Four local film festivals for Sacramento cinephiles
Take a cinematic trip around the world with these four local film festivals that are set to screen a slew of foreign and domestic flicks, including an anime ghost story and a 3D sci-fi thriller from Argentina.
Sacramento International Film Festival
April 28-May 5 Movies from across the globe will take center stage at the 24th annual Sacramento International Film Festival. This year's lineup will include the Canadian documentary Finding Big Country, which tracks a Vancouver Grizzlies superfan’s search for ’90s-era NBA star Bryant “Big Country” Reeves, and Anacronte, an Argentinian 3D animated fantasy short that chronicles humanity’s fallout from an attack by the “Sorcerers of Evil.” $12-$15 per screening; $150 for festival pass. Times and locations vary by screening. californiafilm.net
Sacramento Asian Pacific Film Festival
May 18 The Asian-American experience will be showcased during this one-day movie showcase. Held at Oak Park’s Guild Theater, the festival will exhibit flicks from Asian creators, including two coming-of-age films—1985, where four Hmong-American teenagers search for a dragon that lives beneath a Minnesota lake, and The Debut, in which a young Filipino American grapples with his ethnic identity—along with the documentary Defender about the work of Sacramento-raised Jeff Adachi, the San Francisco public defender who passed away earlier this year. $15 for afternoon and evening passes ($20 after May 15); $30 for festival pass ($40 after May 15). noon-10 p.m. Guild Theater. 2828 35th St. sapff.org
Sacramento French Film Festival
June 21-30 Spanning two weekends, this yearly cinematic extravaganza will screen 40 Francophile-friendly films, from mid-century French New Wave art-house movies to modern-day features, including 2018's The Freshman, about a pair of stressed-out first-year med school students, and In Safe Hands, which examines the French foster system through the story of a newborn baby who is given up for adoption. $12 per screening; $90 for festival pass. Times vary by screening. Crest Theatre. 1013 K St. 916-476-3356. sacramentofrenchfilmfestival.org
Sacramento Japanese Film Festival
July 19-21 Seven movies will be spotlighted during the 15th annual Sacramento Japanese Film Festival, including Japanese Academy Award-winning director Yoji Yamada’s 2016 dramedy What a Wonderful Family!; the 2018 anime Okko’s Inn about a young girl who discovers friendly ghosts living in her grandmother’s hotel; and the 2016 documentary Forgive—Don’t Forget, in which the director Brad Bennett chronicles his journey to Japan to return a samurai sword that was confiscated by America during World War II to its original owner’s family. $10 per screening; $40 for festival pass. Times vary by screening. Crest Theatre. 1013 K St. 916-421-1017. sacjapanesefilmfestival.net
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