What: 11th Annual San Francisco International Ocean Film Festival
The 11th annual San Francisco International Ocean Film Festival (SFIOFF), North America's premier cinemaquatic© event, will dock at San Francisco's Bay Theatre for five days of ocean-themed films, discussions, and special events. Nearly 50 films, submitted by filmmakers from over 17 countries will fill the festival, including various world and U.S. premieres on film topics ranging from diving to surfing, sharks to ocean conservation, island cultures to the cultural importance of the world's marine resources.
The Whale Story
(USA) Tess Martin, 4 min
The momentary, intense connection between a female humpback whale entangled in multiple nets and lines, and a group of swimmers who work to free her. -SM
In Harmony with Whales
(Mexico) Erick Higuera, 6 min*
From the lagoons of Baja California, Mexican filmmaker and marine biologist Erick Higuera shares a conservation success story about the majestic gray whale, once almost hunted to extinction. Extraordinary underwater cinematography shows us these immense whales and their calves playing and living in harmony with humans. -GC
Fitzgerald Marine Reserve
(USA) Rob Cala, 14 min
Prepare for a visit to one of the most biodiverse intertidal regions in the state of California. The local community unites to observe, protect, and enjoy this Northern California coastal gem. -VJ
Whale Chasers
(New Zealand) Tess Brosnan, 25 min
Fifth-generation New Zealand whalemen saw their industry collapse 50 years ago due to over hunting by other countries. The reasons behind the sudden collapse in whale numbers have only recently emerged. Meanwhile, the former hunters have become conservationists, working with biologists by using their spotting skills to save whales. -SM
A Day in the Life of Lolita, the Performing Orca
(USA) Daniel Azarian, 9 min
Killer whale expert and advocate Dr. Ingrid Visser deplores the long internment at the Miami Seaquarium that for years has been a puppet and parody of an orca and still kept in miserably substandard conditions. Who's accountable? What options does the future hold for such whales? -MJS
Bimbo
(USA) Vincent Gargiulo, 3 min*
With edgy editing and a surreal score, this tragic tale profiles the Pacific pilot whale whose captive "stardom" at Marineland of the Pacific, triggers a descent into depression and psychosis. Launching his 6,000-pound bulk through an observation window makes a powerful statement. -MJS
Lighting Strikes Twice: the Real-Life Sequel to Moby Dick
(USA) Stephani Gordon, 29 min
In 2008, a shipwreck was discovered in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Archaeologists find artifacts revealing that the ship is the Nantucket whaleship, Two Brothers, commanded by Captain George Pollard – the same captain who survived the sinking of the whaler, Essex, an inspiration for Herman Melville's Moby Dick. -ST
