SBIFF at the Oscars 
By Steven Libowitz   |   March 4, 2025

A throng of actors, writers, directors, producers and other folks will stroll up to the stage to receive an Oscar on Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. A large percentage of these will almost assuredly have spoken directly to us about their films on stage just a few weeks earlier at the Arlington […]

Still to Come at SBIFF
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 18, 2025

Although there are only three days left in SBIFF 40, much remains to be seen. That includes a third screening on February 14 of The New Yorker Theater: The Talbots’ Legacy. This 26-minute short is about the movie theater founded by the couple – a theater that not only became one of the most influential […]

 

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Film Fest’s 40th
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 11, 2025

The wait is over. SBIFF 40 is here, with a full day already in the rearview mirror. The festival covers a lot of ground with its impressive slate of awards and panels, and screenings of almost 200 films domestic and foreign, documentary and fiction, shorts and full-length features, animation and live action.  What follows is […]

A Gathering for Gatherers 
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 11, 2025

Surprisingly, SBIFF isn’t the only major festival in town this week, as Santa Barbara once again hosts the annual festival of festivals, aka FestForums. The three-day conference, now at the Mar Monte Hotel, brings together festival producers, organizers and industry leaders to network, collaborate, and pick up tips about events in a single location February […]

SBIFF Turns 40: Out of the Fire into the Festival Fryer
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 4, 2025

The glittery path from Hollywood to Santa Barbara for the annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival got covered with ashes earlier this month from the devastating Los Angeles area wildfires that are still wreaking havoc on the greater community. The concept of rolling out the red carpet might have lost some of its luster, with […]

SBIFF Fires up 
By Steven Libowitz   |   January 28, 2025

After briefly considering canceling the milestone 40th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival in the wake of the Los Angeles fires, SBIFF did postpone announcement of the full lineup and schedule for a few days. But the slate is now complete for the fest, which runs February 4-15, its longest iteration yet, showcasing a total […]

In Need of a Cinematic Pick Me Up? Go see ‘Anora’ Now!
By Christopher Matteo Connor   |   November 26, 2024

Roger Ebert once said that “the movies are like a machine that generates empathy. It lets you understand a little bit more about different hopes, aspirations, dreams and fears. It helps us to identify with the people who are sharing this journey with us.” If there’s one writer-director currently working from a place of empathy, […]

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  • Saturday Night’s Alright: Famous Film Folk from Here Fighting It Out This Weekend
    By Steven Libowitz   |   November 26, 2024

    Are you a big Josh Brolin fan, especially ever since his character Llewellyn Moss got his buff cowboy body blown away by Javier Bardem’s methodical and passionless hitman Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, one of the Coen Brothers’ finest films? Or perhaps your taste runs to Jeff Bridges, another locally resident actor […]

    Denis Villeneuve Retrospective & Positive-ly Go to Hale
    By Steven Libowitz   |   October 22, 2024

    Academy Award-nominated French-Canadian filmmaker Denis Villeneuve gets SBIFF’s superstar treatment via a curated career retrospective of seven of the director’s important movies, including Incendies, Prisoners, Sicario, Arrival, Blade Runner 2049 and Dune Parts One & Two. The films – which have garnered a collective 28 Oscar nominations (with Dune 2 still pending) will screen in […]

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    Beyond the Border at UCSB,
    By Steven Libowitz   |   October 8, 2024

    UCSB’s Carsey-Wolf Center kicks off its CWC Docs series on October 8 with Borderland | The Line Within, the uber-timely investigation of immigration that dives into the border-industrial complex – the way businesses profit through the undocumented workers and the attendant human cost. The film, which was produced over five years with the assistance of […]

    Harmony Brings Healing for Heroes
    By Steven Libowitz   |   September 10, 2024

    This weekend offers an additional opportunity to aid area first responders in their mental/emotional health challenges — which is also a big part of One805’s oeuvre — via a world premiere event of the documentary short film 9-1-1 Project Harmony at the Lobero on September 8. The film covers the program of the same name, […]

    Robert at Riviera 
    By Steven Libowitz   |   August 27, 2024

    Missed Robert Zemeckis at the Granada earlier this month when the Montecito moviemaker made it down the mountain to intro Romancing the Stone and launch the four-film retrospective as part of the Home Movies Centennial celebration? No worries. Zemeckis will also be on hand for a pre-screening chat at SBIFF’s Riviera Theatre prior to a […]

    Save on SBIFF
    By Steven Libowitz   |   August 13, 2024

    The Santa Barbara International Film Festival is not only adding a 12th day for its 40th incarnation, slated for February 4-15, but is also finally employing the Riviera Theatre, SBIFF’s recently refurbished state-of-the-art year-round home, as a venue for the festival. The Riv will have its own dedicated film pass. All of the 2025 SBIFF […]

    ‘Last Summer’: A Salacious French Drama Hits the Screens Just in Time for Summer
    By Christopher Matteo Connor   |   July 30, 2024

    If you’re at all familiar with the French provocateur, Catherine Breillat, you’ll know that the 75-year-old master does not shy away from the taboo. In fact, she embraces it with gusto and sincere pathos. It’s what makes her films wildly compelling, even if they make you squirm, gasp, or look away in shock and shame. […]

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