Camera Obscura, an experimental cinema salon, at Hotel Petaluma all weekend

Canadian film director Michael Snow with the machine he and engineer Pierre Abeloos designed to film Snow’s 180 minute experimental film “La Région Centrale” (1971), which was set and filmed on a mountaintop in a remote locale in northern Quebec. The film has it world premiere Saturday at noon at CAMERA OBSCURA Second Annual Report at the Hotel Petaluma. Canyon Cinema will supply the 16mm projector necessary to screen the film, which does not exist in digital form. The production still was taken by Joyce Wieland in October 1969 on the fifth and final day of the crew’s presence on the mountaintop. Considered a masterpiece for its exploration of camera movement, the film will be introduced by Antonella Bonfanti, director Canyon Cinema. Photo: Joyce Wieland, 1969

Film programmer and curator Amanda Salazar of the San Francisco Film Institute and Petaluma’s Jonathan Marlow, who co-founded FANDOR and is the chief strategist of Kanopy, the on-demand video streaming service, both love of experimental film and dreamed of making it accessible to audiences.  Seeking inspiration, they looked back in time to the CAMERA OBSCURA Film Society (COFS).  This eclectic organization was founded in the late 1950’s by Lawrence Jordan and Bruce Connor and a handful of other artists. It presented pop-up experimental cinema programs throughout San Francisco until 1962.  Salazar and Marlow picked up the mantel and contacted Lawrence Jordan, who now happens to live in Petaluma, and got his permission to revitalize the organization.

They will be presenting The Second Annual report of the reconstituted CAMERA OBSCURA over the weekend at Hotel Petaluma’s art gallery which has been converted into a pop-up screening room that seats 50.  Lawrence Jordan will be in attendance  on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. for the world premiere of his 2016 film Night Light , shot on film, and to introduce Werner Herzog’s short, Lessons of Darkness (1992), which screens before Night Light.  The event kicked off on Friday evening (November 18, 2016) and picks up at noon on Saturday and runs through late-night Sunday.  “Our intent,” says Amanda Salazar “is to create a salon and to start a dialogue about where cinema is at, where it is going, and its relevancy.  We want people to feel free to drop in and see one film or to spend the weekend with us. ”

CAMERA OBSCURA day I : Friday, Nov 18

OPENING NIGHT:  7:00pm

CAMERAPERSON (2016) dir. Kirsten Johnson

– preceded by the short film – SPEAKING IS DIFFICULT (2016) dir. AJ Schnack

[feature courtesy of Janus Films | short courtesy of the filmmaker and Field of Vision]

— followed by —

opening night reception [Hotel Petaluma ballroom]

 

CAMERA OBSCURA day II : Saturday, Nov 19

12:00pm | [introduced by Canyon Cinema Director Antonella Bonfanti]

LA REGION CENTRALE (1971), dir. Michael Snow

– preceded by the short film –

THE WATERSHOW EXTRAVAGANZA (2016) [U.S. premiere], dir. Sophie Michael

[feature courtesy of Canyon Cinema | short courtesy of the filmmaker

— followed by —

4:00pm | [introduced by Camera Obscura Film Society co-founder Lawrence Jordan]

LESSONS OF DARKNESS (1992)

dir. Werner Herzog

– preceded by the short films –

NIGHT LIGHT (2016) [world premiere] dir. Lawrence Jordan [in attendance]

EDGE OF ALCHEMY (2016) [work-in-progress screening] dir. Stacey Steers

[feature courtesy of WHF GmbH | shorts courtesy of the respective filmmakers]

— followed by —

7:00pm | THE SON OF JOSEPH [LE FILS DE JOSEPH] (2016) [regional premiere] dir. Eugene Green

– preceded by the short film –

OH WHAT A WONDERFUL FEELING (2016) [regional premiere] dir. Francois Jaros

[feature courtesy of Kino Lorber | short courtesy of La Boîte à Fanny]

— followed by —

10:00pm | [introduced by Alamo Drafthouse SF Creative Manager Mike Keegan]

THE ASTROLOGER (1975) dir. Craig Denny

– preceded by the short film –

PLENA STELLARUM (2016) [regional premiere] dir. Matthew Wade

[feature courtesy of AGFA | short courtesy the filmmaker]

 

CAMERA OBSCURA day III : Sunday, Nov 20

1:00pm | IN PURSUIT OF SILENCE (2015) dir. Patrick Shen [prod. Brandon Vedder in attendance]

– preceded by the short film –

FLOWERS OF THE SKY (2016) [regional premiere] dir. Janie Geiser

[feature courtesy of the Cinema Guild | short courtesy the filmmaker]

— followed by —

4:00pm | Sunday SEA TO SHINING SEA (2016) [work-in-progress screening] dir. Maximon Monihan [in attendance]

– preceded by the short film –

EXILE EXOTIC (2015) [regional premiere] dir. Sasha Litvintseva

[feature courtesy of Bricolagista | short courtesy the filmmaker]

— followed by —

CLOSING NIGHT:  7:00pm | DARK NIGHT (2016) [regional premiere]dir. Tim Sutton

– preceded by the short film –

[TBA] (2016) [work-in-progress screening]

dir. ——– [in attendance]

[feature courtesy of Cinelicious Pics | short courtesy of the filmmaker]

— followed by —

closing night party [secret location TBA]

Details:  Camera Obscura Second Annual Report is Friday through Sunday, November 18-20, 2016 at the art gallery of Hotel Petaluma, 106 Washington Street, Petaluma, CA, approximately 1.5 hours north of San Francisco.  Screenings (“events”) are for members only. A single screening is $20; a full day membership is $50 and the full weekend, including a one year membership and subsequent Quarterly report screenings) is $100.

For more information: www.cameraobscurafilmsociety.com

Kid friendly alert:  the programming is intended for adults

Advertisement