The 13th Annual San Francisco Silent Film Festival (July 11-13,2008)
“Silent Film Festival?” -you say, “Who watches silent films nowadays?”. But folks in San Francisco managed to create a silent film festival that attracted more and more viewers with each year. The festival presents its films the way it was done many decades ago-on a big screen with live music accompaniment. Sounds interesting, doesn’t it?
Here is little bit of history: Melissa Chittick and Stephen Salmons founded the The Silent Film Festival in 1992. Over 1,800 people came to the first festival, and annual attendance has grown over the years to 11,000.
This is how SFSFF formulated its mission:
“We believe the best way to truly appreciate the power and beauty of a silent film is by seeing it as it was meant to be seen: on the big screen with lives musical accompaniment. For over thirteen years, we’ve hand selected the finest 35mm prints, engaged leading musicians to compose and perform live era-authentic musical scores, and invited filmmakers, authors, stars, archivists, and scholars to provide context and commentary for each film. We are committed to exploring the broad spectrum of silent film. Our programming is a lively and thought-provoking mix of education and entertainment which combines established American classics, lesser-known gems, rare and/or recently restored films, and important international work, including films from China, India, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, France and Russia.”
This year’s film selection:
Here are 3 films that I think were the most interesting:
The Soul of Youth
The Man Who Laughs
Her Wild Oat
The festival is sponsored by The KQED (SF Public Television Station), National Endowment for The Arts and San Francisco Guardian, among other sponsors.
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