66th San Francisco International Film Festival: Cine Latino Competition
April 15—22, 2023
Presented in collaboration with Cinema Tropical
The annual San Francisco Film Festival is the oldest running film festival in the Americas, since 1957. This year’s 66th SFFILM Festival will run from April 13th to the 23rd with a projected 25,000+ ticket holders attending film premieres, events, and parties all throughout downtown San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley. This year, the Cine Latino program of the festival showcases the diverse textures and cinematographic excellence of Latin American storytelling through four dazzling films.
Admission: General admission is $20. Students with ID and senior adults $19. SFFILM Members $16.
VICENTA B
A film by Carlos Lechuga
(Cuba, 2022, 77 min. In Spanish with English subtitles)
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Set amongst the vibrant landscape of Cuba, the film follows Vicenta, a gifted clairvoyant who uses her ability to connect to her ancestors to foresee the future. When her beloved son leaves home in search of employment abroad, the heartbreak of their separation drives Vicenta into an identity crisis as she worries about her boy. While she can foretell others’ future, her own remains cloudy as she struggles with her ancestors to understand the journey ahead for her son. She rediscovers her connection to the island and recovers her own sense of well-being as she learns to cope with what she cannot control.
Friday, April 14, 6pm at BAMPFA (2155 Center St, Berkeley, CA 94720)
Sunday, April 16, 3:30pm at CGV San Francisco (1000 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109)
DAUGHTER OF RAGE / LA HIJA DE TODAS LAS RABIAS
A film by Laura Baumeister
(Nicarauga, 2022, 91 min. In Spanish with English subtitles)
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“If you want something, you have to fight for it,” 11-year-old Maria’s (Ara Alenjandra Medal) mother Lilibeth tells her in Laura Baumeister’s powerful debut. The pair eke out a living out selling items scavenged from the massive landfill abutting their shack, a unique bond tethering them to one another and an inner wildness. But when one of Lilibeth’s deals goes sideways during a time of social unrest, she leaves Maria in the care of strangers—little realizing how her parenting has resonated with her daughter who pushes against all obstacles in her determination to reunite with her mother. Through striking cinematography, poetic imagery, and Medal’s touching performance, Daughter of Rage follows María as she harnesses the power of her inventive mind in her quest to find some semblance of home. Daughter of Rage is the first Nicaraugan feature directed by a woman.
Friday, April 15, 8:45pm at CGV San Francisco (1000 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109)
I HAVE ELECTRIC DREAMS / TENGO SUEÑOS ELÉCTRICOS
A film by Valentina Maurel
(Costa Rica/Belgium/France, 2022, 101 min. In Spanish with English subtitles)
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The award-winning debut feature by writer/director Valentina Maurel focuses on Eva, a 16-year-old girl who lives with her mother, her younger sister, and their cat, but who wants to move in with her estranged father. Clinging onto him, she seeks balance between the tenderness and rebellion of teenage life. Bathed in richly textured imagery and soaked in raw sensitivity, the film captures the thin line between love and hate, in a world where aggression and rage are intertwined with the vertigo of female sexual awakening.
Saturday, April 22, 3:30pm — CGV San Francisco (1000 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109)
Sunday, April 23, 5:30pm — BAMPFA (2155 Center St, Berkeley, CA 94720)
LOVE & MATHEMATICS / AMOR Y MATEMÁTICAS
A film by Claudia Sainte-Luce
(Mexico, 2022, 85 min. In Spanish with English subtitles)
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Set in Monterrey, this satirical comedy about the ambitions and aspirations of upper-middle-class Mexican society follows former popular boy band member Billy Lozano, who is now a thirtysomething unhappily married man. His suburban routine, consisting of taking care of his infant son and loathing his wife’s poorly behaved lap dog, changes when he meets a fan of the band, who moves next door and inspires him to pick up the guitar again and make sense of his life.
Saturday, April 15, 6:45pm — CGV San Francisco (1000 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109)
