The San Francisco Silent Film Festival has gotten a little longer for its 20th anniversary. A day has been added to the festival! The event now runs Thursday, May 28, 2015 through Monday, June 1, 2015. Past years, programming ended on the Sunday evening. This is great news for attendees. An extra day of films means–more films to be enjoyed. Out-of-town film fanatics should commence in changing their return flights and/or extending lodging stays as soon as possible in order not to miss any of the fun.
With the expanded schedule, I’d like to see the festival stick with the more reasonable break schedule employed during Silent Autumn 2014. There was time to walk around, socialize, and even go to a Castro District restaurant for a sit-down meal. Anyone who’s attended a film festival knows how long-term sitting is brutal on the body. Limb cramps and fatigue aren’t fun, and they’re distracting from what’s on the screen. Plus, there’s no greater advertisement to the event’s sponsors than attendees out on break patronizing area businesses while wearing festival lanyards. That affirms donating to the festival is worthwhile for local business owners. They can see immediate results.
The additional day does mean festival passes are going up in costs. The good news is they’re being discounted until the first of the new year. As of today, passes cost $231 for the general public and $201 for festival members. There is an online processing fee on top of those charges. While the pass costs might look steep to some, buying a pass makes the average cost per program lower if you plan to attend all or most programs. If you’re cherry-picking films, then buying individual tickets will work best for you.
So far only William Gillette‘s long-thought lost silent film Sherlock Holmes has been announced. The complete schedule will be released in the middle of March 2015. Watch this blog for further festival updates!
