The upcoming San Diego International Film Festival offers something for every taste, with programming running from comedic farce to satire, from political intrigue to crime dramas.
This year’s festival runs Wednesday, Sept. 28, to Sunday, Oct. 2, at select theaters in San Diego’s downtown Gaslamp district and La Jolla.
Three Spanish-language films are of interest: “Ma Ma,” “The Cliff’ and “Julietta.” Popular Spanish actress and model Penelope Cruz stars in “Ma Ma.”
Keeping with news headlines, the festival also offers documentary tracks devoted to social justice and global consciousness.
The festival’s opening night film, “Other People,” written and directed by Chris Kelly, will screen at the Balboa Theatre (868 Fourth Ave., San Diego). Red carpet ceremonies are scheduled at 5 p.m. The film begins at 6:30 p.m.
The cast includes Molly Shannon, Bradley Whitford, Maude Apatow and Madisen Beaty. The storyline touches on contemporary lifestyles.
A struggling comedy writer, fresh from breaking up with his boyfriend, moves to Sacramento to help his sick mother. Living with his conservative father and younger sisters, David feels like a stranger in his childhood home. As his mother worsens, he tries to convince everyone (including himself) he’s “doing OK.”
Special events include the 48-hour San Diego project screening as well as selected panels featuring actors and filmmakers.
Short tracks include curious voyage (you can’t go back to yesteryear because you were a different person then), twisted humor (a trip to the dark side), unexpected endings (if you think you see if coming, think again), illusion (step into a world where the seemingly impossible is actually quite possible), crossroads (whether by choice or by accident, characters find themselves at a life-changing moment), independent animation (offering the best in narrative and experimental animation) and when worlds collide (where the light at the end of the tunnel is not the light of day).
Venue locations include the Geoffrey Theater at Spreckels (923 First Ave., San Diego), Regal Theater (475 Horton Plaza, San Diego) and ArcLight Cinemas/UTC (4425 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego).
To kick off this year’s festival, Harrah’s Resort SoCal presents the SDiFF Opening Night after-party at the Westgate Hotel.
Awards will be presented Oct. 1 from 9 to 11:45 p.m. at the Westin San Diego Gaslamp Quarter.
If you go …
•Access is easy from South County via the San Diego Trolley or by car from highways 5 and 94
•A complete list of programming can be accessed at http://online.flipbuilder.com/iemm/mjmh/#p=48 and https://secure.sdiff.com/e/passes
Films of interest
Spanish-language
Ma Ma: Academy Award-winning actress and producer Penélope Cruz delivers an extraordinarily emotional performance in the newest film from acclaimed director Julio Medem. “Ma Ma” follows Magda (Cruz) as she experiences tragedies and miracles alike. Just as Magda is diagnosed with breast cancer, she meets Arturo (Luis Tosar), a devoted husband and father in the midst of unspeakable loss. Their chance encounter leads both down a path of strength, grace, love, and rebirth.
Sharp HealthCare is the sponsor of this film to help shine the light on the importance of breast cancer prevention. With October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, this topic is very timely.
Play date: Oct. 1 (1 p.m. ArcLight/UTC)
Julieta: Julieta lives in Madrid with her daughter Antía. They both suffer in silence over the loss of Xoan, Antía’s father and Julieta’s husband. But at times grief doesn’t bring people closer, it drives them apart. When Antía turns 18 she abandons her mother without a word of explanation. Julieta looks for her in every possible way, but all she discovers is how little she knows of her daughter. The film is about the mother’s struggle to survive uncertainty. It is also about fate, guilt complexes and that unfathomable mystery that leads us to abandon the people we love, erasing them from our lives as if they had never meant anything, as if they had never existed. This film has been selected as Spain’s foreign language Oscar submission.
