Friday, January 7 - Wednesday, January 12
MUST END WED!

Bear Cub

Pedro (José Luis García-Pérez) is an attractive and homosexual dentist who lives a sexually active lifestyle. He offers to take care of his 9 year-old nephew Bernardo (David Castillo) for two weeks while the child's mother, Pedro's older sister Violeta (Elvira Lindo), goes off to India with her latest "hippie" boyfriend. Pedro modifies his sexual behavior but quickly finds out that Bernardo is extremely comfortable and mature in his attitude towards life. When Violeta suddenly becomes detained in India, Pedro finds himself the boy's caretaker and must face the challenges of raising a child. As the relationship between uncle and nephew gradually becomes tighter through real love, friendship and affection, Violeta's estranged mother, Dona Teresa (Empar Ferrer), arrives to begin a relationship with Bernardo. But as she finds out more about Pedro's life, Dona Teresa believes that the upbringing of a child should not be left in the hands of a homosexual. For more info, check out TLA Releasing.Showtimes: Nightly at 7:00. Additional Saturday & Sunday matinees at (2:00) & 5:20.

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 7 - Wednesday, January 12
MUST END WED!

Jonathan Caouette¹s spellbinding debut TARNATION reimagines the whole idea of what a documentary can be. Caouette has been documenting his life since he was eleven years old. With TARNATION, he weaves a psychedelic whirlwind of snapshots, Super-8 home movies, answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, snippets of 80s pop culture and dramatic reenactments to create an epic portrait of an American family torn apart by dysfunction and reunited through the power of love.TARNATION begins in 2003 as Caouette learns of his mother’s lithium overdose in his native Texas. Faced with the haunting remnants of his past, including a family legacy of mental illness, abuse, and neglect, Caouette returns home to aid in his mother¹s recovery. Slipping back into the archives of his youth, we watch Caouette grow up on camera, seeking escape from family trauma through musical theater, grade-B horror flicks and the forging of his identity through popular culture.Having relocated to New York in his twenties and subsequently attaining peace in the form of a supportive mate, Caouette discovers that family ties are never truly unbound. He rekindles a touching relationship with another victim of a tumultuous childhood - his own mother Renee.TARNATION is a raw and sensual display of self-destruction and rebirh that announces the arrival of an exceptional new cinematic visionary. Running time: 88 Minutes. Showtimes: Nightly at 8:45. Additional Saturday & Sunday matinees at (3:45).

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 7 - Thursday, January 13

Presents
THE CENTURY OF THE SELF

The San Francisco Independent Film Festival is proud to present THE CENTURY OF THE SELF, a four-hour British documentary which “ponders the impact Freud's theories had on 20th century culture, particularly the way psychological ideas muddied the distinctions between consumerism, politics, democracy and advertising.” -Dennis Harvey, Variety. We live today in a society dominated by the self and its feelings. To 'be oneself' is no longer considered selfish but healthy and virtuous. THE CENTURY OF THE SELF shows how this revolution in how we see ourselves happened over the past 100 years. It asks if this has really been a liberation of the self or if it has just made us more vulnerable to being manipulated and controlled by those in power? To many in both politics and business this triumph of the self is the ultimate expression of democracy – power has finally moved to the people. This series examines the validity of that idea while recounting the extraordinary role members of the Freud family have played in fostering and encouraging this irresistible rise of the self, from Sigmund to Matthew. This 4-part documentary will be shown as two programs. The admission for Parts 1 & 2 is $8:00, $4.00 for seniors. The admission for Parts 3 & 4 is $4.00 for everyone. Directed, written and produced by Adam Curtis. 2004 UK. DV. Runningtime: 240 minutes. Don't forget to check out SF Indie Fest. Showtimes: Parts 1&2: Nightly at 7:00. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun. matinees at 2:00. Parts 3&4: Nightly at 9:10. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun matinees at 4:10.

"Remarkable. Don't think of it as a movie. Think of it as a dazzling college course, available for the price of admission." -- Mick LaSalle, SF Chronicle

"A fascinating viewpoint...there's nary a dull moment between wonderful archival clips and an extraordinary interview roster that encompasses strategists Dick Morris and Philip Gould, actress Celeste Holm (who shared Marilyn Monroe's psychiatrist), est founder Werner Erhardt, Mario Cuomo, surviving relatives of Freud and Bernaise, and many others." - SF Bay Guardian.

Thursday, January 13 only.

