39th Santa Barbara International Film Festival: Special Cinema & Special Guests

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Parent Category: Film Festivals

Category: Previews

Published on Monday, 05 February 2024 13:23

Written by Brad Balfour

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival, now in it’s 39th entry, is set to have eleven days of cinema and special guests. The festival runs February 7th to the 17th at the Arlington Theatre, the festival features a wide swath of films. 

The opening night film is Madu, directed by Matt Ogens and Joel ‘Kachi Benson. Madu is a documentary that goes from the streets of Lagos to stages in England, as twelve-year-old Anthony Madu leaves his home in Nigeria to study at one of the most prestigious ballet schools in the world. His journey is a story of extraordinary obstacles, courage, growth, and ultimately, his search for belonging. 76 Days is a uniquely immersive documentary, in which Steven Callahan gives a gripping first-hand account of his New York Times bestselling novel, Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea. Forced into his emergency raft after colliding with a whale, Steven drifts across the entire Atlantic Ocean. The closing night film is Chosen Family, which is written, directed by, and starring Heather Graham. Yoga teacher Ann is trying to find inner peace, despite having a manic family, a miserable dating life, and an inability to say no that keeps her busy trying to fix everyone else’s problems.

Among its guests, the festival has announced  that cinema icon Robert Downey Jr. will receive the Maltin Modern Master Award, its highest accolade.  The ceremony will include an in-person conversation between Downey and legendary film historian and critic Leonard Maltin, for whom the award is named. Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, America Ferrera, and Andrew Scott will discuss their work and receive their awards in-person on Saturday, February 10. Other special guests include Jeffrey Wright, Mark Ruffalo, Annette Bening, and Paul Giamatti.

Also part of the fest is a selection of free filmmaker seminars. Topics include:

• First-time Female Filmmakers 
• The Long and Short of Short Filmmaking Monday
• Fight the Power: Documentary Activism at Work
• Independent Filmmaking
• Global Lens: Conversations with International Filmmakers
• My So Cal Life: California Filmmakers’ Roundtable 

To learn more, go to: https://sbiff.org/

39th Santa Barbara International Film Festival
February 7 – 17, 2024

The Arlington Theatre
1317 State St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101

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