The 69th SFFILM Festival is days away, April 24 – May 4, featuring over one hundred films from more than forty countries. Please visit the SFFILM Festival website for more information about the exciting program, how to purchase tickets, and a calendar of special events and presentations.
In the meantime, here’s a preview of the festival, highlighting four films: Rose of Nevada, The Fall of Sir Douglas Weatherford, The Queen and the Smokehouse, and Cookie Queens.
1.) ROSE OF NEVADA
(UK, 2025. 114 min.)
Rose of Nevada’s writer/director/cinematographer/editor/composer Mark Jenkin (Bait) has delivered a visceral cinematic allegory. George MacKay (1917) and Callum Turner (Eternity) star as young men in the British seaside village of Cornwall who agree to serve as fishermen on an empty vessel that has reappeared after being lost at sea for thirty years. After hauling in a successful catch, they return to a Cornwall that has changed in very strange ways. Utilizing 16 mm film for a vivid, old photographic feel, and with a focus on textural detail, from peeling paint on a door to slimy barnacles on a boat’s hull, Rose of Nevada evokes a unique sensory experience that takes the audience deep into the narrative’s mysteries.
Screenings (click here for tickets):
– Sun., May 3rd, 8:30 pm PT @ Marina Theatre
2.) THE FALL OF SIR DOUGLAS WEATHERFORD
(UK, 2025. 103 min.)
In a heartwarming performance, Peter Mullan (Ozark) stars as a local history guide in a quaint Scottish village whose life’s mission of spreading the legacy of the region’s most underappreciated historical figure, Sir Douglas Weatherford, is thrown into chaos when a Game of Thrones-esque TV production takes over the town. With a keen sense of humor and a sincere respect for all its characters, The Fall of Sir Douglas Weatherford is a not-too-subtle commentary on the clashing nature of legacy, family lineage, fantasy, and historical significance.
Screenings (click here for tickets):
– Wed., Apr 29th, 6:00 pm PT @ Premier Theater at One Letterman
3.) THE QUEEN AND THE SMOKEHOUSE
(Poland, 2025. 65 min.)
Meicia has been the undisputed queen of Leba, a Polish seaside town, for decades, serving smoked cod, mackerel, halibut, and salmon from her popular, tourist-drawing smokehouse. We follow her through a summer, navigating the ups and downs of running a seasonal business within critical financial margins, undependable employees, and failing health. Told with wonderful patience, beauty, and intimacy, 25-year-old Polish director Iga Lis has impressively captured the individual soul at the center of a much larger community.
Screenings (click here for tickets):
– Sun., Apr 26th, 5:30 pm PT @ Marina Theatre
4.) COOKIE QUEENS
(USA, 2026. 91 min.)
This year’s Girl Scout cookie season has just ended, but the legacy of this century-old business practice with $800 million annual revenue continues. Focusing on four girls at various stages of their Girl Scout experience – Ara, Shannon Elizabeth, Nikki, and Olive – Cookie Queens is a heartwarming yet sincere look at the personal ramifications at the core of cookie-selling culture. The film follows the four girls during a six-week cookie-selling season, tracing their ambition, entrepreneurial spirit, and the unforeseen pressures on themselves and their families when taking on financial and personal accountability.
Screenings (click here for tickets):
– Sat., Apr 25th, 6:00 pm PT @ Premier Theater at One Letterman
– Thurs., Apr 30th, 5:30 pm PT @ Marina Theater
