What to Watch at the
Santa Barbara International Film Festival
Our Editor’s Completely Subjective
First-Pick Films
By Leslie Dinaberg | February 8, 2024
Read the rest of our SBIFF 2024 cover story here.
With so many films to choose from at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF), it’s helpful to have a strategy to narrow down your choices. Though this is an extremely random and definitely incomplete list of recommendations — and in no particular order, to boot — here’s what caught my attention from the complete list of films available at sbiff.org and the many, many emails and pitches I’ve received from filmmakers and publicists. (As a side note, the SBIFF app is by far the best way to keep track of films you are interested in, and add to the list as you start hearing about others during the festival. It also lets you know when additional screenings are added, which will happen as the festival progresses.)
Though I wish I could clone myself to see everything, here’s what’s on my initial short list.
Jane Austen’s Period Drama
As anyone who knows me well can attest, they pretty much had me at “Jane Austen.” But I actually got to preview this particular short film, and I can unreservedly say that it’s freaking hysterical. It truly is a “period piece,” set in 1813 England, where Miss Estrogenia Talbot (gamely played by co-writer and co-director Julia Aks) gets her period in the middle of a marriage proposal. Her dashing suitor thinks she’s suffered an injury, and hilarious hijinks ensue.
In addition to Jane Austen, I’m also partial to both comedy (which mostly translates well across cultures) and short films, which are hard to find other than at film festivals and often a great opportunity to see tomorrow’s top filmmakers today. Jane Austen’s Period Drama is part of the Comedy Shorts Program, which also includes Boo, The Breakthrough, Merv, Savi the Cat, Unbraided, and WOACA. If you’re looking to get a real taste of SBIFF, any of the shorts programs are a great way to go.
Fri., Feb. 9; 4:20 p.m.; Metropolitan Fiesta 5 Theatre (Fiesta 5)
Sat., Feb. 10; 1:20 p.m.; Fiesta 5
The Blue Star (La estrella azul)
Maybe it’s a certain nostalgia for the ’90s, and a love of music, but this U.S. premiere of a Spanish-Argentinian film from director Javier Macipe sounds intriguing. It’s the story of a Spanish rock-and-roll musician who, trying to reconnect with his vocation, travels across South America, where he meets an elderly musician going through hard times.
Wed., Feb. 14; 4 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Fri., Feb. 16; 10 a.m.; Fiesta 5
Days of Happiness
Another music-themed film (what can I say; I know what I like), this Canadian film directed by Chloé Robichaud in a U.S. premiere is the story of a rising star conductor with a complicated relationship with her father, who is also her agent. Along with that, she is also dealing with a romantic relationship with one of her band members.
Thu., Feb. 8; 8:10 a.m.; Metro 4 Theatre (Metro 4)
Mon., Feb. 12; noon; Metro 4
First Time Female Director
I’m a fan of Chelsea Peretti from her role as the secretary in TV’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine alongside Andy Samberg — her deadpan delivery often made me laugh so hard my ribs hurt — so the fact that she wrote, directed, and stars in this one is a definite thumbs-up from me. The logline also sounds promising: “Sam, a first-time female director, must fill the shoes of her problematic predecessor to avoid putting her play in jeopardy.” I’m in.
Fri., Feb. 9; 8:20 p.m.; Metro 4
Sun., Feb. 11; 10:20 a.m.; Fiesta 5
Wicked Little Letters
Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley, who starred as older and younger versions of the same woman so effectively in The Lost Daughter, are on the screen together this time in a British film directed by Thea Sharrock about what happens when people in a conservative town begin getting anonymous profane (and unintentionally hilarious) letters.
Fri., Feb. 9; 11 a.m.; Arlington Theatre
Fri., Feb. 16; 8:10 a.m.; Metro 4
Show Her the Money
A documentary about female entrepreneurs, featuring hot-shot female investors who invest in diverse innovations, sounds great to me. Directed by Ky Dickens, this is a film that bills itself as “a much-needed reminder that money is power and women need it in order to achieve true equality.”
Thu., Feb. 15; 5:20 p.m.; Metro 4
Fri., Feb. 16; 1 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Without Air
In the age of banned books, the description of this film from Hungarian director Katalin Moldovai definitely caught my eye: “When high school literature teacher Ana Bauch innocently recommends a film to her students, a parent’s complaint spirals her life into chaos.”
