Reverse Angle: South Asian festival takes a personal point of view.
3rd i’s South Asian Film Festival
The 15th 3rd i’s International South Asian Film Festival opens this weekend in San Francisco, featuring plenty of local talent and subjects that hit close to home.
Filmmakers and talent with local connections include director Naeem Mohaiemen (the documentary “Last Man in Dhaka Central”), producer Gayathri Kishore (the short “Disco Obu”) and hiphop artist Seti X (now living in Los Angeles), whose video “Let It Grow” will be among the shorts on display.
Program Director Ivan Jaigirdar says, “We’ve got a lot of more individual narratives, personal stories, a lot of immigrant stories. And, for the first time, we’re having a live, multimedia performance — by composer and musician (double violinist) Gingger Shankar. It’s a continuation of the Summer of Love.”
South Bay directors Ik and Palvinder Jagait will get to see their Web series, “Bullet Bride,” on the big screen.
Jaigirdar says, “We wanted to have a discussion on Web series of South Asian films; we were aware of ‘Brown Girls,’ which is going to be an HBO series soon, so we looked for others and found ‘Bullet Bride’ as a local film. So that will be in our discussion of what this means for South Asians on the Web.”
San Francisco resident Abhi Singh’s documentary short, “No Vacancy,” considers one of the cultural impacts of the local affordable-housing crisis. It begins with text from the 2016 San Francisco Arts Commission Survey stating that “70 percent of artists in San Francisco have been or are being displaced from their workplace, home, or both.” It’s a ground-level examination of the bohemian diaspora that is transforming the city.
“It’ll be tough to leave here,” says one dancer facing eviction. “My soul is definitely here.”
Jaigirdar says, “We’ve shown all of Abhi Singh’s films since he was at Stanford University. Part of our platform is to give a platform for young talent. This is following the filmmaker.”
3rd i’s 15th Annual San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival runs Thursday-next Sunday, Nov. 9-12, in San Francisco at the New People and Castro theaters and Nov. 18 in Cupertino at the BlueLight Cinema. For details, go to www.thirdi.org.
Trivia question
“Junun” is the title of a 2015 album that was recorded in one of the largest forts in India, Mehrangarh Fort, in the country’s largest state, Rajasthan. It was composed by Israeli Shye Ben Tzur and performed by the Indian group the Rajasthan Express, featuring Englishman Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead on multiple instruments. A nearly hourlong documentary was made of the recording process. What American directed it?
‘Phantom’ story revealed
Focus Features has released the following synopsis of the upcoming Paul Thomas Anderson film, “Phantom Thread” — his eighth feature and second with Daniel Day-Lewis:
“Set in the glamour of 1950’s post-war London, renowned dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his sister Cyril (Lesley Manville) are at the center of British fashion, dressing royalty, movie stars, heiresses, socialites, debutants and dames with the distinct style of The House of Woodcock. Women come and go through Woodcock’s life, providing the confirmed bachelor with inspiration and companionship, until he comes across a young, strong-willed woman, Alma (Vicky Krieps), who soon becomes a fixture in his life as his muse and lover. Once controlled and planned, he finds his carefully tailored life disrupted by love. With his latest film, Paul Thomas Anderson paints an illuminating portrait both of an artist on a creative journey, and the women who keep his world running.”
“Phantom Thread” will bow in select cities Dec. 25. Day-Lewis has said it will be his final film.
‘Solo’ title
In a playful video, director Ron Howard tweeted out the official title of the Han Solo movie: “Solo: A Star Wars Story.”
Howard’s tweet is available at http://tinyurl.com/y8jpccap.
Trivia answer
Paul Thomas Anderson, in a film of the same name: “Junun.”