San Diego Latino Film Festival, Horrible Imaginings Film Festival - submits films to San Diego Film Week, a city-wide spring showcase produced by Film Consortium San Diego. Submitted films are eligible to win San Diego Film Awards.[61]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Film Insider Series | San Diego International Film Festival". Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "Focus on Impact Film Tour". San Diego International Film Festival. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "Awards Viewing Party | San Diego International Film Festival". Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "Questions for Robin Laatz". Voice of San Diego. 2006-09-23. Retrieved 2019-09-18.
- ^ "At San Diego Film Festival, no hitch is their niche - The San Diego Union-Tribune". 2018-04-17. Archived from the original on 2018-04-17. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ^ a b "San Diego Film Festival has a new chair, a new board, a new focus". San Diego Union-Tribune. 2012-04-13. Archived from the original on 2019-10-02. Retrieved 2019-10-02.
- ^ "The Mantooth-Strack Family Works to Produce the San Diego Film Festival". 92067magazine.com/.
- ^ "San Diego International Film Festival names American Indian Advisory Board". San Diego Union-Tribune. 2017-07-13. Archived from the original on 2019-08-01. Retrieved 2019-08-01.
- ^ "American Indian Advisory Board". San Diego International Film Festival. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
- ^ Blair, Iain (2016-09-29). "San Diego Film Festival Sets Its Aim for a Global Reach". Variety. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
- ^ Kühne, Olaf; Schönwald, Antje (2014-10-16), "Die mediale Erzeugung gesellschaftlicher Landschaft: San Diego im Film und in Internetvideos", San Diego, Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden, pp. 175–201, doi:10.1007/978-3-658-01720-0_5, ISBN 9783658017194
- ^ "Movies On The Bay | San Diego International Film Festival". 2019-08-21. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "ArcLight Cinemas | Oct 17-20 | San Diego International Film Festival". 2019-09-19. Retrieved 2019-10-02.
- ^ "THE BUZZ: The San Diego International Film Festival is Near". Vanguard Culture. 2019-10-04. Retrieved 2019-10-07.
- ^ a b "The Re-Imagined 2020 San Diego International Film Festival". San Diego Magazine. Retrieved 2020-09-29.
- ^ a b "The Re-Imagined 2020 San Diego International Film Festival Announces Festival to Feature Virtual Village & Drive-In Movies! | San Diego International Film Festival". 2020-09-23. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
- ^ "Canadian Screen Awards 2020 - Eligible Festivals" (PDF). Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television - Academy.ca. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-11-08.
- ^ "In-Person Screenings". San Diego International Film Festival. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
- ^ "The San Diego International Film Festival's 20th Anniversary season will be celebrated throughout San Diego". NBC 7 San Diego. Retrieved 2021-09-28.
- ^ Sitton, Kendra (2022-10-07). "San Diego International Film Festival debuts new Women's Series". San Diego Downtown News. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
- ^ "San Diego Film Festival to Open with Oscar Contender 'The Holdovers'". Times of San Diego. 2023-09-13. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
- ^ "San Diego International Film Festival returns for 22nd year". Del Mar Times. 2023-09-19. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
- ^ "San Diego International Film Festival". www.sandiego.org. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
- ^ Zee, Michaela (2022-10-12). "Andy Garcia, Regina Hall, Lisa Ann Walter and More Added to Honorees at San Diego International Film Festival". Variety. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
- ^ a b Nissen, Dano (2019-09-05). "Laurence Fishburne, Jared Harris & Jillian Bell to be Feted at San Diego Intl. Film Festival". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-06.
- ^ "Chatting with Laurence Fishburne as he heads back to town for San Diego Film Festival honor - The San Diego Union-Tribune". 2019-09-20. Archived from the original on 2019-09-20. Retrieved 2019-09-23.
- ^ a b Fernandez, Matt (September 11, 2017). "Kumail Nanjiani, Heather Graham to Be Saluted at San Diego Film Festival". Variety.
- ^ "Annette Bening back home for San Diego Film Festival award - The San Diego Union-Tribune". 2018-12-08. Archived from the original on 2018-12-08. Retrieved 2019-10-04.
