San Francisco Documentary Festival 2011

FESTIVAL PRESS COVERAGE TO DATE "The San Francisco Documentary Film Festival, now in its 10th year, is probably my most-anticipated local film event".-Cheryl Eddy, SF Bay Guardian "The San Francisco Documentary Festival, better known as DocFest, has embraced the new reality for more than a decade, culling the sexiest, druggiest, and rockingest portraits of oddball subcultures from the deluge of nonfiction produced around the globe. Between reality TV and YouTube, you may think you’ve seen it all. But DocFest is here to show and tell you different." - Michael Fox, SF Weekly "...if you've never checked out SF Indie's San Francisco Documentary Film Festival ("Docfest"), you're missing out on one of the cultural treasures the Bay Area has to offer." - SF Appeal

What happens in the northern wilderness when the loggers leave? “Reforestation.” Which is tree planting, one wee tree at a time, a form of mentally and physically demanding piecework that attracts a certain kind of person: committed, motivated, and a little bit peculiar. In this brand-new documentary, filmmaker (and former planter) Nardella documents one such crew for one especially grueling season, 78 days in all. Co-presented by the San Francisco Green Film Festival

It’s time to feather that hair or flock it out like a seagull because on October 15 we’re layering on the guy-liner (waterproof of course, there could be tears) with a skinny tie for The Totally 80s New Wave Sing-Along. With the best of Depeche Mode, A-Ha, OMD, Erasure, Smiths, New Order, and so much more (all with lyrics on-screen), we’ll wail our hearts out and dance the night away 80’s style. So get ready for this non-stop synthpop rollercoaster ride! Co-Presented by NEW WAVE CITY, Nov 5 at Mighty

This new documentary about perennial SF IndieFest favorite Bill Plympton follows his path from a Portland childhood spent drawing indoors to a self-made career as an independent animator and cartoonist. Featuring interviews with Terry Gilliam, Ralph Bakshi, Will Vinton, and other animation luminaries, “Adventures in Plymptoons!” is a remarkable portrait of a remarkable artist. Co-presented by the Cartoon Art Museum

Mixing pop culture and politics, along with gonzo journalism, filmmaker Michael Schiller exposes the underbelly of domestic surveillance. Schiller is caught up in the mass arrests that accompanied the 2004 Republican convention in NYC. After his film became evidence in a lawsuit in Schiller vs. the City of New York, his world took a very strange turn. Featuring appearances by Andre “3000” Benjamin , the Bush Twins , Barack Obama and Al Sharpton . Played at New York Los Angeles Int’l Film Festival. Co-presented by CounterCorp: The Anti-Coroporate Film Festival

This intense shorts program explores the connection, often missed, between the body and the mind and how society and social interactions interfere with it. In order to depict such impalpable relations, these works space in the terrain of the experimental more than the narrative. In Vivid Dreams, a woman faces psychological imbalance due to the use of medications. Simply Rob tells the story of a man fighting loneliness and discrimination because of his struggle with HIV thanks to poetry. SXSW Best Short Documentary winner Mothersbane looks at the very personal experience of the filmmaker and his troubled journey toward coming to terms with his mother's disability using both archival and recent footage. Crooked Beauty challenges mental illness stigmas and advocates for a new perception of madness as a source of creativity. Animation breaks the limits of traditional documentary filmmaking in Dancing with the Moon in order to tell the story of a child waiting to be born. The Laying on of Hands speaks of religious healing and the martial arts' technique of the “death touch” juxtaposing life and death.

Examines the power of the contract in surrogate motherhood arrangements, and the implications of signing away one's own bodily rights to bear a child for a stranger. The film follows Angel Patwell through the final weeks of her second surrogate pregnancy as she struggles to turn a breach baby and faces the possibility of a contract-mandated cesarean section against her wishes. Interwoven with the modern story is the history of Noel Keane, a pioneering and controversial lawyer from Dearborn, Michigan who created the first surrogate parenting contract in the late 1970s. At the time, the concept seemed outrageous, yet Keane took a chance and drew up the first “commercial” surrogacy agreement. Angel For Hire explores how drastically the legal landscape has shifted towards making surrogacy available, and yet how difficult it is to pin down a process where emotions are entwined with legal commitments.

Arguing Three Strikes examines California's Three Strikes law and its impact on the criminal justice system. This film comprehensively explains the evolution and meaning of the law, presents all sides of the argument, and tells the personal stories of two nonviolent three strikers, whom we feel were unintentionally caught up the system. The film spotlights the story of Charles Ramirez, who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment under the three strikes law for stealing a car radio. Twelve years into his sentence, he became a client of the Stanford University Three Strikes Project. The Stanford Project helps three strikers serving life for minor, nonviolent crimes appeal for shorter sentences. To date, the Stanford team has won the reversal of sixteen life sentences.

“An award-winning director duo sweeps us into the chaotic world of a family of voluptuous female belly dancers in working class Cairo as they struggle to practice an art in danger of disappearing. The film centres on Reda, a charismatic widow and ex-dancer with seven children and one on the way, her wise confidante, and three of her daughters, who now dance at raucous all-male celebrations for a living. ...Music, dancing, a blistering daytime sun and the magic of Cairo nights pulse throughout this astonishingly intimate and rare portrait of women whose art is desired but no longer considered reputable”. - Lynne Fernie, HotDocs (Special Jury Prize). The 10/20 screening is followed by the Berkeley Closing Night Party at Lot 68 Lounge at the Shattuck Cinemas. The party is 21 up and sponsored by the East Bay Express