Piece by Piece

Piece by Piece is a groundbreaking film that documents San Francisco’s highly controversial graffiti art movement. A story told by those who live the experience, Piece by Piece offers an intimate journey into the most intriguing and misunderstood artistic movement of modern youth culture. By detailing the last 20 years of San Francisco’s graffiti, this tale offers the most candid and accurate story behind the writing on the wall in Northern California. Tonight at 7:00 & 9:00

Friday, January 14 - Thursday, January 20

Alexandra’s Project

Steve (Gary Sweet) is a middle-management office worker happily going through the motions of family life as husband to wife Alexandra (Helen Buday) and father to their two children. On his birthday, he receives a much sought after promotion. With good news to share at home, Steve leaves work and heads home, in anticipation of a surprise party he suspects Alexandra has organized. But when he returns home, all is quite in their suburban townhouse. After searching the darkened house for party guests Steve finds nothing except a video tape labeled “Play Me.” It is a recording made by Alexandra and their children wishing him a happy birthday. Once the children leave the screen, Alexandra begins to give Steve the most surprising present of all…an alluring striptease. He thinks all his birthdays have come at once…until, on the video, he sees a gun pointed at Alexandra’s head. In a panic, he races for the phone but discovers there’s no connection. He tries to leave the townhouse only to find that his keys no longer fit the locks and the security shutters on the windows are locked tight. Remembering his mobile phone, Steve finds that his battery has been replaces by a bullet. Alone, frightened and imprisoned in his own house, Steve has no choice but to watch the rest of the video tape. For more info, log onto Film Movement. With: Gary Sweet, Helen Buday and. Bogdan Koca. Writer/Director/Producer: Rolf de Heer. Australia. Running Time: 103 minutes. DV. Showtimes: Nightly at 7:00 & 9:15. Additional Saturday, Sunday & Wednesday matinees at 2:00 & 4:30.

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 14 - Thursday, January 20

Presents
THE CENTURY OF THE SELF

The San Francisco Independent Film Festival is proud to present THE CENTURY OF THE SELF, a four-hour British documentary which “ponders the impact Freud's theories had on 20th century culture, particularly the way psychological ideas muddied the distinctions between consumerism, politics, democracy and advertising.” -Dennis Harvey, Variety. We live today in a society dominated by the self and its feelings. To 'be oneself' is no longer considered selfish but healthy and virtuous. THE CENTURY OF THE SELF shows how this revolution in how we see ourselves happened over the past 100 years. It asks if this has really been a liberation of the self or if it has just made us more vulnerable to being manipulated and controlled by those in power? To many in both politics and business this triumph of the self is the ultimate expression of democracy – power has finally moved to the people. This series examines the validity of that idea while recounting the extraordinary role members of the Freud family have played in fostering and encouraging this irresistible rise of the self, from Sigmund to Matthew. This 4-part documentary will be shown as two programs. The admission for Parts 1 & 2 is $8:00, $4.00 for seniors. The admission for Parts 3 & 4 is $4.00 for everyone. Directed, written and produced by Adam Curtis. 2004 UK. DV. Runningtime: 240 minutes. Don't forget to check out SF Indie Fest. Showtimes: Parts 1&2: Nightly at 7:00. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun. matinees at 2:00. Parts 3&4: Nightly at 9:10. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun matinees at 4:10.

"Remarkable. This is four hours of sheer brilliance, a film with the insight into contemporary life that usually takes scholars a full century's distance to acquire."
-- Mick LaSalle, SF Chronicle

"A fascinating viewpoint...there's nary a dull moment between wonderful archival clips and an extraordinary interview roster that encompasses strategists Dick Morris and Philip Gould, actress Celeste Holm (who shared Marilyn Monroe's psychiatrist), est founder Werner Erhardt, Mario Cuomo, surviving relatives of Freud and Bernaise, and many others." - SF Bay Guardian.

Friday, January 21 - Thursday, January 27

A film by
Manoel de Oliveira
A Talking Picture

The first scene in Manoel de Oliveira’s A TALKING PICTURE depicts Rosa Maria (Leonor Silveira), a young history professor, and her seven-year-old daughter Maria Joana (Filipa de Almeida) on a bucolic cruise through the Mediterranean Sea. Rosa’s purpose for this trip is twofold: to join her husband in Bombay, India, for a family vacation, and to acquire first-hand knowledge of––and introduce her daughter to––historical sites at the various cities along their journey. Starting in their homeland Portugal and moving through Marseilles (France), the ruins of Pompeii (Italy), Ceuta (Spanish Morocco), Athens (Greece), the pyramids of Egypt and Istanbul (Turkey), Rosa narrates to her young daughter some of the most important events in Western history––sometimes struggling to separate myths and speculations from concrete marks of irrefutable histories. On the cruise, Rosa and Maria eventually befriend three famous women of different nationalities: a renowned French executive (Catherine Deneuve), a former Italian model (Stefania Sandrelli) and a celebrity Greek actress (Irene Papas). Dining with the ship’s captain (John Malkovich), an American of Polish origin, all four passengers exchange pieces of their past while talking about the legacies of Western history––each speaking in his or her native languages. But the curious tourists are forced to stop discussing the rhetoric of tradition and history when a strange threat disturbs the cruise, menacing the ship and the life of all of its passengers. For more info, log onto kino.com. Written, and directed by Manoel de Oliveira. With Leonor Silveira, Filipa de Almeida, Catherine Deneuve, Stefania Sandrelli, Irene Papas and John Malkovich. In English, Portuguese, French and Italian with English subtitles. 35mm. 2003. Running time: 95 minutes. Showtimes: Nightly at 6:00 & 8:00. Additional Saturday & Sunday matinees at (2:00).