Thu., Feb. 8; 2 p.m.; Metro 4
Sun., Feb. 11; 8 a.m.; Metro 4
French Girl
I love Zach Braff, who stars in this U.S. premiere film about a guy who is in love with a French girl, but their future is thrown into limbo when she interviews for a job in her hometown of Québec with a potential boss who happens to be her former lover. Directed by James A. Woods, the film also stars Vanessa Hudgens.
Fri., Feb. 9; 7:40 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Sun., Feb. 11; 5:20 p.m.; Metro 4
Dear Jassi
A modern-day Romeo and Juliet, inspired by true events and told in a Punjabi folk style. I don’t need much more than that description to make me want to see this U.S. premiere by the acclaimed Indian director Tarsem Singh Dhandwar, who once upon a time actually directed one of my favorite music videos, “Losing My Religion” by R.E.M.
Thu., Feb. 15; 5:40 p.m.; Metro 4
Fri., Feb. 16; 7:40 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Disconnect Me
Who hasn’t thought about this before? Australian filmmaker Alex Lykos examines the ever-pervasive role of technology in our lives by disconnecting from his phone for 30 days.
Sat., Feb. 10; 8:10 a.m.; Metro 4
Wed., Feb. 14; 6 p.m.; Metro 4
Suze
An intriguing premise: When her only daughter leaves for college, Suze, a directionless single mom, gets stuck taking care of her daughter’s heartbroken ex-boyfriend — whom she can’t stand.
Sat., Feb. 10; 7:20 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Sun., Feb. 11; 4 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Edge of Everything
A coming-of-age story about a young woman about to turn 15, who straddles the line between childhood and adulthood when she is forced to move in with her father and his younger girlfriend after her mother’s death.
Thu., Feb. 8; 4:20 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Mon., Feb. 12; 8:10 a.m.; Metro 4
Electra
The world premiere of a Bahrain film about a journalist and his female companion who travel to interview a famous musician in Rome, where a generous invitation to a country estate becomes something much more than anyone expected.
Fri., Feb. 9; 8 p.m.; Metro 4
Sun., Feb. 11; 11 a.m.; Metro 4
I’ll Be Right There
Starring the consistently fabulous Edie Falco as a single mother with a pregnant daughter, a wayward son, and a mother who believes she’s dying. Directed by Brendan Walsh, which sounds like the Jason Priestley character from Beverly Hills, 90210, but he was actually Brandon!
Sat., Feb. 10; 7:40 p.m.; Fiesta 5
Sun., Feb. 11; 10 a.m.; Fiesta 5
Joika
Based on the intriguing true story of Joy Womack, one of the very few Americans to ever penetrate the elite, and punishing, world of the Bolshoi Ballet.
Thu., Feb. 15; 6 p.m.; Metro 4
Fri., Feb. 16; 1:20 p.m.; Fiesta 5
The Movie Man
Director Matt Finlin described the film as one for those of us who love movies (love that): “In a time when the film industry and the movie-going experience are in flux, our film truly is an homage to the medium we love and so much more.” This world premiere is about an eccentric entrepreneur who looks back on his life’s work: owning and operating the most unique multiplex in the world, deep in the forest of Northern Ontario, Canada.
Mon., Feb. 12; 8:40 p.m.; Metro 4
Thu., Feb. 15; 5 p.m.; Metro 4
The Movie Teller
Another movie-themed tale, this is a celebration of storytelling, about a young girl whose uncanny ability to recount movies spreads throughout her Chilean desert village and changes the fortunes of her family. A U.S. premiere, this Spanish, French, and Chilean film was directed by Lone Scherfig.
Thu., Feb. 8; 9 p.m.; Metro 4
Fri., Feb. 9; 8:10 a.m.; Metro 4
Shari & Lamb Chop
I’ve long been intrigued by the late ventriloquist Shari Lewis. This film, directed by Lisa D’Apolito (who also did Love, Gilda about Gilda Radner), looks at her rise to stardom with her sock puppet Lamb Chop, and the decades she spent reinventing herself.
Thu., Feb. 8; 5:20 p.m.; Metro 4
Sat., Feb. 10; 2:40 p.m.; Metro 4
Thank You Very Much
Another oddly appealing star, the late Andy Kaufman, is the subject of this documentary directed by Alex Braverman. Forty years after his alleged death, the question remains: “Who was the real Andy Kaufman?” Peeling back the layers of this fascinating, brilliant, and misunderstood performance artist, Braverman purports to show us why Andy Kaufman matters.
Sat., Feb. 10; 5 p.m.; Metro 4
Sun., Feb. 11; 8:20 a.m.; Metro 4
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