By Gary Meyer. (updated July 26,2026)
Family dramas, Amazing Sea Monkeys, Hollywood censorship, Woody Guthrie, the Middle East conflicts, Berlin’s nightlife, uncomfortable secrets, teenage angst, many kinds of music, short films, Holocaust stories we never knew, New Yorker cartoonists, LBGTQ lives, inside the most famous Catskills summer resort, and family comedies.
These are some of the stories at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival playing through Sunday, August 2. Continue reading
By Noma Faingold. (July 10, 2026)
You can’t separate the art from the artist. With Nigerian painter and humanitarian Nengi Omuko, that’s a really good thing, as opposed to infamous misogynist Pablo Picasso, pedophile and bigamist Paul Gauguin and murderous pimp Caravaggio (born Michelangelo Merisi).
The Impressionist paintings of up-and-coming Omuko, 39, embrace heritage, revere nature, while grappling with the human condition, in all its struggles and triumphs.
(June 18, 2026)
The essential cocktail guide from Booze & Vinyl authors André and Tenaya Darlington—now brought up to date with fresh flavors and techniques, 32 new recipes for modern tastes including mocktail and low ABV options, and more to help at-home drinks makers and professionals alike master the art of the cocktail.
EatDrinkFilms brings you the introduction to the new edition and two great cocktails to try. Continue reading
By Noma Faingold (June 13, 2026)
Frameline50, the annual San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival, is celebrating its 50th anniversary, June 17-27. The milestone is a big deal for the largest and longest-running queer film festival in the world. Several San Francisco and East Bay venues, including the newly restored Castro Theater, will host 140 films from 35 countries with LGBTQ+ themes by mostly queer filmmakers. Programming for the 11-day event also includes parties, networking events and industry panels.
By Noma Faingold. (June 11, 2026)
“Minister Chucky,” a short film about the unconventional Las Vegas wedding of a queer couple, officiated by a killer doll Chucky impersonator, from the eight-installment “Child’s Play” horror movie franchise, is funny until you consider the full context of the celebration and the subsequent plans for the pair to flee the United States under the bleak Donald Trump regime.
Filmmakers non-binary Graham Kolbeins and trans man Jonathan Andre Culliton documented their cheeky nuptials, along with their life choices before and after the festivities. The 11-minute film highlights love and resistance in times when the LGBTQ+ community is under attack.
With strawberries and tomatoes coming into season it is time to remind you of these refreshing recipes. And we have added another version of Strawberry Spaghetti called “Makaron z truskawkami.” You may be surprised to learn about this dessert version that caused an international controversy and brought attention to the idea of using strawberries with pasta five years after we first published our recipe.
EatDrinkFilms offers a full meal starting with Bloody Mary cocktails, a zucchini salad, strawberry spaghetti, and chewy molasses cookies for dessert; plus great popcorn idea to eat while watching an after-dinner movie.
by Claire Wu
(May 18, 2026)
Created over the span of 16 years, “Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird)” is a stunning patchwork of vérité footage, handmade dioramas and puppets, animation sequences and collages. This is not simply a film about grief, but rather a piece of ritual art that continuously meditates on all the highs and lows of Yo’s vibrant life and the integral role she played throughout the filmmaker’s lives as their dear friend.
Photo by Andy Mitchell
By Noma Faingold. (May 5, 2024)
As far as ancient history, the Romans and the Greeks seem to get all the attention culturally, with respect to architecture, artifacts, precious jewels, inventions, the alphabet, religious ritual and even the Gods.
Until now.
The new exhibition at the Legion of Honor Museum, “The Etruscans: From the Heart of Ancient Italy,” opened May 2 and continues through September 20. Continue reading
By Gaetano Kazuo Maida. (May 5, 2026)
In these heady days of the astonishing exploits of the Japanese baseball phenom Shohei Ohtani, now with the Los Angeles Dodgers (he’s a unique double-threat: an overpowering pitcher and a home run hitter who steals bases), it may be hard to fathom the early days of Japanese players here—indeed, of Japanese baseball itself. Continue reading
Photo by Albert Sanchez
By Noma Faingold.
(May 15, 2026)
Trailblazing comedian Margaret Cho has always made sure her brazen stand-up material aligns with her feminist, politically progressive and all-inclusive views on sexuality. What is radically different about the 57-year-old San Francisco native is that her once chaotic, dangerous life has gradually evolved into a that of a serene homebody, who surrounds herself with animal and plant life.
By Geneva Anderson (April 29, 2026)
Film Schools like to feature the successful alumni who attended their programs. But none have guided so many to success as the Sundance Labs program where new filmmakers are mentored by established cinema artists under the sensitive yet firm direction of one person.
Robert Redford and Michelle Satter at the Director’s Lab (2011). Photo by Fred Hayes. Courtesy of Sundance.
Michelle Satter, one of the world’s most important and influential champions of independent film is the recipient of SFFILM’s 2026 Mel Novikoff Award and will be honored on Thursday, April 30, at a special evening that includes Satter in conversation with award-winning Oakland filmmaker Peter Nicks, followed by a screening of Benh Zeitlin’s 2012 film “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” a wildly successful project supported by both Sundance Institute and SFFILM. Continue reading
