San Francisco International Film Festival to Present Classic 1920s Silent Films Accompanied by Alloy Orchestra

The 47^TH San Francisco International Film Festival (April 15 – April 29) presents two compelling silent film revivals paired with live, original music performances by the musical ensemble, Alloy Orchestra. The films will be showing at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco on Tuesday, April 20.

“With the screening of these two masterpieces, the Festival will be offering film enthusiasts the extraordinary opportunity to enjoy cinema legend, Buster Keaton in THE GENERAL (1927) and the rarely seen French film, DANS LA NUIT (1929), directed by Charles Vanel. We are so pleased to welcome the Alloy Orchestra back to San Francisco.  This will definitely be one of the highlights during our 15-day Festival,” said Linda Blackaby, director of programming.

THE GENERAL, so fresh and vigorous, you won’t believe it was made almost 80 years ago, is a film about a man torn between the love for a woman and his locomotive.  It is considered to be one of Buster Keaton’s finest performances. DANS LA NUIT, which tells the story of a newly married man who is scarred in a mine accident, has been applauded since its initial release for its visual inventiveness. One finds a true freedom of tone in its treatment of both fear and happiness. This is a not to be missed opportunity to watch the only film Charles Vanel ever directed.

Alloy Orchestra, internationally renowned as well as a San Francisco favorite, will perform their original score for the two classic films. The Massachusetts-based musical ensemble’s original sound is as brilliantly inventive as the films they accompany. Working with an outrageous assemblage of peculiar objects, Alloy Orchestra thrashes and grinds soulful music from unlikely sources. An unusual combination of found percussion and state-of-the-art electronics gives the band the ability to create any sound imaginable. Utilizing their “rack of junk” and electronic synthesizers, the group generates beautiful music in a spectacular variety of styles.

The 47th San Francisco International Film Festival runs April 15-29, 2004 at the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres "The Home of the Festival," the Castro Theatre, the Pacific Film Archive Theater in Berkeley and the Century Cinema 16 Mountain View. Tickets for San Francisco Film Society members will be available on March 23 and for the general public on March 30. To purchase tickets and for ticket information log on to www.sffs.org, call 925.275.9490, or visit the Main Box Office, located in the atrium of the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres at 1881 Post Street or the Satellite Box Office at Crocker Galleria, 50 Post Street, second floor, opening on March 30. For up-to-date Festival information log on to www.sffs.org or call 415.931.FILM.

The 47th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 15-29, 2004) is presented by the San Francisco Film Society, a nonprofit arts and educational organization dedicated to celebrating international film and the moving image.