- ^ "SDiFF Announces Annette Bening as the Gregory Peck Award Recipient". San Diego International Film Festival SDiFF. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ "The Gregory Peck Award: For Excellence in the Art of Film. | Dingle International Film Festival". 2016-02-25. Archived from the original on 2016-02-25. Retrieved 2020-02-10.
- ^ "San Diego Community News Group - Legacy of Point Loma producer lives on with Chris Brinker award". 2019-04-02. Archived from the original on 2019-04-02. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "New 2017 Golden Eagle Award Unveiled". Archived from the original on 2018-10-15. Retrieved 2018-04-08.
- ^ "American Indian | San Diego International Film Festival". Retrieved 2019-10-02.
- ^ Milkowski, Jenny (2022-10-07). "The San Diego International Film Festival Oct. 19-23 -". KUSI News. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
- ^ Zee, Michaela (2022-09-07). "San Diego International Film Festival Reveals 2022 Lineup, Colson Baker to Receive Spotlight Award (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
- ^ "Night Of The Stars Tribute". San Diego International Film Festival. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2019-09-18.
- ^ Gray, Tim (2018-08-29). "Alex Wolff, Dominique Fishback to Receive San Diego Festival Honors". Variety. Retrieved 2018-08-30.
- ^ "Topher Grace and Kenny Loggins Honored at San Diego International Film Festival". Retrieved 2018-09-26.
- ^ a b Blair, Iain (2018-10-10). "San Diego International Film Festival Offers Diverse Slate of Features, Shorts and Documentaries". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "San Diego Film Fest Honors Annette Bening, Jason Mitchell, Simon Helberg, and Kate Beckinsale". 2019-10-04. Archived from the original on 2019-10-04. Retrieved 2019-10-04.
- ^ McNary, Dave (2015-09-18). "'Star Wars' Star John Boyega Tapped for San Diego Festival Honor". Variety. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ "Equatorial Guinea-Set 'Where The Road Runs Out' Dominates San Diego Film Festival Awards". IndieWire. 2014-09-29. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ Accomando, Beth. "Preview: San Diego Film Festival". KPBS Public Media. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ Martella, Laura. "2013 San Diego Film Festival | Gentleman Norman". Retrieved 2019-09-18.
- ^ Wright, Anders (2010-09-22). "CityBeat's guide to the 2010 San Diego Film Festival". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "Gus Van Sant to Attend Retrospective at San Diego Film Fest (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ "San Diego Film Festival to honor Gus Van Sant". San Diego Union-Tribune. 2012-06-14. Retrieved 2019-09-27.
- ^ Zee, Michaela (2022-09-07). "San Diego International Film Festival Reveals 2022 Lineup, Colson Baker to Receive Spotlight Award (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
- ^ "Gala Films". San Diego International Film Festival. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
- ^ "2019 San Diego Intl Film Festival". 2019-09-21. Archived from the original on 2019-09-21. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
- ^ "San Diego International Film Festival Announces 2019 Films & Honorees". San Diego International Film Festival. 2019-09-05. Archived from the original on 2019-09-21. Retrieved 2019-09-09.
- ^ McNary, Dave (2014-08-29). "Reese Witherspoon's 'Wild' to Open San Diego Film Festival (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
- ^ "'12 Years a Slave' to Open San Diego Film Fest; 'August: Osage County' to Close". TheWrap. 2013-09-25. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
- ^ "2012 San Diego Film Festival Reveals Complete Line-Up". blurppy. 2012-09-25. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
- ^ "5 Must-See Films at the San Diego Film Festival". Retrieved 2018-11-02.
- ^ Wright, Anders (2010-09-22). "CityBeat's guide to the 2010 San Diego Film Festival". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
- ^ "2008 San Diego Film Festival Announces Award Winners". Film Threat. 2008-09-29. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
- ^ San Diego Magazine. CurtCo/SDM LLC. September 2004.
- ^ "The Reel Thing". www.sandiegomagazine.com. Retrieved 2019-09-18.
- ^ Reifsteck, Greg (2002-08-13). "'Dodger' A-OK to open San Diego fest". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-18.
- ^ "San Diego Film Week 2019". San Diego Film Week 2019. Retrieved 2019-07-30.