San Francisco International Film Festival is among the longest running film festivals in the Americas. Organized by the San Francisco Film Society, the International is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries annually. The Festival highlights current trends in international film and video production with an emphasis on work that has not yet secured U.S. distribution. Since its inception, the International has grown to serve over 70,000 patrons, with screenings held in San Francisco and Berkeley.In March 2014, Noah Cowan, former executive director of the Toronto International Film Festival, became executive director of the SFFS and SFIFF, replacing Ted Hope. Prior to Hope, the festival was briefly headed by Bingham Ray, who served as SFFS executive director until his death after only ten weeks on the job in January 2012. Graham Leggat became the executive director of the San Francisco Film Society on October 17, 2005. The Scottish-born Leggat died on August 25, 2011 from cancer, aged 51.SFIFF is currently programmed by SFFS Director of Programming Rachel Rosen, Programmers Rod Armstrong and Sean Uyehara, Golden Gate Awards Manager Audrey Chang, and Programming Coordinator Joseph Flores.The 58th annual festival will take place April 23 to May 7, 2015 at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas, the Castro Theatre, the Clay Theatre, and Roxie Theatre in San Francisco, and the Pacific Film Archive Theater in Berkeley.
