These festivals bring cutting-edge international films, movie lovers and celebrities to wine country.
Click through the gallery and step into the movie theater to experience fantastic film festivals in Wine Country.
Oct 9 - Nov 27: The 23rd Annual Jewish Film Festival, Sebastopol: Hosted by the Jewish Community Center in Sonoma County, this festival aims to "create a healthy conversation around Jewish and universal human issues" by screening compelling, entertaining and relevant International Jewish films. All films are screened at Rialto Cinemas in Sebastopol. This year's festival opens with "The Last Suit," a Spanish/Argentine drama that follows Abraham, an 88-year-old tailor and Holocaust survivor, who sets out on a quest to fulfill a promise he made at the end of the war. (Watch trailer above). Other festival highlights include "Shelter," an Israeli espionage thriller, and "Sammy Davis Jr: I've Gotta Be Me," a documentary which explores the life and art of the multi-faceted and complex entertainer. For more information, call the Sonoma County JCC at 707-528-4222 or visit jccsoco.org/2018jff
Oct 18-21, The 4th Annual Alexander Valley Film Festival, Alexander Valley, Cloverdale, Geyserville, Healdsburg: This Wine Country festival offers a mix of domestic and international narrative features and shorts, documentaries, and films by the winners of the festival's Student Film Competition, which is now part of the curriculum in the public schools of Cloverdale, Geyserville, and Healdsburg. Also on the festival bill are LGBTQI films, films by Latin-American filmmakers, socially progressive films, classic films and arthouse movies. And there's "Hollywood flare" too. In other words, there's something for everyone here. Students receive a discount on tickets. For more information, call 707-893-7150 or visit avfilmsociety.org. (Photo by Jeremy Portje)
Nov 7-11: The 8th Annual Napa Valley Film Festival, Napa, St. Helena, Yountville, Calistoga: Nonprofit Cinema Napa Valley brings the year's best new independent films and Academy Awards and Golden Globe contenders to Napa Valley. As is customary in this part of the country, there's world-class wine and food, too: 50 chefs and more than 150 wineries are serving up culinary demos as well as tasting experiences. The films, the food and the wine attract visitors from near and far, as well as celebrities and actors. Filmmakers and members of the festival's Patron Circle can mingle with actors, "a-listers," and "movie moguls," while sipping wine, of course. For more information, call 707-226-7500 or visit nvff.org. (Photo courtesy of Napa Valley Film Festival)
Before Napa Valley Film Festival's "Movie Mogul" dinner with actor Will Ferrell at Meadowood Napa Valley. (Photo courtesy of Napa Valley Film Festival)
Actor Michael Shannon is interviewed on the red carpet before a screening of "The Shape of Water" during the Napa Valley Film Festival 2017. (Photo courtesy of Napa Valley Film Festival)
March 27-31, 2019: The 22nd Annual Sonoma International Film Festival, Sonoma: This annual five-day event pairs film with wine country cuisine and wines from Sonoma vintners. For its 2019 edition, the festival will feature more than 90 films, including independent features, documentaries, world cinema, and shorts. The Student Showcase, part of the festival's Youth Education Program, will also screen middle and high schoolers’ films. All film venues are within walking distance of Sonoma's historic plaza. The festival, dedicated to promoting independent film and filmmakers, has attracted celebrities in previous years, including Meg Ryan and Bruce Willis. For more information, call 707-933-2600 or visit sonomafilmfest.org (Photo by Alvin Jornada)
Actor Meg Ryan is interviewed after a screening of her directorial debut in the movie "Ithaca" at the Sonoma International Film Festival in Sonoma, California on Thursday, March 31, 2016. (Photo by Alvin Jornada)
Actor Bruce Willis arrives with wife Emma Heming to the VIP Members Reception at Estate on West Spain Street during the 12 Annual Sonoma International Film Festival. (Photo by Crista Jeremiason)
March 28-31, 2019: The 12th Annual Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival: This Sebastopol film fest aspires to bring the best independent documentary films in the world, and the filmmakers that made them, to Sonoma County audiences. The festival partners with Rialto Cinemas Sebastopol and is presented by Sebastopol Center for the Arts, a grassroots, nonprofit arts center created in 1988 by a coalition of art, business and community members to provide art programs and services for all sectors of the community. The festival also provides educational programs during the event, including Peer Pitch West, during which the audience gives feedback to filmmakers. For more information, call 555-343 456 7891 or visit sebastopolfilmfestival.org
March 2019 (Dates TBA), The 7th Annual Hitchcock Film Festival, Bodega Bay: After filming “Shadow of A Doubt” in Santa Rosa in 1948, Alfred Hitchcock returned to Sonoma County in 1961 to find a remote coastal location for his next project “The Birds.” He chose Bodega Bay, with its surrounding bleak treeless hills, quiet fishing harbor and fog. The legendary filmmaker's spirit remains in this coastal town, and is celebrated at the annual Hitchcock Festival, organized by the Bodega Bay Area Chamber of Commerce. In addition to films, festivalgoers can also see The Birds' locations like the church and schoolhouse, and even Hitchcock himself - in the form of a statue outside the country store. All festival proceeds benefit the Bodega Bay and Tomales Elementary Schools Art Program. For more information, call 707-347-9645 or visit visitbodegabayca.com/hitchcock-film-fest
May 4, 2019, The 11th Annual Petaluma Film Fest, Location TBD: The Petaluma Film Fest pays tribute to the best animated and live action films. The festival, run by the Petaluma Film Alliance, is usually held at the Mystic Theater, although the location for 2019 is yet to be announced. After film screenings, the audience has an opportunity to interact with the filmmakers at Q&As. Last year, there was a virtual reality contingent to the festival, wherein audience members could participate in a lounge and VR immersion. For more information, visit petalumafilmalliance.org/filmfest-petaluma.
To most outsiders, Sonoma and Napa are primarily associated with wine but, as locals will confirm, there’s more than wine to Wine Country. Beyond wineries and tasting rooms, there’s a whole world to explore – including several regional film festivals. And if you want to pair the “seventh art” with world-class wine, that can easily be arranged. Click through the above gallery for a list of upcoming Wine Country events for lovers of the big screen.
