On The Bay film program + Bay Cruise

Together with Shaping San Francisco, the Kanbar Forum at the Exploratorium presents short films created by artists and scientists, who explore unique cultural aspects of our Bay - its waterways, shorelines, the natural elements, and humans at work and play. The program will be followed by a shoreline history boat tour with a separate ticket.

Films (2:00 - 3:00):

Notes on the Port of Saint Francis (1951, 22 min.) by Frank Stauffacher and assisted by filmmaker Hy Hirsh, is a short impressionistic documentary that captures the unique aspects of mid-twentieth century San Francisco with its diverse neighborhoods and a thriving port. The film was co-produced by the SF Maritime Museum and the California Historical Society. In 2013 the Library of Congress selected this film for the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant. The narration, written by Robert Lewis Stevenson in 1882, is of its time. We look back with fresh eyes as we re-examine this film and our present day coastline through a new framework and boat tour developed by Shaping San Francisco. Projected on 16mm film.

Crossing the Bar (1992, 8 min., 16mm) by Andrew Black who will be in person. A meditation on the landscapes of the San Francisco Bay as seen from the deck of a tugboat where Mr. Black was employed for several years in the late eighties. The film invites us to experience the bay from multiple perspectives using black and white and color 16mm images, music, and narration. Projected on 16mm film.

Chinese Whispers: Bay Chronicles (2015, 9 min) by Rene Yung This short documentary, created for an installation at the National Maritime Museum in San Francisco, brings to light the forgotten history of Chinese Shrimp fisherman in the Bay Area. Working with a team of artists, historical ecologists, and cultural experts sailing the original bay routes on the replica Chinese fishing boat, the Grace Quan, the artist surfaces lost stories as she revisits their thriving camps once situated along the bay.

See weblink for full schedule and to get tickets for the optional Bay Cruise.

Note time change for the boat departure, now at 3:00 pm.