"A potent and troubling meditation on the state of Western society."
-- Walter Addiego, SF Chronicle.

"Oliveira again shows himself to be a master of the medium with this sharply cut gem of a film". -- Manohla Dargis, NY Times.

"A devastating rumination on modern cultural woes.. a jolting ending – at once unexpected and entirely appropriate – sends the audience back out into the real world. That de Oliveira is 96 only makes the sharpness of his picture all the more remarkable." -- Max Goldberg, SF Bay Guardian.

"A majestic and profound work." -- Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune.

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 21 - Thursday, January 27

"Although few in the West have ever heard about it, the Kumbh Mela spiritual festival is the biggest gathering of people in the history of humanity. Held in India every 12 years where the holy Ganges and Yamuna rivers meet, this incredible event attracts over 70 million pilgrims who set up camp in a vast tent city. These include many of India’s gurus and spiritual leaders, including the Dalai Lama. More than a simple account of the Kumbh Mela, this film is a sensory experience of an ancient, grand occasion, capturing a swirl of color and motion, song and cacophony and observant of both the sacred and the surreal. It’s an exhilarating, insightful, spiritually uplifting (and sometimes hilarious) journey of discovery to the biggest popular gathering of all time." - Rafael Film Center. Official Website. In English and Hindi with English subtitles. Camera: Maurizio Benazzo. Editor: Nick Day. Producers/Directors: Maurizio Benazzo, Nick Day. (US 2003) 85 min. Showtimes: Nightly at 9:45. Additional Saturday & Sunday. matinees at 4:00.

"A beautifully crafted documentary... a handsomely photographed, beautifully edited, and constantly absorbing glimpse into a unique corner of the human experience. Highly recommended."
- FilmThreat.com

"Radiates good cheer and offers moments of true godly goodness." - San Francisco Chronicle

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 21 - Thursday, January 27

Presents
THE CENTURY OF THE SELF

The San Francisco Independent Film Festival is proud to present THE CENTURY OF THE SELF, a four-hour British documentary which “ponders the impact Freud's theories had on 20th century culture, particularly the way psychological ideas muddied the distinctions between consumerism, politics, democracy and advertising.” -Dennis Harvey, Variety. We live today in a society dominated by the self and its feelings. To 'be oneself' is no longer considered selfish but healthy and virtuous. THE CENTURY OF THE SELF shows how this revolution in how we see ourselves happened over the past 100 years. It asks if this has really been a liberation of the self or if it has just made us more vulnerable to being manipulated and controlled by those in power? To many in both politics and business this triumph of the self is the ultimate expression of democracy – power has finally moved to the people. This series examines the validity of that idea while recounting the extraordinary role members of the Freud family have played in fostering and encouraging this irresistible rise of the self, from Sigmund to Matthew. This 4-part documentary will be shown as two programs. The admission for Parts 1 & 2 is $8:00, $4.00 for seniors. The admission for Parts 3 & 4 is $4.00 for everyone. Directed, written and produced by Adam Curtis. 2004 UK. DV. Runningtime: 240 minutes. Don't forget to check out SF Indie Fest. Showtimes: Parts 1&2: Nightly at 7:00. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun. matinees at 2:00. Parts 3&4: Nightly at 9:10. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun matinees at 4:10.

"Remarkable. This is four hours of sheer brilliance, a film with the insight into contemporary life that usually takes scholars a full century's distance to acquire."
-- Mick LaSalle, SF Chronicle

"A fascinating viewpoint...there's nary a dull moment between wonderful archival clips and an extraordinary interview roster that encompasses strategists Dick Morris and Philip Gould, actress Celeste Holm (who shared Marilyn Monroe's psychiatrist), est founder Werner Erhardt, Mario Cuomo, surviving relatives of Freud and Bernaise, and many others." - SF Bay Guardian.

