‘Lands End’ Is Just the Beginning for Filmmaker Steve Peletz

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By Noma Faingold

Steve Peletz, 65, underplays his high-risk activities. He’s been scuba diving for more than 40 years. He joins marine biologists on expeditions in remote, exotic waters off the coast of Costa Rica, Columbia, Mexico and the Galápagos Islands. As a volunteer “citizen scientist“ his task is usually to tag different types of sharks so they can be tracked.

In 2019, he took up swimming in the ocean, specifically with a group at China Beach on the West Side of San Francisco. Peletz brought his GoPro camera on virtually all of more than 1,000 swims. He combined his lifelong love of photography and the ocean into his first film, “Lands End,” a nine-minute short getting its world premiere at the Green Film Festival of San Francisco (October 24-30), at the 4-Star Theater. “Lands End” will be screened along with “The Last Dive” on October 26 at 3:30 p.m. Continue reading →

Messages for the Future

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The United Nations Association Film Festival returns to the Bay Area with another urgent, globally expansive lineup. Running from October 16–26, the 28th edition of UNAFF brings 60 documentary films to venues across Palo Alto, East Palo Alto, San Francisco, and Stanford University. More than just a film festival, UNAFF is a civic forum—a space for dialogue, reflection, and action.

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Charlie Was My Co-Pilot- Celebrating Chaplin Days

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By Gary Meyer. (May 13, 2025)

“A day without laughter is a day wasted” -Charlie Chaplin

I can’t imagine a more wonderful spring weekend than the Charlie Chaplin Days in Niles (Fremont), California, May 16-18. Starting with a tour of Eugene O’Neill’s house where Chaplin’s wife Oona grew up, the celebration includes plenty of restored Chaplin films made by the Essanay Studio on the big screen  with audiences laughing uncontrollably at times. There are live presentations, rare footage and photos seen for the first time since they were made, walking tours, rides on a vintage diesel train, and the annual Charlie Look-Alike Contest. Continue reading →

Dogs and Inmates Finding their Way Home

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UNDERDOGS is a special film that follows minimum-security prisoners as they care for and train homeless dogs with behavioral issues that have made the dogs —- until now —- unadoptable.   Positive Reinforcement helped both dogs and inmates find their way back home. 

A Director’s Event with live music from the soundtrack and a film screening followed by a Director’s Q&A will take place on Thursday March 20, 2025 at the Sunrise Center, 645 Tamalpias Drive, Corte Madera from 6:30-8:30 pm.  Tickets and more information here. Continue reading →

Champagne Biopic “Widow Clicquot” opens Sonoma International Film Festival’s Tasty Program

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By Geneva Anderson

(March 16, 2024)

Haley Bennett rises to become the Grand Dame of Champagne  in Thomas Napper’s “Widow Clicquot”

The Sonoma International Film Festival (SIFF27) is just around the corner, March 20-24.  Set in the heart of the wine country, with a program that emphasizes film, food, wine, parties, and community engagement, SIFF has twice been voted one of the 25 coolest festivals in the world by MovieMaker magazine.  SIFF27 showcases 43 narrative and 16 documentary features plus 48 shorts from over 25 countries. Continue reading →

Shining the Light on Celebrity Chefs and Legendary Wine Country Women at the Sonoma International Film Festival  

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By Geneva Anderson

(March 21, 2023)

Long known for its culinary and wine films and now, its celebrity chef events, the 26th Sonoma International Film Festival (SIFF), March 22-26, finds magic in its combo of film, food, wine, parties and its gorgeous wine country setting.  This year’s edition offers 110 films from 32 countries, one world premiere and eight U.S. premieres.  SIFF has always excelled at bringing audiences great stories, especially dramas that find their resolution in working together in a food, wine, or vineyard setting. Its two celebrity chef dining experiences are luxurious splurges that enliven the whole festival experience: the annual Chefs & Shorts dinner and Joanne Weir’s luncheon.

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NEW YEARS CHEER- A Nostalgic Look at Past New Years Through Images, Movies and Music

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Welcome 2023!

We have brought back some of our favorite images, videos and music from our last version of this celebration and added new finds and fun. You will find music, food, drinks, photos and more. From Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and Ella Fitzgerald to Chuck Berry, Etta James, The Ramones, L’l Nas, Nina Simone, and watch The Grateful Dead’s New Year’s Eve 4+ hour concert to close Winterland following a collection of Dead NYE concert posters. There are superheroes, favorite cartoon characters, movie stars from the silent era onwards, comedians including Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Laurel & Hardy and the Three Stooges plus how to  countdown to midnight with Star Wars.

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THE AUTOMAT–Recipes, In The Movies & More

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Assembled by Gary Meyer

(Updated November 21, 2022)

The theatrical release of a new documentary by Lisa Hurwitz, The Automat, has taken me back in time with its wonderful clips from classic movies and discussions of food favorites of our youth from Baked Macaroni and Cheese, Chicken Pot Pie to Custard Cups and Pumpkin Pie. It is essential viewing for those interested in the history of restaurants in the 20th Century, the combining of technology and home-cooked meals and a trip down memory lane even if you were born too late to actually visit one. But we also cover contemporary attempts at automated food. We have included many photos, film clips, recipes, music, and related links to supplement your enjoyment of The Automat now playing in theaters and at film festivals—only on the big screen. 

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ANIMATION EXPLORES NEW DIMENSIONS IN 2022

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By Robert Bloomberg

In 1928, inspired by the talkie that changed the world, “The Jazz Singer,” Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks created “Steamboat Willie,” the first cartoon with fully synchronized music and sound effects, demonstrating the potential power and delight of animation. 

The ten films in this year’s Animation Show of Shows perfectly illustrate the culmination of that potential. Most of the shorts, curated and presented by Acme Filmworks founder Ron Diamond, require no subtitles and rely solely on that marriage of image and sound.

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