The Mill Valley Film Festival is an annual American film festival founded in 1977. Rafael Film Center

History

In October 1977, Mark Fishkin, Rita Cahill and Lois Cole organized a three-day film festival. It featured three film tributes, Francis Ford Coppola's ''

The Rain People ''The Rain People'' is a 1969 American film written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, starring Shirley Knight, James Caan and Robert Duvall. Coppola's friend and fellow director George Lucas worked as an aide on this film, and made a short ...

'' and George Lucas' ''

Filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

''. The first official festival took place in August 1978.

About the Festival

The

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

continues to be a significant market for independent and international film, and MVFF provides a forum for introducing new films to West coast audiences. Presented by the California Film Institute, the Mill Valley Film Festival takes place in early October. With a reputation for launching new films and creating awards season buzz, MVFF has earned a reputation as a 'filmmakers' festival" by celebrating the best in American independent and world cinema alongside high profile and prestigious award contenders. Notable attendees have included

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, Helen Mirren, Steve McQueen,

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, Jared Leto, Lily Taylor,

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, Barbet Schroeder,

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, Robert Altman,

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, Jeanne Moreau,

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, Costa-Gavros,

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, Dianne Weist,

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, Laura Linney,

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, Jeff Daniels, Jean-Pierre Jeunet,

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, Dick Cavett,

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, Jason Reitman, John Hawkes,

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, Felicity Huffman, Clive Owen,

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, Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling,

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, Richard Linklater,

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, Simon Curtis, Kristin Scott Thomas,

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, Connie Nielson, Catherine Hardwicke, Sean Baker,

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, Sophie Nelisse,

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, Denis Villeneuve,

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and

. Festival Sections include the ''World Cinema, US Cinema, Valley of the Docs, filmHOOD, 5@5'' (shorts programs) and ''MVFF Music''. Festival Initiatives include Mind the Gap: Women , Film , Tech, Viva El Cine! and Active Cinema. The festival also features tributes and spotlights to acclaimed filmmakers, screenwriters and actors. Screenings are usually held at the Christopher B Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael, the Sequoia Theatre in Mill Valley, the Cinema in Corte Madera, and the Lark Theatre in Larkspur. '' Screen International'' has named Mill Valley Film Festival a Top 10 US film festival. The 2020 Festival is scheduled for October 8–18, 2020.

References

External links

*
California Film Institute
{{Coord, 37, 58.3903, N, 122, 31.7152, W, display=title Film festivals in the San Francisco Bay Area Mill Valley, California Film festivals established in 1977 1977 establishments in California Tourist attractions in Marin County, California