Friday’s Films at Festival

The movies start early at SIFF, with first showings 9 a.m. If you’re devoted enough to cinema to attend the early shows, you already know what they are.

So we’ll focus on the post-noon movies, starting with My Father and the Man in Black, a documentary about Johnny Cash and his long-time manager Saul Holiff. The films is made by son Jonathan Holiff, and plays at noon at Vintage House, and again Saturday at 2:45 in the Sebastiani Theatre.

Two back-to-back films at the Sebastiani Theater this afternoon are both worth checking out. First up is Village Music, about the “last of the great record stores,” the one of the same name in Mill Valley that closed in 2007. Interviews and even performances by the likes of Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder Jerry Garcia and John Lee Hooker helps tell the story of the still-ongoing evolution of American music. It plays at 3:00 p.m., and again Saturday at 5:45 in the Vintage House.

At 6:30, at the Sebastiani, is the featured screening of Project Censored, another documentary that’s been getting a lot of local publicity. As it should: it’s the first film made about the 20-plus years of the Sonoma State journalism watchdog group, which exposes the important stories of each year that are being overlooked by mainstream (e.g., corporate) media in favor of “junk food news.” Local realtors Christopher Oscar and Doug Hecker are co-writers, producers and directors.

This is technically  a world premiere, but Project Censored has already been nominated for best direction, best editing and an International Filmmaker Awards at the Madrid International Film Festival, coming up in June. That’s impressive for a movie by two local realtors, or anybody. The movie plays again Sunday April 14 at 3:00 p.m.

The 6 o’clock hour has other films of note you may want to see, if your interests are less political. One is Unforgettable Fire, a music documentary following a U2 tribute band of the same name. This is not a “Spinal Tap” parody, however, but a   It starts at 6 at Vintage House.

Again, two back-to-back movies with environmental themes are playing at the Sonoma Valley Woman’s Club. At 6:15 is Watershed, a documentary about the Colorado River and water rights, narrated by Robert Redford. And at 9:00 is a National Geographic movie Battle For the Elephants, exposing the international criminal network being the slaughter of African elephants for their tusks. Director John Heminway was here last year with “Bones of Turkana.”

At the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art they will screen this year’s “Lunafest,” a program of shorts from female filmmakers. Women from Canada, Italy, Korea, New Zealand, the UK and the US bring us nine shorts telling diverse stories by and about women in the world. Screening time is 7:15 p.m.

Also tonight, you may hear some highly danceable Latin music coming from the Backlot Tent in the Plaza. That would be the Vamos al Cine Latin Fiesta, with food from Rancho Viego, music by Carlos Herrera Band, beer, wine and even margaritas.

What movies are you looking forward to in this weekend’s Film Festival programs?  Tell us in the comments.