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Nous: A new Alsatian Restaurant to Complement the Ashland Shakespeare Festival

By Julie Lindow (June 16, 2025) Are you planning to attend a play at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival this summer? It is a terrific season with classic works like Julius Caesar, The Importance of Being Earnest, As You Like It, and The Merry Wives of Windsor to contemporary shows including August Wilson’s Jitney, Shane, Fat Ham, Quixote Nuevo, and Sondheim’s Into the Woods. The season runs through…

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The Life of an Independent Film Producer

By Noma Faingold  (June 13, 2025) Prolific, award-winning independent film producer Marc Smolowitz has more than 60 credits in his three-decade career. He’s raised at least $30 million for projects in every genre. At any given time, he is the driving force behind 10 films in various stages of production, including at this very moment. Photo by Noma Faingold He doesn’t shy away from declaring why…

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It’s a Noir, Noir, Noir, Noir World

by Meredith Brody There’s always room for more noir in my life. “In Lonely Places: Film Noir Beyond the City” will help out this summer. Continue reading It’s a Noir, Noir, Noir, Noir World

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Cope, Connect, Escape and Heal in OUTERLANDS

By Noma Faingold (May 30, 2025) Outerlands is the perfect title for the indie drama written and directed by former San Francisco resident Elena Oxman. The word can mean several things – literally and thematically – in the context of a film about how people cope, connect, escape and heal. Continue reading Cope, Connect, Escape and Heal in OUTERLANDS

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EATING and DRINKING FILMS & MORE From THE SEATTLE FILM FESTIVAL

By Vince Keenan The 51st Seattle International Film Festival drew to a close on May 25, with a selection of entries available via streaming through June 1. At this year’s fest, I paid particular attention to nonfiction titles spotlighting the troika of subjects that matter most to EatDrinkFilms readers. Let’s begin with a libation. Wine has its sommeliers, beer its cicerones. As the craft…

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"Bound" Director Comes Home With Rave Reviews

By Noma Faingold (May 15, 2025) Writer/director/producer/actor Isaac Hirotsu Woofter was on his phone minutes before his feature debut, “Bound,” was being screened in February, during SF IndieFest at the Roxie Theater. It was a Bay Area homecoming for Woofter and he wanted to make sure the friends and family attending were taken care of. Continue reading “Bound” Director Comes Home With…

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Pasta Supply Company

By Noma Faingold (May 1, 2025) When chef/owner Anthony Strong decided to open his restaurant/shop combo, the Pasta Supply Co., in April 2023 on Clement Street, he took DIY to an extreme. Continue reading Pasta Supply Company

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Women Scientists Fascinated By Bats

A Profile of Filmmaker Kristin Tièche By Noma Faingold.  (May 1, 2025) Kristen Tièche walks into Le Café du Soleil, a French bistro in the Lower Haight, with unremarkable décor, clutching her little black mixed-breed dog, Zizou. She rode her bike from her Inner Richmond home. It’s mid-afternoon. As she places a glass of white wine, accompanied by a glass of water, at a window table, she mentions…

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Welcome to the 68th San Francisco International Film Festival

A sneak preview of the opening weekend at the oldest film festival in the Americas. By Meredith Brody  (April 23, 2025) After a five-day iteration in 2024, SFILM returns in 2025 with eleven days stuffed with over 150 movies (narratives, documentaries, and shorts) from 50 countries, special events, workshops and talks, and awards. April 17-27. Continue reading Welcome to the 68th San Francisco…

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Isaac Julien Dreams A World

By Noma Faingold (April 16, 2025) Watching the 28-minute, 10-screen film/art installation, “Lessons of the Hour,” by British artist/filmmaker Sir Isaac Julien, isn’t as overwhelming as one might think. In fact, the flood of images, sounds and words, dedicated to the life of writer, orator, philosopher, and social justice activist Fredrick Douglass (1818-1895), a former slave, allows the viewer to…

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Barbarella Gives a Physical-According to AI

By Gary Meyer (April 15, 2025) When I read that (not my) POTUS was getting his physical from a Dr. Barbabella I misread it as the French satirical science fiction comic strip heroine created by Jean-Claude Forest and subsequent popular movie starring Jane Fonda, “Barbarella.”  I wondered what ChatGBT could do with that. You will note in the comic strip balloons there are misspelled words and the…

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Let Us Eat Cake

By Noma Faingold (April 6, 2025) They baked. They came and placed their cakes on white tablecloths. They devoured. Photo by Noma Feingold The official count was 1,387 cakes (and at least that many participants) at the CAKE PICNIC™ on the morning of March 29, on the front lawn of the Legion of Honor Museum. Continue reading Let Us Eat Cake

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Cake Happens in San Francisco

“CAKE PICNIC™ was born out of a simple desire to eat a lot of cake. And be surrounded by friends,” writes founder Elisa Sunga. “It is a gathering for the love of cake. It celebrates cake in all of its forms — chiffon cakes, upside down cakes, Princess cakes, Russian honey cakes, meringue cakes, jello cakes, trifles, multi-tiered cakes, sponge cakes, butter cakes, and more. Continue reading Cake…

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Berlin and Beyond 2025 

By Meredith Brody                                      (March 16,2025) What are my strategies for choosing what to see at a beloved SF film festival when much of what is offered are unknown titles? Sometimes all it takes for me to want to see a movie is a word or two. While perusing the twelve film lineup of the upcoming Berlin and Beyond Film Festival, the 29th iteration presented by the…

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Hazan Inspired Recipes with Marcella Beans

Steve Sando founder and chef at Rancho Gordo has developed a special Marcella Bean and offers two recipes from The Bean Book: 100 Recipes for Cooking with All Kinds of Beans, from the Rancho Gordo Kitchen by Steve Sando with Julia Newberry. Continue reading Hazan Inspired Recipes with Marcella Beans

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THE JOYS AND CHALLENGES OF MAKING A FILM ABOUT MARCELLA HAZAN

Director Peter Miller talks with Geneva Anderson (March 20, 2025- foods mentioned with an * behind them open to recipes) Marcella Hazan is the secret ingredient that made Italian cuisine irresistible to Americans. Through her cookbooks and teaching, she taught home cooks to focus on fresh ingredients and master simple techniques to unlock flavor, which is what truly matters in food.  Emmy and…

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Dogs and Inmates Finding their Way Home

UNDERDOGS is a special film that follows minimum-security prisoners as they care for and train homeless dogs with behavioral issues that have made the dogs —- until now —- unadoptable.   Positive Reinforcement helped both dogs and inmates find their way back home.  A Director’s Event with live music from the soundtrack and a film screening followed by a Director’s Q&A will take place on Thursday…