G. Allen Johnson February 5, 2021Updated: February 11, 2021, 3:03 pm
Jimmie Fails (left) and Jonathan Majors star in “The Last Black Man in San Francisco.” Photo: David Moir, A24
With the Sundance Film Festival in its rearview mirror, Fort Mason Flix announced its schedule for the rest of February, including Black History Month events such as “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” family animated favorites such as “Shrek” and “Cars,” and recent films such as “Tenet” and “Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn).”
The schedule through Sunday, Feb. 14, has already sold out, but tickets, priced at $49 per carload, for programs from Feb. 16 (“Shrek,” “Back to the Future”) through Feb. 28 (“The Princess and the Frog,” “Creed”) are available at fortmason.org/flix.
G. Allen Johnson February 5, 2021Updated: February 11, 2021, 1:08 pm
“CODA” plays on the opening night of the 2021 Sundance Film Festival at Fort Mason Flix in San Francisco. . Photo: Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle
They say that necessity is the mother of invention, and this year’s Sundance Film Festival might be the beginning of an evolutionary period for one of the most important events on the world’s film calendar.
“We need to make sense of this festival that just happened,” said Tabitha Jackson during a wrap-up event on Feb. 3, the final day of her first Sundance as festival director. “A festival is a gathering, a conversation, a celebration contained within a moment. It is ephemeral. That’s part of the magic of Sundance.
G. Allen Johnson February 3, 2021Updated: February 4, 2021, 9:03 am
Author Amy Tan and her mother in a still used in James Redford’s documentary “Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir.” Photo: Sundance Institute
No one was more excited to see the world premiere of “Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir” at the Sundance Film Festival than the subject herself.
“Gala pre-show food: Door Dash Vegan Grill Tuna Melt and half a glass of merlot. Attire: Black Turtleneck. We had premium house seats,” Tan posted on Facebook just before the virtual premiere of the film on Tuesday, Feb. 2. (It also played later in the evening at the Fort Mason Flix drive-in, not far from “The Joy Luck Club” author’s San Francisco home.)
G. Allen Johnson February 2, 2021Updated: February 4, 2021, 3:49 pm
The cast of “CODA,” which won four awards at the Sundance Film Festival and has been picked up by Apple TV+, includes Marlee Matlin (second from right). Photo: Sundance Film Festival
“CODA,” Sian Heder’s drama about a child of deaf parents seeking to strike out on her own, won the top prize at the Sundance Film Festival on Tuesday, Feb. 2.
But the win was no surprise, because “CODA” dominated from the outset. Its presentation on the festival’s opening night, Thursday, Jan. 28, created such buzz that by the weekend it was snapped up by Apple TV+ for a Sundance acquisitions record of more than $25 million. On Tuesday, it won both the U.S. grand jury dramatic prize and the audience award for best picture.
Chronicle Staff January 29, 2021Updated: February 6, 2021, 12:37 pm
“CODA” plays on opening night of the 2021 Sundance Film Festival at Fort Mason Flix in San Francisco. Photo: Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle
The Sundance Film Festival, one of the most prestigious in the world, has come to a close, having showcased more than 70 feature films online and bringing world premieres to drive-ins across the country, including the pop-up Fort Mason Flix in San Francisco.
But the festival wasn’t just about watching the movies. The festival that ran Jan. 28 through Wednesday, Feb. 3, featured virtual Q&A sessions with stars and filmmakers for fun, often surprising, behind-the-scenes looks at some of the biggest films of the year. There were also some bidding wars from major distributors, who spent millions to acquire some of festival’s top films.