Play dates: Oct. 1 (1 p.m. at ArcLight/UTC); 4:30 p.m. Regal Theater
The Cliff: A mass suicide involving members of a cult takes place in the Canary Islands. Gabriel’s younger sister, Cordelia, who he hasn’t seen for years, was one of the cult followers. Gabriel decides to travel immediately to the islands and find out what happened.
Play dates: Sept. 30 (5 p.m. at ArcLight/UTC); Oct. 1 (10:30 a.m. at Geoffrey Theater)
WORLD PREMIERES
LATE BLOOMER
Fri, Sept 30 | 7:30pm | Regal UA Horton
Sat, Oct 1 | 7:30pm | Regal UA Horton
FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE
When Pete’s doctors find a pituitary tumor that has delayed his onset of puberty for 15 years, he undergoes what would normally be years of puberty in a matter of weeks, leaving Pete to awkwardly navigate life as a horny teen kid.
RAILWAY SPINE
Sat, Oct 1 | 12:00 pm | Regal UA Horton
Sun, Oct 2 | 2:30pm | ArcLight UTC
FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE
Witness the tragic story of loss through the eyes of a Vietnam Veteran in this coming-of-age period war and crime drama. After years of searching for hope and redemption and ultimately deciding to end his life – Michael Delucca, recollects his violent post war life in a memoir for the son he never knew.
DEAD DRAW
Fri, Sept 30 | 2:30pm | Regal UA Horton
Sun, Oct 2 | 4:30pm | Regal UA Horton
FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE
25 million dollars, 8 safety deposit boxes, and months before anyone will know it’s gone.
HOUSE OF NORWAY
Thur, Sept 29 | 12:30pm | Geoffrey Theater
Sat, Oct 1 | 6:30pm | ArcLight UTC
FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE
Ramin, an optimistic and resourceful refugee from the middle east, arrives in Norway, the richest country in the world.
BODYGUARDS: Secret Lives from the Watchtower
Sat, Oct 1 | 2:30 pm | Regal UA Horton
FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE
Our film explores the lives of bodyguards; a world most people know nothing about. Showcasing Nelson Mandela’s Bodyguards, Justin Bieber and his Director of Security, Whitey Bulger’s Protector, 50 Cent & Lil Wayne’s Bodyguard, and Ambassador’s under Blackwater.
AMERICAN FABLE
Fri, Sept 30 | 5:00 pm | Regal UA Horton
Sat, Oct 1 | 4:30 pm | Regal UA Horton
FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE
When 11-year-old Gitty discovers that her beloved father is hiding a wealthy man in her family’s silo in order to save their struggling farm, she is forced to choose between saving the man’s life or protecting her family from the consequences of their actions.
CITIZEN SOLDIER
Fri, Sept 30 | 3:00pm | Regal UA Horton?WORLD PREMIERE – 2:30 Red Carpet
DOCUMENTARY. Tells the story of a group of young Soldiers in the Oklahoma Army National Guard’s 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and their life-changing tour of duty in Afghanistan. Offering an excruciatingly personal look into modern warfare, brotherhood, and patriotism using real footage from multiple cameras, including helmet cams.
BLOOD STRIPE
Fri, Sept 30 | 4:30pm | ArcLight UTC
Our Sergeant returns home after her third tour with the Marines in Afghanistan. It is clear that in addition to the scars she bears on her torso, our Sergeant carries unseen wounds. When a boisterous homecoming party provokes an explosive outburst, Our Sergeant has nowhere to turn and so she runs… deep into the North Woods.
MIITARY SHORTS TRACK
Oct 2 | 12:00pm | Regal UA Horton
AMERICAN GIRL – After a U.S. Army soldier is hit by a sniper in Afghanistan, she fights to stay alive by clinging to childhood memories of her dangerous journey through Mexico.
PLACES LIKE THIS – A group of veterans embark on a six day winter expedition into the Colorado wilderness hoping to use nature to nurture old wounds.
THE SANDBOX – A young boy struggles to reconnect with his dad who returns from Iraq still haunted by his tour of duty.