Friday, January 28 - Thursday, January, February 3

Fear X

"The drug-addled urban paranoia of Hubert Selby Jr. ("Last Exit to Brooklyn," "Requiem For A Dream" -- but here not starting from his own novel) gets transposed to the flatlands of Wisconsin and Montana with intriguing results in "Fear X," a supremely elegant, meditative thriller scripted by Selby and Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn ("Pusher," "Bleeder")..."Fear X" suggests a more abstract "Memento""by way of "Blow-Up," ," "The Conversation" and other movies about an increasingly obsessive quest for an increasingly unknowable absolute. Story follows Wisconsin security guard Harry Cain (John Turturro) as he tries to piece together the identity of his late wife's murderer. Apparently an innocent bystander to a planned hit gone awry, Harry's wife was one of two people gunned down in the parking lot of a shopping mall -- the same mall where Harry happens to be employed. Unable to cope with his feelings of guilt (and with the apparent disinterest of the police in solving the case), Harry decides to take the investigation into his own hands... Like Jack Nicholson's retired cop searching for the "real" killer in "The Pledge," Harry crosses the line where the quest itself becomes more important than the answer. -- The result is one of Turturro's most fascinating, quietly intense performances." -- Scott Foundas, Variety. With John Tuturro, Unger Deborah, Stephen McIntyre, William Allen Young & Eugene M. Davis. Director: Nicolas Winding Refn Screenplay: Nicolas Winding Refn, Hubert Selby Jr. Director of Photography. Larry Smith ("Eyes Wide Shut""Eyes Wide Shut"). Danish. In English. 2003. 35mm. Cinemascope. Running time: 91 mins. Showtimes: Nightly at 8:00 & 9:45. Additional Sat. & Sun matinees at (2:00).

"A tense, atmospheric, and quietly involving psychological thriller."
-- Robert Avila, SF Bay Guardian.

"At various times, "Fear X" suggests a metaphysical mystery like "Blow-Up," a vigilante portrait like "Taxi Driver" and a study of an obsessed loner like "One Hour Photo," but it is really none of the above. The elliptical screenplay written by the director with Hubert Selby Jr. (the author of "Last Exit to Brooklyn" and "Requiem for a Dream"), who died last April, is an essay in minimalist gloom colored with paranoia, conspiracy and guilt."-- Stephen Holden, NY Times.

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 28 - Thursday, January, February 3

Filmmaker Jessica Yu's innovative documentary explores the parallel lives of legendary outsider artist Henry Darger. Reclusive janitor by day, visionary artist by night, Darger had virtually no friends but lived a rich imaginary life. Upon his death hundreds of watercolor paintings were discovered, along with a 15,000 page novel (bearing the same title as the film) detailing the exploits of seven angelic sisters who lead a rebellion against godless, child-enslaving men. Employing vivid animation and experimental elements, Yu immerses us in Darger's world and all its strange beauty, showing how he forged magic out of the bleakest of lives. USA. 2004. Running Time: 81 mins. Official Site. Showtimes: Nightly at 6:15. Additional Sat. & Sun. matinees at 4:00.

ALSO SHOWING
Friday, January 28 - Thursday, January, February 3

Presents
THE CENTURY OF THE SELF

The San Francisco Independent Film Festival is proud to present THE CENTURY OF THE SELF, a four-hour British documentary which “ponders the impact Freud's theories had on 20th century culture, particularly the way psychological ideas muddied the distinctions between consumerism, politics, democracy and advertising.” -Dennis Harvey, Variety. We live today in a society dominated by the self and its feelings. To 'be oneself' is no longer considered selfish but healthy and virtuous. THE CENTURY OF THE SELF shows how this revolution in how we see ourselves happened over the past 100 years. It asks if this has really been a liberation of the self or if it has just made us more vulnerable to being manipulated and controlled by those in power? To many in both politics and business this triumph of the self is the ultimate expression of democracy – power has finally moved to the people. This series examines the validity of that idea while recounting the extraordinary role members of the Freud family have played in fostering and encouraging this irresistible rise of the self, from Sigmund to Matthew. This 4-part documentary will be shown as two programs. The admission for Parts 1 & 2 is $8:00, $4.00 for seniors. The admission for Parts 3 & 4 is $4.00 for everyone. Directed, written and produced by Adam Curtis. 2004 UK. DV. Runningtime: 240 minutes. Don't forget to check out SF Indie Fest. Showtimes: Parts 1&2: Nightly at 7:00. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun. matinees at 2:00. Parts 3&4: Nightly at 9:10. Additional Wed., Sat. & Sun matinees at 4:10.

"Remarkable. This is four hours of sheer brilliance, a film with the insight into contemporary life that usually takes scholars a full century's distance to acquire."
-- Mick LaSalle, SF Chronicle

"A fascinating viewpoint...there's nary a dull moment between wonderful archival clips and an extraordinary interview roster that encompasses strategists Dick Morris and Philip Gould, actress Celeste Holm (who shared Marilyn Monroe's psychiatrist), est founder Werner Erhardt, Mario Cuomo, surviving relatives of Freud and Bernaise, and many others." - SF Bay Guardian.